CHINA 2010 FRIDAY 6th AUGUST

GULANGYU ISLAND
We couldn’t really decide what to do this afternoon. It was such a pleasant day with a strong wind, on our balcony anyway, but when Keith came home at lunchtime he said he hadn’t felt any wind at ground level.
We settled on a return to Gulangyu Island for a gentle stroll around the lower level by the sea and under the shade of the trees. Arriving on the island we turned to our left and walked along the promenade watching people on the beach as the tide came in. Eventually we came to the ticket office for ‘Haoyou Park’ where on paying 15 yuan we could see all sorts of things such as the giant statue of the explorer Cheng Zhonggong close up, a giant bronze wall sculpture, walk the zigzag path out to sea and explore the gardens. Lining up for our tickets I spoke to a young Western girl who wanted to take the cable car to Sunlight Summit so hopefully we pointed her in the right direction.
The first item on the list was the bronze statue but we didn’t linger as youngsters were climbing up it to have their photo taken. We took the path out to sea but by the pavilion the path had been roped off so we had to return and climb the stone steps leading to the giant statue. I think it looks better from a distance as close up you can see all the blocks of stone it took to create this sculpture looking out to sea whilst perched on a rock. The information stone quotes ‘....15.7 metres high, weighs 1400 tons and made of 625 pieces of Quanzho granite and has thunderproof equipment so can resist scale 12 violent typhoon and 8 on the earthquake scale. The sculpture attracts thousand and tens of thousands of visitors by its magnificient mould and profound intrinsic ideological level.’
Leaving the area we had to laugh at a young man having a cigarette whilst sitting on a rock by a step with a yellow line in a square jutting out to sea. The sign said smoking was only allowed behind the yellow line - he was in the open air for goodness sake!
Again we found ourselves climbing up more steps but didn’t have to contend with large boulders. Before long we were out of the park and back on the road wandering along looking at the deserted buildings and thinking how impressive they could be made. Shuttered windows were open and greenery had been allowed to grow out of control. There used to be so many Embassies on the island I wondered if this particular house had been occupied by Italian Ambassadors at one time because of the balconies and columns.
Another garden we visited was dedicated to a Professor Madame Lin Qiaozhi, mother of modern Chinese Gynaecology. In a building was saw a display of photos of her life and in cabinets observed some of the instruments she used in delivering over 50,000 babies in her working life. Other cases displayed several items given to her by foreign Heads of State. We read a copy of her will which stated she wished her ashes to be returned to Gulangyu Island, her hometown, and scattered in the waters around the island. The ashes are actually buried in the gardens. Along a hedgerow were carved stone books each with an inscription written by Dr. Lin and done in gold lettering both in Chinese and English – some were amusing others quite profound. It was the first of these quotations that amused me :-

"Life is the most precious thing to a person.
At the time a seriously ill patient asks the doctor to save his life.
What does the doctor say?
Are you cold? Are you hungry? Are you tired?”

We stopped for a drink in the ‘Gallery’ garden. A delightful place where we were surrounded by oil paintings of a vast range of subjects from fat people to sailing ships as we sat at a table in the shade rather than under a white sun umbrella. The small garden also had a pebbled water feature which unfortunately was not running but with a sense of humour large colourful ducks had been placed inside terracotta urns laid on their side and colourful planting added to the attraction.
Our further wanderings lead us to the garden of a Mr. Cheng, an old man with just one large front tooth in his upper jaw. He had beckoned us to come up to his home where he proudly showed us two volumes of visitors’ comments. We could only read the ones in English, most of them thanking him for allowing a visit to his garden, and at his request we made an entry in volume 3. We hadn’t a clue what he was telling us, even when showing us his library as every book and white paper was in Chinese. The only time we could communicate was looking at the plants. He showed us ones that helped insect bites and got us to try one leaf that smelt like fresh pea pods but tasted so bitter that he laughed at the face I pulled. (No matter how much water I drank I couldn’t get rid of the taste until we went to eat.) Before we left I asked if I may take a photo of him and his family by his plants but he wanted it taken in front of his door with a brass plaque over the opening. Unfortunately we have no idea what the plaque said only that it had musical notes on it so assume he had something to do with music.
We decided to stay on the island to eat and found a seafood cafe in the busy street but charging us more as foreigners! A family sat nearby with a toddler who was sitting on a case of coco colas so he could reach the table tucked into his dish of noodles. He wasn’t very old but he certainly liked his food.
It was dark when we left the cafe and everything looked different and for some reason the shops looked more appealing. We stopped to admire some wood carvings and ended up buying a stack of carved ‘liondogs’ in Sandalwood which according to the assistant mean a long life – let’s hope so! We hadn’t a clue which way we were going and it was only when we reached the gardens leading to the Piano Museum that we realised we were walking in the wrong direction for the ferry. So we turned around and this time took notice of the signs on the walls indicating which way we should go back to the ferry station.At last we found it and Keith went to buy the tickets only you pay your money and are given a token which is put in a box at the turnstile before descending down the ramp to the waiting area. We were in good time and didn’t have long to wait before the boat arrived. Once all the passengers had disembarked bells rang and the high metal gate moved back to allow us to board. Again we paid 1 yuan to sit upstairs but the choice of seat was a mistake as everyone wanted to be near the foreigner apparently and we kept having to move our legs to allow them to pass between us and the guard rail by the steps, one passenger being too impatient treading.on Keith’s foot as he pushed by. After a long afternoon need I tell you we took a taxi home!