Day 3 - Wuxi and Nanjing

Strong wind was blowing on a sunny third day of the trip. Caps and umbrellas were blown off from people's head and hand. We were off to see the famous giant Buddha statue at Mount Linshan. Apart from the giant Buddha, there was a smaller version of the statue too.

The giant Buddha statue at Mount Linshan, taken at the enterance

The giant and the smaller version of the Buddha statue

Lovely scenery and landscaping of Mount Linshan

The fountain where the baby Buddha was "born"

The highlight of the visit to Mount Linshan was the fountain show of the birth of Buddha. An enclosed lotus flower stood in a middle of a fountain. At about 10.00 a.m. when the fountain show started, water started to shoot up to the lotus flower, where out of the bloom, gave birth to a baby Buddha. The last and strongest gush water from the fountain managed to stray to all the spectators around the fountain. I was not spare of the water spray, so was my camera.




At Wuxi, there was a large lake called Taihu Lake, which is the world third largest lake. It was so hugh that you may feel that you are the ocean instead of being on a lake side. After lunch at a floating restaurant, we were taken to a pearl outlet where we learn that fresh water cultured pearls were made at the lake. There were white pearls, pink pearls and of course black pearls. Pearls not only were used for jewelry but for cosmetic and medicinal use.

Precious pearls

After the stop at the pearl outlet, it was again another long journey to Nanjing. We reached Nanjing about 4.00 p.m. where a local guide called Ah Hoong took over the guiding of the city. The first stop for Nanjing was Dr Sun Yat-sen mausoleum. Ah Hoong gave a long talk on the mausoleum on why Dr Sun who was born in Guangdong, founded Kuomintang, exile in Taiwan, buried in Nanjing, while his internal organs are still in Beijing. Too complicated for me comprehend.

At the mausoleum, we walked up 392 steps (each step representing each of his close comrades) up to his marble tomb.

The 392 steps leading up to the tomb of Dr Sun Yat-sen

After dinner, we went to night market in Nanjing where my son bought the 2008 Beijing Olympics mascost Huang Huang.

My son holding Huang Huang