Life is too short to wake up with regrets. So love the people who treat you right. Forget about the one's who don't. Believe everything happens for a reason. If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands. If it chances your life, let it. Nobody said life would be easy, they just promised it would be worth it.
Ini jalan paling terkenal dan paling tua di Suzhou. Tempat ini sangat makmur pada masa dinasti Ming dan Qing. Sebenernya tempat ini baru tetapi jalannya sudah tua, soalnya jalan lama ini sudah dimakan umur dan direnovasi beberapa tahun yang lalu. Jadi mayoritas gedung-gedungnya sebenarnya baru.
It’s the most famous and oldest street in Suzhou. It was very prosperous in Ming and Qing dynasty. Actually this is a new but old street, because the old street was wormed out with the ages and it was renovated a couple of years ago. So the majority of buildings are actually new.
Dimanapun kita jalan di Jalan Shan Tang, banyak hal menarik yang kita jumpai seperti pemandangan canal yang indah, asesoris lampu-lampu merah yang fantastic, warung-warung makan traditional, lukisan-lukisan China (seperti kaligrafi China), sampai kesenian dan gallery tersedia di jalan ini. Luar biasa ya?! Sebenernya gue pengen beli lukisan kaligrafi China dan beberapa lukisan tangan lain yang memang gue koleksi setiap pergi travel ke nagara lain… tapi sayangnya penjualnya ngasih harga mahal banget dan susah ditawar. Mungkin bukan hoki gue.
Everywhere we turn Shan Tang Street, there are interesting things to see ranging from lovely canal scene, fantastic red lamp accessories, traditional shops a long the street, traditional street food, Chinese painting (like China calligraphy), until art and gallery, the street served all. It’s amazing, isn’t it? Actually I would like buy a China calligraphy and some painting, I always buy painting from every country where I traveled for my collection… but unfortunately the shop gave me very expensive price and very difficult to bargain the price. May be it’s not my luck.
Guan Qian Street
Ini tempat shopping favorite gue. Sepanjang jalan ini banyak macam-macam outlet, restoran, butik-butik merek terkenal, perhiasan, dan lain-lain. Seperti di Kuta Square tapi jalan ini hanya untuk pejalan kaki, nggak ada mobil ataupun taransportasi lain lewat sini. Kita juga bisa tawar menawar harga. Meskipun didominasi barang-barang merek local dengan banyak toko menjual sepatu boot kulit dan jaket musim dingin, kualitas barangnya bagus dan harganya pun sangat murah, meskipun kita nggak pinter nawar. Hmmm….ini bener-bener surganya wanita …. Ha ha ha ha ha….
It’s my favorite shopping center. A long the street is many various shopping outlets, restaurant, branded boutiques, jewelry, and etc. Looks like Kuta Square but the street only for walkway, no car or other transportation passing through. We can bargain the price as well. Even local brand names dominated with many shop selling leather boots and winter jackets, the quality very good and the price was very cheap even we are not a good bargainer. Hmmm …. It’s really women paradise…ha ha ha ha ha….
Gue beli jaket panjang warna putih dan sepatu boot kulit warna putih, soalnya guide kita bilang nanti di Beijing hawanya lebih dingin lagi sekitar minus 10 derajat dan gue pikir sepatu kets and jaket gue nggak bakal cukup untuk nahan dingin. Apalagi persediaan hokairu udah menipis. Makanya gue musti siap-siap untuk itu, kalau nggak gue nggak bakal bisa keluar dari bus nanti ….he he he he ….Gue dapet harga murah banget untuk jaket dan sepatu boot cuma RMB 180. Setahu gue di Indonesia terutama Bali untuk masing-masing jaket dan sepatu boot bisa keluar duit Rp 1.000.000,00.
I bought a long white jacket and white leather boot, because the guide said in Beijing the weather will be around minus 10 degrees and I don’t think so my sneaker and my jacket would be enough for me. Moreover my hokairu left couple pieces only. So I have to prepare it otherwise I couldn’t go out from the bus …he he he he… I got very cheap for both only spent RMB 180. As I knew in Indonesia specially Bali for each jacket and boot we have to spend around Rp 1.000.000,00.
