Suzhou boats

I was in Suzhou China last  week on business.   I had some spare time so went to the Humble Administrator’s Garden and walked around the area as well.  Suzhou is called “The Venice of China” because it has so many canals, which used to be a significant source of travel in the area.  Not so much anymore, but they are still quite scenic.

At the Humble Administrator’s Garden, some workers were pulling mud from the bottom of a canal and filling a boat with it.  Once the boat was almost sunk with it, they jumped ashore and pulled all the mud out to spread around bamboo, presumably to serve as both mulch and a weed preventative.

Travel on the canals seems to be primarily tourists, so they have these lovely little boats to go around the canals in.  However, mid January just before Chinese New Year is not high tourist season, so the skipper was taking advantage and having a nap.

 

Now I’m back in Oakland, but we’re finally having some rain, so probably no sailing for a bit.