Well, we had every intention to learn Mandarin prior to arrival and we are making a little progress, mainly thanks to the Chinese girl I met on the subway. It turns out that it does take some work to get around despite numerous current members of staff saying that practically everyone in Suzhou speaks English. I'm not sure where these staff go in Suzhou or what they do, but I am really glad that they are finding it so easy!
The relocation agent gave us some taxi cards. They have English place names with the address in English and then in Mandarin. You'd think this would be quite a fool proof system, however sadly not. Apparently taxi drivers in Suzhou don't necessarily know where things are in Suzhou and don't read maps. The number of times we have got in a taxi shown the driver the card and he has then made 3 or 4 phone calls to get directions from friends is unbelievable. This even happened when we were going to Tiger Hill, which is often referred to as the no. 1 tourist attraction in Suzhou.
The taxis are certainly cheap, but the buses and metro are even cheaper. What I really love about the metro is that it is so clean. There is no food or drink allowed to be consumed in the station or on the trains. Also, no spitting. It is probably the only place in China where spitting is not allowed. Heaven. The metro also has signs in Mandarin and English so it is really easy. The buses are more of a risk. Hop on and hope for the best!
As I mentioned in a previous blog I purchased an e-bike from a person leaving my new place of work. They are such a great way to travel. They charge via the electrical mains, come in a variety of styles and colours and are super easy to park. Apparently parking on the pavement, in an e-bike lane, blocking a door... The challenge is how many people you can get on an e-bike and how bizarre an item or collection of items you can take on one. I have seen families of 4 on an e-bike and 3 adults on another. Water is delivered via bike and I think at most I've seen about 13x18.9l bottles on one bike. Ladders are another classic, but I'm still waiting for the one item that makes me stop and stare.This is about the craziest I'm getting with my e-bike.
Driving, cycling, walking and crossing roads are all things to be careful when doing. Road rules are there to be broken. I am always wonderfully grateful to be uninjured at the end of a journey. Listen for the beeps and look in every direction a million times, then look in very direction a million times again!
Maps are essential or a friend who knows how to get there as asking for directions is not great considering once again that my language skills are really not good. We have used google maps and have often tried preplanning a route before going out. Sadly our success rate is somewhat lower than we would like it to be. I blame it all on the "Great Firewall of China" limiting google maps access to the actual roads, streets and transport in China.
The relocation agent gave us some taxi cards. They have English place names with the address in English and then in Mandarin. You'd think this would be quite a fool proof system, however sadly not. Apparently taxi drivers in Suzhou don't necessarily know where things are in Suzhou and don't read maps. The number of times we have got in a taxi shown the driver the card and he has then made 3 or 4 phone calls to get directions from friends is unbelievable. This even happened when we were going to Tiger Hill, which is often referred to as the no. 1 tourist attraction in Suzhou.
The taxis are certainly cheap, but the buses and metro are even cheaper. What I really love about the metro is that it is so clean. There is no food or drink allowed to be consumed in the station or on the trains. Also, no spitting. It is probably the only place in China where spitting is not allowed. Heaven. The metro also has signs in Mandarin and English so it is really easy. The buses are more of a risk. Hop on and hope for the best!
As I mentioned in a previous blog I purchased an e-bike from a person leaving my new place of work. They are such a great way to travel. They charge via the electrical mains, come in a variety of styles and colours and are super easy to park. Apparently parking on the pavement, in an e-bike lane, blocking a door... The challenge is how many people you can get on an e-bike and how bizarre an item or collection of items you can take on one. I have seen families of 4 on an e-bike and 3 adults on another. Water is delivered via bike and I think at most I've seen about 13x18.9l bottles on one bike. Ladders are another classic, but I'm still waiting for the one item that makes me stop and stare.This is about the craziest I'm getting with my e-bike.
Driving, cycling, walking and crossing roads are all things to be careful when doing. Road rules are there to be broken. I am always wonderfully grateful to be uninjured at the end of a journey. Listen for the beeps and look in every direction a million times, then look in very direction a million times again!
Maps are essential or a friend who knows how to get there as asking for directions is not great considering once again that my language skills are really not good. We have used google maps and have often tried preplanning a route before going out. Sadly our success rate is somewhat lower than we would like it to be. I blame it all on the "Great Firewall of China" limiting google maps access to the actual roads, streets and transport in China.
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