Hal menarik ketika shopping dan nyoba beberapa jaket dan sepatu, pelayan toko selalu bilang I YO YO. Lokal dialek ini artinya “bagus atau cantik”. Dialek lainnya I YA YA yang artinya kebalikannya “jelek”. Hal lain yang menarik kita bisa ketemu chestnut manis paling enak di sini. Tadinya gue mau beli sekantong tapi temen travel gue satu bus udah beli dan ngebagi makan bareng.
The nice thing when I shop and try some jacket and boot, the ladies shop always said “I YO YO”. It’s a local dialect and means “beautiful or pretty”. The other dialect is “I YA YA” means not pretty. The other nice thing we can find the best sweet chestnut in here. I would like to buy but my travel friend Josie bought already and share to me.
Ahirnya kita tutup perjalanan hari ini denga dinner di sebuah restouran Chinese food dan kemuadian ke hotel E-Central untuk check in. Hotelnya bagus tapi gue nggak beruntung karena pemanas ruangannya nggak bagus. Jadinya gue nggak tidur nyenyak karena kedinginan.
Finally we closed our day by dinner at a Chinese food restaurant and then we go to E-Central hotel for check in. The hotel was nice but I was not lucky that heather in my room was not working well. So I couldn’t sleep well because too cold.
Kuil kuno ini terkenal dengan 108 bell yang berdentang menyambut tahun baru China untuk mendoakan keberuntungan dan kebahagian di tahun mendatang. Letaknya di sebelah barat kotaSuzhou dan dibangun sekitar abat VI pada jaman Dynasty Liang (502-519). Nama Hansan berasal dari cerita tentang 2 orang sahabat bernama Hansan dan Shi De. Mereka sangat akrab dan tinggal bersama seperti saudara. Ketika orang tua Hansan pergi melamar seorang gadis untuk menjadi istrinya, Hansan baru tahu kalo calon istrinya tersebut adalah kekasih sahabatnya Shi De. Karena Hansan takut membuat Shi De sedih, maka dia meninggalkan rumah dan dalam perjalanan ia berhenti di sebuah kuil kecil. Sedangkan Shi De mengira bahwa Hansan pergi karena dia. Shi De memutuskan untuk pergi mencari Hansan. Akhirnya, takdir mempertemukan mereka di kuil dimana Hansan menyembunyikan dirinya. Kemudian karena cerita tersebut, maka mereka menyebutnya Kuil Hansan.
This ancient temple is famous with 108 bells which ring at midnight to pray the Great Buddha to bless for everyone, for luck and happiness in the next coming year. It’s located in the west of Suzhou. The pagoda was build around the VI Century, Liang Dynasty (502-519). The name Hansan is related to a story of two twinned friends, Hansan and Shi De. There were very closed and lived together as brothers. When Hansan parents went and asked for a girl’s hand for him, he just knew that his future wife was Shi De’s lover. Because Hansan was afraid to make Shi De sad, he left his home and stopped at a small temple. Regarding Shi De, he thought that Hansan left because of him. He decided to go out to look for Hansan. Finally, as fate, they met each other at the temple where Hansan was hiding himself. They live together as before. Being moved by the above story, they called the TempleHansan.
Sebenernya gue masih pengen nikmatin tempat ini dan ngederin ke-108 bells dibunyiin. Suasana kuil juga ramai orang sembahyang tahun baru China. Tapi guide manggil kita kembali ke bis untuk melanjutkan perjalanan berikutnya.
Actually I still would like to enjoy this temple and hear the 108 bells ringing. Many people were praying for Chinese New Year in the temple. But our guide calls us already to go to the bus for continue our trip.
Tujuan pertama kita di Kota Suzhou adalah LionGroveGarden atau biasa dikenal dengan nama Shizilin. Taman tersebut merupakan salah satu dari 4 taman yang terkenal dan representative bergaya klasik kuno di kotaSuzhou. Ketiga taman yg lain yaitu Blue Wave Pavilion (Canglangta), LingeringGarden (Liuyuan) dan Humble Administrator’s Garden (Zhuozhengyuan). Tapi kita nggak pergi ke ketiga taman tersebut.
Our first destination of Suzhou was The LionGroveGarden or usually called Shizilin. The garden is one of the four most famous and representative gardens of an ancient classical style in Suzhou city. The other three are Blue Wave Pavilion (Canglangta), LingeringGarden (Liuyuan) and Humble Administrator’s Garden (Zhuozhengyuan). But we didn’t go to the other three gardens.
