I’m in the coach on the way to Suzhou from Shanghai. We have been in Shanghai for three days and it has been some of the most fun I’ve ever had. We’ve done quite a lot. First day we got here we just checked in to the hotel and got over the jet lag. I actually slept for 13 of the 14 hours on the plane so I never had any jet lag. Thank you for the good advice and the earplugs. Earplugs are the best invention there has ever been. I couldn’t have made it without them. After we rested up for awhile we went for a boat ride on the river (I don’t know what the name is, but everyone just calls it the Bund. The Bund is the name of the area by the river, and is famous for its bright lights at night). Then we had dinner at a local Chinese restaurant.
The next day we went to the Shanghai Center for Urban Planning. It was very interesting. There was one floor in particular that showed what Shanghai was supposed to be like in the next 10-20 years. It was weird and very Communist at first, but after awhile I learned to appreciate the Chinese people’s desire for improving their country. During lunch I went off into a park to eat a sandwich (just one of the 20 different kinds of food you told me to bring). But within 5 minutes I was met by three Chinese tourists, all of whom were still students. They bombarded me with questions about who I was with, where I was from, and Arnold Schwarzenegger. I tried my best to answer them, but their accents were very strong. They were very nice people. That evening we played a concert in the Shanghai Concert Hall. In my opinion, the Appalachian Spring was not our best. BUT THE BASS SECTION WAS SOLID AS A ROCK BABY. UH! As a whole the concert went well.
Yesterday was an amazing day. The first thing we did was wake up early (7:30 actually. My roommate and I asked for a wake up call but they somehow just forgot to call us) and get on a bus to go to the Yu Garden, one of China’s many beautiful gardens. Now don’t be deceived by the American idea of a garden: a small plot of land where one can grow plants. This garden was a huge, sort of park area. The four main elements of a Chinese garden are plants, rock, water, and a building. The Yu Yuan Garden had beautiful flowers and trees, brooks, and a pond filled with fish. In the center of all this was a dwelling so large that if I didn’t have a tour guide I would have gotten lost and never gotten out (not that I would mind living there). It was truly an amazing experience.
After we left the garden we went to a place called La Villa Rouge (The Red Village) for lunch. Then I went on a bus to the Shanghai Library to watch the jazz combo. I loved them so much that I went to see them again at their concert at La Villa Rouge. And of course Natalie was ridiculously awesome on her alto (Neil, her playing reminds me so much of yours. You two sound exactly the same).
After that we went to see the Chinese acrobatic show, which was the most amazing thing I have ever seen. They performed feats, that until yesterday, I believed were impossible to be performed by humans. I was tired, so I was zoning in and out, but it was still great. Then we went back to the hotel and slept. This morning I got up at 6:00 and packed up, got on the bus and here I am. It may sound like I have pretty much summed it all up but I assure you, what I have seen, tasted, played, heard and felt (the heat) these past few days is indescribable by any means. I am just getting off the bus so I have to say goodbye. I love you all very much!
Love, Danny (Hope to write again soon)
