After living in Nanjing for almost four months we have gotten very familiar with the area. The baristas at Starbucks know what we like to drink, the owner of a DVD shop near our house said she would miss us, and we have explored almost all the areas of Nanjing.
One day we noticed a bicycle collecting plastics and styrofoam for recycling; what a site to see!
Being a city of millions, it’s difficult to see everywhere, but we made it a point to explore where we were living. One day we were taking the bus and noticed a beautiful park. We decided to check it out and were shocked to find out it was a World Heritage Site. Ming Palace Ruins is a peaceful but maudlin place.
Built by Hongwu, the imperial palace is said to have been a magnificent structure after which the imperial palace in Beijing was modeled. The five marble bridges line side by side, known as the five dragon bridges, find expression in Beijing’s Palace. Inside the Palace museum is a nice collection of golden brooches and hair ornaments, silk robes, and porcelain vases.
In late February Ken came to visit me in Nanjing. The day he arrived it was snowing. It was the only day it snowed while we were in Nanjing. We explored parts of Nanjing and then headed to Suzhou. We weren’t falling for the ‘Venice-of-the-East” line, but we figured the city Marco Polo described as one of the most beautiful cities in China was worth a visit. The city is known for its waterways and gardens. 
The gardens, a symphonic combination of rocks, water, trees and buildings reflect the Chinese appreciate of balance and harmony. We explored the Humble Garden area with its mazes of zigzagging bridges, pavilions, and bamboo grooves, nestled around Ping An Street and the snack food of Suzhou. We tried small snacks made of rice and flour.
Then we went to Tiger Hill, the final resting place of He Lu, Founding father of Suzhou. He died in 6th c. B.C. and is said to be buried with a collection of 3,000 swords and to be guarded by a white tiger. Built in the 10th c. the Leaning Cloud Rock Pagoda stands on top Tiger Hill, which is a manmade hill. The octagon seven-story pagoda also known as Huqiu Pagoda is built entirely of brick and leans more then 2m from its original position, which looks similar to the Leaning Tower of Piza. While we were in Suzhou we were able to see my friend Alicia and her friends. We had a night on the town, which included spending a few hours at karaoke. It was a good visit, but Suzhou is a little too boring for me. 
Back in Nanjing, we explored Mochou Lake, which we lived right next to. Back in 2009, I came here and one of the photos I took ended up in my portfolio. The name of Mochou Lake originated from a beautiful woman called Mochou who had to bury her father. Her state of poverty resulted in her having to sell herself. Later, her husband’s parents weren’t pleased with her, so she committed suicide by jumping into the lake. There is a statue of her inside the lakeside area.
On Sunday, after I finished work in Xinjieko (the city center) Ken, Kelsey, a Chinese guy Kelsey met and I went to the Olympic Stadium to go ice-skating. The rink was rough, but it was still really cool to be skating in an Olympic Stadium.
On the last day Ken was here we went to Xuan Wu Lake, with the Ming City Walls, which tower around part of the lake. We rented a small-motorized boat to explore all edges of the lake.
In March Kelsey and I went to Purple Mountain, a mountain related to manyhistorical events of both ancient and modern China. We had waited for the right weather and we picked the perfect day to go, it was in the high 70’s and sunny. Its peaks are often found enveloped in mysterious purple and golden clouds at dawn and dusk, hence its name. First we went to Dr. Sun Yat-sen”s Mausoleum, which is a burial ground for Dr. Sun, 
considered to be the “Father of Modern China” both in mainland China and in Taiwan, who fought against the imperial Qing government and after the 1911 revolution ended the monarchy and founded the Republic of China. From there we hiked our way across Purple Mountain, which also we found out is manmade, to Linggu Temple. 
The Temple is very beautiful and the view from the top is okay. The colorful staircase is better than the view from the top because of the smog.
After the temple our feet were starting to blister so we took an open-air bus shaped like a trolley back to the middle of the mountain and to the open-air music hall, which looked like a Greek amphitheater with doves flying overhead. 
Last on Purple Mountain, we went to the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, the tomb of the Hongwu Emperor, the founder of the Ming Dynasty. As we walked through the Ming Xiaoling ruins, we saw the spring plum flowers blossoming.
Then we walked along the Sacred Way, past four pairs of ministers and generals 
(or warrior guardian figures) that supposedly are accompanying Emperor Hongwu beneath, and past Elephant Road which is lined by 12 pairs of lions, xiezhi, camels, elephants,qilin, and horses, guarding the tomb. 
We were so happy to have saved Zijin Shan (translates to Purple Gold Mountain) for such a beautiful sunny spring day, and to be able to explore its grand beauty with the plum blossoms.
On the hottest day we had in Nanjing, it got to 85F in March, we went to FuziMao. In front of the Confucius Temple, the Qin Huai River is flowing and the whole complex is called Confucius Temple or Fuzimao. It’s always fun to watch parents play with their children here, watch Chinese tourist following a group flag like ducks following their mother and buy souvenirs for home.
China has been an experience again. It has been fun, but it is time for us to head to Shanghai and then to Thailand for a month of relaxing on the beach and trekking in the jungles.
heatherkayericson 