Lion Grove Garden dibangun tahun 1342 sebelum Dynasty Yuan oleh biksu Tianru dan kelompok aliran Budha Zen untuk mengenang guru besar mereka biksu Zhongfeng. Sering dengan berjalannya waktu, nama dan orang-orang kaya yang memilikinya pun berubah-ubah. Kemudian ahli waris terakhir melimpahkannya kepada rakyat Repulik China. Sehingga dari sejak itu, taman tersebut terjaga dan terpelihara dengan baik, juga terbuka untuk umum. NamaLionGroveGarden diambil dari batu karang besar di dalam taman yang bentuknya seperti bentuk singa. Hmmm … gue nggak tahu gimana orang-orang China ngeliat batu karang besar itu seperti singa, gue perhatiin sama sekali nggak ada mirip-miripnya tuh sama singa… he he he he … Sayangnya waktu kita berkunjung ke sana pas musim dingin, jadi nggak bisa ngeliat gimana indahnya taman ini dengan bunga warna-warni di sana sini. Kita cuma bisa ngeliat batu-batu karang, kolam dan pohon-pohon kering.
The LionGroveGarden has build in 1342 during the Yuan Dynasty by Monk Tianru and a group of Zen Buddhist disciples as a memorial of their master-Monk Zhongfeng. By the number of time, the garden has changed names and hands by many rich peoples. Then the last heir was donated to People’s Republic of China. From then on, the garden entered a steady and well-protected period, also open for public viewing. The LionGroveGarden got its name by having huge rock garden with lion look a like rock landscaping. Hmmm… I don’t know how Chinese peoples saw it, but I didn’t see how the rock looks like lion … he he he he he….. Frankly we visited the garden on the cold season, so we on the winter time, so we couldn’t see how beautiful the garden with flowers in everywhere. We only saw rocks, the water pond and dry plants.
Cuma yang gue heran, kenapa ya…tahun baru tapi nggak berasa tahun baru kayak di Indonesia, terutama Bali meriah banget. Sepanjang jalan ke Suzhou suasana rasanya sepi, sunyi, dan nggak keliatan orang. Malah gue pikir kayak kota mati ditinggalin penduduknya. Gue sempet SMS sama beberapa temen di Indonesia tentang suasana Tahun Baru ini. Lucu-lucu mereka nge-reply SMS gue. McD bilang, elo salah kota kali … hi hi hi hi hi….nggak tahu juga ya…. Then Irene bilang, orang China-nya lagi pada shopping ke Plaza Bali semua … hi hi hi hi hi…gue emang ngebayangin itu sih.
I was surprised, why the Chinese New Year was not look like a Chinese New Year in Indonesia, especially in Bali so merry. The situation on the way to Suzhou was very quiet, deserted, and no body. Moreover I thought look like deadly city where left by the peoples. I sent SMS to some friend in Indonesia regarding the situation of the Chinese New Year. They were replying with funny SMS. McD test me, ‘I think you are in the wrong city’ …hi hi hi hi hi …I don’t think so …. Then Irene text me, ‘all Chinese people are shopping at Plaza Bali … hi hi hi hi hi … I imagined that actually.
Kota Suzhou terkenal dengan sebutan Venice dari Timur. Kota tua di pinggiran negri China ini dikelilingi air. Tempat ini menarik wisatawan karena transportasi sungai, jembatan-jembatan, dan rumah-rumah tradisional kuno dengan tembok-tembok putih dan atap berwarna gelap yang sengaja masih dipertahankan oleh pemerintah China. Sayangnya kita nggak dibawa guidenya sightseeing naik perahu seperti waktu di Xitang. Padahal gue pengen banget ngeliat tempatnya Dian Sastro photo shooting untuk Kayu Manis Resort yang kata Harris ngambil background kota kuna ini. Kalo ngeliat foto-fotonya dian Sastro sih tempatnya mirip dengan kota Xitang.
Suzhou city is very famous called The Venice of The East. Around the ancient town in the suburban of China country are bounded by water. Among the things of tourist interest are the waterways, bridge, and traditional ancient houses with white walls and dark roof-tiles which have been under protection by China government. Frankly the guide didn’t bring us sightseeing by boat like in Xitang town whereas I would like to see the place where Dian Sastro (the famous Indonesian actress) took photo shooting for Kayu Manis Resort. Harris told me that they took the background shooting in this city. When I saw Dian Sastro picture, the place looks like Xitang town.
