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JULY
TITLE: HOT AS HELL IN TONGLI
LOCATION: TONGLI (同里古镇)
MISSION: VISIT A CANAL VILLAGE
DATE: 2009-07-20
Today we made a day trip to Tongli which is a very well preserved little village possessing that true "canal town" charm. Definitely one of those rather touristy places, but we had heard good things about it and decided it was worth a shot. It is just a short bus-ride away from Suzhou, so we thought why not? At the bus station we saw the crudest demolition instructions ever - "1m from right: destroy". It was hot as hell today and literally hugging the humongous air-conditioners barely helped. Well at our destination it appeared that the heat kept even the local tourists away, because there were hardly any other people around. Not that we complained, just strange to see so few of them at any given time. The village was beautiful with lots and lots of nooks and crannies to explore. We even found a small museum with stone "paintings" on display. 100% natural patterns and stone formations, no paint. After perusing some of the many shops selling miscellaneous antique articles ("souvenirs") we headed back. The evening was spent at one of downtown Suzhou's finer restaurants: Deyuelou (淂月楼).