More of Suzhou

Apart from the canal, Suzhou is also renowned for its beautiful stone bridges, pagodas, and meticulously designed gardens, which has become a great tourist attraction.

The Pagoda of the Northern Temple is one of Suzhou's less restored and therefore a more authentic, temple attraction.

It has nine storeys and eight sides with carving and colored patterns and is No.1 wooden pagoda south of the Yangtze River.

The wooden pagoda is said to be the tallest pagoda south of the Yangtze River. It is also a great place for good view of the city.

One can also enjoy a cup of Biluochun tea (a famous regional tea) at the teahouse on the premises.

The famous Maple Bridge alongside the watch tower. There is a well-known poem by the Zhang Ji, entitled, “Mooring to the Maple Bridge at Night”. On Chinese New Years Eve, people gather at the bridge to hear the bells of a nearby temple, as described in the poem.

There was a large bronze statue of Zhang Ji (a Chinese poet of the Tang Dynasty). His pointing finger is brightly polished from all the people rubbing it for good luck.

Yunyan Pagoda, also known as Huqiu Tower, has been named China’s Leaning Tower of Pisa by world architects. On top of the Tiger Hill, although it is seven stories, there are no built-in staircases. People climbed to upper stories using movable ladders.

A young chinese woman in her Western-style wedding dress.

Candy poured onto marble slab to cool and then formed into various shapes and patterns of animals. Skillful indeed - a peacock candy.

Suzhou's silk and tea are very famous besides its classic gardens (which I didn't have the time to venture). We had a good session on how to choose a good tea set from a nice selection of sets and yet affordable.

Stinky tofu (also known by its Chinese name, Chou Dofu), a fermented tofu dish which has a very strong acrid odor, is sometimes politely called "fragrant tofu". Its smell has been described as "baby poo," "hellacious" and "sharply foul". Quite an unforgetable experience. I didn't like it though.