Hore….Naik perahu lagi …. Wah seru banget!! Kita naik perahu di sepanjang sungai Yangtze yang membelah kota Xi Tang. Rumah-rumah kuno di sepanjang sungai dan jembatan-jembatan penghubung sungai yang kita lewati menjadi pemandangan yang sangat menarik. Sungai Yangtze terkenal memiliki banyak jembatan-jembatan penghubung yang berbeda-beda bentuknya satu sama lain. Di sisi kanan kiri sepanjang sungai terdapat corridor untuk para pejalan kaki. Hampir semua corridor memiliki atap untuk melindungi dari panasnya matahari ataupun hujan. So pada waktu jalan kaki di Xi Tang, kita nggak bakalan kehujanan ataupun kepanasan sinar matahari. Ada juga panggung teater kuno di sisi kiri sungai yang menyajikan atraksi Chinese Opera seperti di film-film China yang sering gue tonton. Orang-orang menonton opera dari seberang sungai. Lucu juga rasanya ngeliat perahu-perahu lewat begitu aja diantara panggung dan penonton, termasuk perahu yang kita naikin. Malah gue juga sempet lihat orang-orang mandi dan nyuci baju di sungai persis kayak orang-orang desa di Indonesia.
Oleeee… Cruise again! …. So cool!! We ride boat at Yangtze River where divided Xi Tang town. It’s interesting to see the ancient houses and the bridges along the river. The Yangtze River is very famous with many bridges cross over the river. At the left river side there are corridor ways for walker. Mostly, it is tile-roofed and built along the riverside, providing shelter for people to avoid either the baking of hot sun or the rain. So, while walking in Xi Tang, you can never be caught in the rain or exposed to searing sun. There is a Chinese opera performance at the left riverside like in the Chinese movie which I watched. People watch the opera show from the cross of the river. Looks funny when I saw boats passed away between the opera and the spectators included our boat. I actually also saw people wash clothes in the river same likes Indonesian people in the villages.
Begitu turun dari perahu, gue serasa berada di dunia lain. Jalan kaki di sepanjang corridor, ngeliat perahu-perahu di sungai, ngeliat kios-kios tua dan penduduk setempat yang berjualan, gue serasa ada di kehidupan jaman dulu. Di kota tua Xi Tang ini, orang-orang yang tinggal bukan orang-orang kaya, jadi nggak ada rumah-rumah modern yang dibangun di sini. Mungkin itu salah satu alasan bangunan-bangunan tua di sini masih utuh semua. Bahkan di atas atap beberapa rumah tua di Xi Tang, tumbuh rumput-rumput yang tingginya sekitar 30 centimeter. Ini menandakan bahwa kemajuan, kedamaian dan keabadian rumah tersebut merupakan kemakmuran dari seluruh kota.
When I got out from the boat, I feel like in the other world. Walking along the corridor, watching the boats in the river, seeing around old shops along corridor and the seller, I feel drown into the meditation of the past. In the old town of Xi Tang, people who lives there are not rich, so no newer modern houses have been build there. That’s maybe one of the reasons why the old constructions are preserved as a whole almost without damage. On the roof s of some old houses in Xi Tang, the grass is about 30 centimeters tall. It is said that the spirit of the former owner of the house joints with the grass, making it flourish and blessing the peace and permanence of the house as well as the prosperity of the entire town.
Sampai di jembatan yang paling terkenal, gue lupa namanya, lumayan rame orang-orang berdesak-desakan untuk ambil photo. Habis ini tempat paling strategis dan keren untuk ambil gambar seluruh kota Xi Tang. Apalagi pas akhir film MI-3, film-nya nge-shootTom Cruise sama Michelle Monaghan di atas jembatan ini. Berdiri di atas jembatan ini, gue ngebayangin jadi Julia, tunangannya agent Ethan Hunt di MI-3 …. he he he he he he……
We were walking at the corridor until to the famous bridge. I forget the name of the bridge. So many people and crowded with people who would like took a picture in here due to this place very nice scene and strategic to take a picture of the whole town. Moreover, at the ending of MI-3 movie shot Tom Cruise and Michelle Monaghan on the bridge. Standing on the bridge, I image to be ‘Julia’ the fiancé of agent Ethan Hunt in the MI-3 …. He he he he he he he…..
