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Ni hao!

Oh how the fresh smell of sweat dripping from your body mixed with humidity and pollution attracts the mosquitos.

We first went to our hotel, Xinlong, to take a nice, cold shower. Our room was on the 4th floor, facing the Suzhou River. We watched the barges float by and the construction on nearby buildings, as well as senior citizens practicing the age old Tai Chi. The hotel was $10, and we could only stay because Jon spoke Chinese - no English here.

Our biological clock was off and we went roaming the streets at 5am. and made our way to the Bund (Shanghai tan), where the foreign imperialists had taken over the economy and built up a beautiful, Western style river front.

While in Shanghai we toured various beautiful, unfamiliar places. We crossed the river by ferry and walked around the new Pudong area. A vast land of incredible, modern sky scrappers with east and west influences. It's all very new.

Most of our food came off the streets from vendors selling shish kabob (delicious lamb) to Bao zi (doughy bun filled with meat and steamed ($0.25 each). On one lunch occasion we got chao mian (fried noodles). Our street chef was a mean wok noodle frying machine. She whipped it out in seconds while many waited for her tantalizing flavors.

On another occasion we went to Yu Yuan gardens (stopping at Xingbake - Starbucks, on the way, of course). There we toured the ancient garden, created in Suzhou style, touring the old pagodas and coy fish ponds. It was filled with calm and serenity, just what we needed after the busy city life. Good thing we went on a weekday morning.

We also went to Nanjing Dong Lu (Fifth street of China), a metropolitan shopping streets equivilent to Time Square. Jon turned down many "lady bars" and "pretty boys" from the pimps and we enjoyed the rediculously modern area. We were tempted to look at the knockoff rolexs, prada wear, etc., however. Yeah right... it'll be cheaper in Beijing.

The 3 days spent in Shanghai felt much longer, not beacuse it was boring, but because 1) we were jetlagged and never slept, 2) the massive amount of people and things to see were overwhelming, and 3) it was a happening city that kept us stimulated.

We left for Nanning, Guangxi Province, the biggest city close to the Vietnamese border, via Shanghai's south station. The train was 27 hours with triple-decker bunk beds (we go the top ones - most affordable)

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