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Published: August 1st 2018
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This was my second time in Wuhan but I didn't have my friend Terry assisting me. The four and a half hour train ride was done during the afternoon arriving to my destination by 18:15 (6:15 P.M.). It was a very long trip when compared to the half hour to forty-five minutes (the ride to Guangzhou) I was very accustomed to by now. I feel very happy upon arriving at the Wuhan Train Station. I had in part "forgotten" to mention this little trip to my friend Terry because I wanted to discover this place on my own this second time around. It started with discovering which metros I needed to use to reach the GuanGu Area (Optical Valley). With a bit of help from the tourist office (that barely spoke English) and a tourist version of the city map, I quickly figured out the metro route I required. It was about an hour later that I was strolling along the sidewalks and pedestrian overpasses of the GuanGu area. My natural luck driven direction sense failed me in a way. I was unable to spot the motel we (Terry and I) had stayed at during our joint visit here nearly 2
years ago. But it was not a complete lost as my senses and memory walked me straight to the main entrance (Flamingo Square) to Spanish Street (actually: Spanish Style Street) and to discover two other styled streets that lay just passed the miniature version of "Notre Dame Cathedral". Feeling slightly annoyed at myself, I retraced my steps towards another hotel I had spotted during my winding wanderings and booked a room there for two night.
The next day was spent with cell phone camera in hand to tour the insides and outsides of this group of triple styled streets. Wondering through Spanish Style Street brought back memories of my first visit here. It was different walking in Terry's footsteps this time since he wasn't here to make jokes or mention anecdotes from his time spent living in Wuhan. But it was good to move at my pace and taking breaks when I felt tired. This was a turn for me to step along Spanish Street without any one asking me to slow down or hurry up. Once again the architecture grasped my eyes while my brain was forced to balance the ancient styled structures with the modern
stores & restaurants that filled this area. Most of the description are already available in my first article about Wuhan (
Three days in Wuhan) so I will avoid mentioning all of it here.
As I came to "Matador Square" and the miniature cathedral, I was entering Italian Style Street. The differences in the architecture are subtle at first as the styles are blended seamlessly by using common concepts. The gradual shift shows both the skills and attention of the creators of this triple show of influences in the architecture of Wuhan. The truer Italian style shows more as you continue down the narrow internal pathways. The mixture of a few Western chain stores & restaurants with modern Chinese equivalencies is the most stunning part of walking down these special styled streets.
As you cross a street which divides the Italian style and German style, you see the stunning differences in architecture. The near impossibility of blending the styles is so subtle that it's easy to miss and be shocked by the sudden harsher cut style of old Germany. The edges are frayed in your eyes unless you truly examine the mild shifting difference above the roadway. The
new section has it's own statuette residents showing clearly that you've entered the land of Oktoberfest and the home of beer. These are not the only statuettes you find in the triple styled streets but these seem to stand out more than the suits of armor and the few characters related to Italy and Spain. But this is also where you find the "children zone" in the form of a small second floor amusement park and a series of dinosaurs, animals, and Greek inspired heroes & deities. This is only partially built in German architectural style but a blended mix of Germany and the Greco-Roman Empire. No new name is given to this last section hidden within German Style Street but it divided by a gate crowned with trumpeting angels. The outside of this small portion is built in pure German style hiding this "phantom" section. Beyond this is the children's train station that travels between the edge of the Italian section and the far open end of the German section. This open area holds a restaurant built within the down scaled model of a jumbo jet. This last piece is not the crowning piece but a wonderful little surprise
for children and parents alike who can have lunch or dinner in the cockpit.
I did take a long stroll around the edges and within this wonderful architectural sight at the higher levels for better overview shots of the wonderful mix of modern consumerism and ancient architectural styling. This was my chance to give all of you the view I had first had of Wuhan nearly 2 years ago. But this was only me revisiting where I was once before. Many other wonders are available here in Wuhan as you will see in my further articles about this wonderful city.
Xiantao town
My next stop was Xiantao which is a much smaller town which took a bus ride from the nearby (relatively) station. It was odd for me going from a large city like Wuhan to this small town. What I got to see there was mostly parks and open areas plus one small Buddhist Nuns' Temple. It was a very relaxed atmosphere where even I felt like having a noon time nap (which is typical to do in China). The quiet and very natural surroundings made it easy
to be "Zen" here. One of the most restful place I've visited during my time wandering around China. Nothing much else needs to be said about this town other than it was a good place to visit and I thank my friend for inviting me to see this place.
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