Snapshot 1
Ternyata sejak turun dari perahu, Koh Ian dan temen-temen group yang cowok diikutin sama 2 orang tukang semir sepatu. Adduuuhhh….gigihnya mereka merayu koh Ian dan yang lainnya untuk disemir sepatunya. Dari mintanya RMB 20, lama-lama turun jadi RMB 3.00. Akhirnya Koh Ian diikutin Pak Agus luluh juga dengan rayuan mereka … he he he he he ….. Yang menarik perhatian gue, biasanya kalau di Indonesia anak-anak kecil yang kerja jadi tukang semir sepatu di mall-mall ataupun di stasiun kereta. Sedangkan di sini, semua orang bisa melakukan, yang penting mereka bisa cari uang untuk makan. Mereka begitu semangat dan gembira sekali sewaktu berhasil merayu Koh Ian dan Pak Agus. Memang betul kalau orang-orang bilang kehidupan di China sangat keras dan orang mau bekerja apa saja asal bisa makan.
Actually since we got out from the boats, Mr. Ian and others were followed by 2 shoe polishers. Aaahhhh … They very persisted in to persuade Mr. Ian and others to polish their shoes. They offered from RMB 20 become RMB 3.00. Finally Mr. Ian and Mr. Agus gave up and let them to polished their shoes he he he he he … The interesting for me, I usually met kids doing this job at some malls and train station in Indonesia. But in here, everybody can to be anything as long as they can get money for buy foods. They were so enthusiasm and happy when Mr. Ian and Mr. Agus allowed their shoes to be polish. It right that people said live in Chine is very hard and people have to work hard.
Perjalanan dari Hangzhou ke Xi Tang lumayan jauh, kurang lebih 2,5 jam. Sepanjang jalan gue asyik ngeliatin orang-orang pergi ke kuil buat sembahyang di Tahun Baru China. Gue paling excited banget pergi ke kota Xi tang ini. Soalnya menurut informasi yang gue dapet di internet, kota ini tempat syutingnya film “Mission Impossible III”. Kebayang kan ….. gimana exciting-nya gue yang maniak nonton film. Pengambilan gambar pertama kali “Mission Impossible III” di lakukan Tom Cruise di kota kuno ini tanggal 24 November 2005. Sayang ya … kenapa gue nggak pergi pas tanggal itu … he he he he he….
The way trips Hangzhou to Xi Tang take about 2.5 hour. All along the road I enjoy to see people go to temple for praying in the Chinese New Year. I really excited to go to the Xi Tang town because from internet I got information that “Mission Impossible III” is shot here. You can image … how really exciting I am. I really like watch movie. The first scene in China of Mission Impossible III was shot on Novemver 24th, 2005. Tom Cruise performs during the shooting of “Mission Impossible III” in Xi Tang, an ancient town. Pity ya… why I was not go to Xi Tang on that time :-(
Begitu sampai Xi Tang, kita lunch dulu di sebuah restaurant di pinggir jalan besar. Menu lunch hampir sama seperti lunch kemaren. Selesai lunch, kita diajak ke Galeri Zhang Chen. Sebuah galeri yang memamerkan koleksi ukiran unik dari akar pohon. Pemiliknya sudah turun temurun mewarisinya. Sayangnya kita nggak boleh bikin photo-photo di sini. Jadi kita cukup puas dengan ngeliat-liat ukiran-ukiran antik dan sangat mahal di galeri ini.
When we arrived Xi Tang, first time we were visiting to Zhang Chen Gallery. It’s a gallery where unique exhibition center for root carving. The owners passed down from generation to generation. Unfortunately we couldn’t take pictures here. So we have to satisfy to see very expensive ancient wood carvings in this gallery.
Dari Zhang Chen Galeri, kita jalan ngelewatin lorong-lorong sempit yang sangat terkenal di kota Xi Tang ini. Kalo nggak salah sih orang-orang nyebutnya Shipi Lanes. Seru banget jalan di dalam lorong-lorong sempit di antara bangunan-bangunan kuno. Serasa ada di film-film kungfu China ….. he he he he he….. Malah pertama kali masuk lorong cuma muat untuk jalan satu orang. Lucunya lagi, lorong-lorong jalan di sini seperti tali yang saling berkaitan satu sama lain. Nggak peduli dari mana kita mulainya, pasti tetep aja nyampe ke semua tempat di kota Xitang ini. Kalo digambar kayak sarang laba-laba kali …. he he he he he …. Amazing ya….. :-)
From the Zhang Chen Gallery, we walked to famous narrow lines in the Xi TangTown. People call Shipi Lanes. So excited walk at Xi Tang Town Lines between ancient buildings. Feel like we are in the Chinese movie. He he he he he he…..Moreover the first time we started walk, we walked at the space line for only one person to pass through at a time. The Interest things with the Lines are rope connecting the whole town into an organic net and no matter from which point you start, you can find any other place in the town. Amazing, isn’t it?
Kota Xi Tang merupakan salah satu dari 6 kota tradisional yang terkenal di China, diantaranya Zhou Zhuang, Tong Li, Lu Zhi, Wuzhen, Xi Tang, dan Nan Xun. Kota-kota ini semuanya merupakan bagian dari UNESCO World Heritage. Model arsitektur kota ini berasal dari Dynasty Ming dan Dynasty Qing. Penduduk di sini masih mempertahankan gaya kehidupan tradisional mereka. Bahkan peralatan-peralatan kuno pun masih mereka simpan dan mereka rawat sebagai kekayaan kota ini. Kita sempat diajak masuk ke salah satu rumah yang dulunya merupakan tempat pembuatan kancing baju secara traditional dari bahan kulit kerang. Semua peralatannya sangat kuno dan sederhana, tetapi masih berfungsi dengan baik. Menarik juga sih ngelihat orang-orang tua di situ memperagakan ke turis-turis bagaimana orang-orang jaman dulu mempergunakan peralatan tradisional dan antik tersebut.
Xi Tang is one of the 6 famous traditional towns in China, which included Zhou Zhuang, Tong Li, Lu Zhi, Wuzhen, Xi Tang, and Nan Xun. They are all part of UNESCO World Heritage. The architectures remain the style from Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. The residences in the town still keep their traditional way of living. Also their stuffs for living still keep as the town inheritance wealth. Our guide brings us to the traditional shirt button shell factory. All stuff factory in here very old and simple, but still working. It’s very interesting when we watch old people in here showing us how to make shirt button from shell using the traditional stuffs.
Setiap pagi kita punya schedule 6 7 8. Morning call jam 6 pagi, sarapan jam 7 pagi, dan berangkat tour jam 8 pagi. Sebenernya maleeeesss banget mau bangun. Kayaknya baru sebentar tidurnya. Tapi mau nggak mau musti bangun, mandi dan packing karena kita harus check out dari hotel. Sarapan pagi di hotel lumayan enak dan menunya American Breakfast. So banyak pilihan. Apalagi hari ini Tahun Baru China jadi banyak macem-macem jeruk tersedia untuk desert-nya. Every morning we have schedule 6 7 8. Morning call on 06.00 am, breakfast on 07.00 am, and start tour on 08.00 am. Actually I was so lazy to wake up. I sleep like just an hour. But I have to wake up, take a shower, and packaging because we have to check out from the hotel. Our breakfast in the hotel is quiet good and American Breakfast menu. We have many choices. Moreover today is a Chinese New Year so many kind of orange for desert.
The West LakeCruise
Ternyata tujuan tour pertama kita ke Danau Xihu lagi. Tapi kali ini kita naik perahu kayu mengelilingi danau. Waahhh…seru banget!! Sampai-sampai udara yang begitu dingin nggak berasa karena pemandangan sepanjang danau indah sekali, padahal pohon-pohon kering nggak ada daunnya. Gue bayangin gimana kalo musim semi….pohon-pohon hijau dan bunga-bunga warna-warni dimana-mana. Pasti cantik sekali.
Apparently our first destination tour today to Xihu lake again. But now we are going around by sheep from wood. Aaahhh…. Very fun! We don’t care anymore with cold weather because of the view of XihuLake is very beautiful even no leaves. I image how it is on the spring time …. Green trees and colorful flowers are in everywhere. I think it so beautiful!
