Wúxī 2024 June 09
Jack and I woke up sometime around lunch time. Surprisingly, no hangover, just felt a bit rough. We had a 1400 checkout from the hotel. We showered, changed, packed, and went to start the day.
Old radio tower atop a building downtown. Wúxī city name displayed across.
Jack knew a good restaurant that he recommended we go to for food, and so we began walking in that direction to find it. He navigated us to a very nice shopping mall containing many expensive high-end stores and asserted that the restaurant used to be there. We walked all around the mall building but couldn’t locate the restaurant, eventually accepting that it must’ve closed (probably a victim of COVID). We decided then, instead, to just go back to Red Lion for food.
Red Lion was virtually empty, a stark contrast to the massive party there just the night before. The restaurant staff were still cleaning some areas and the kitchen staff was still working on their preparations. We were greeted warmly on arrival and picked a table to sit at. Some other foreigners we knew or had met the night before were there as well, including an American named “Teddy” (distinctly different from the Serbian economist “Teddy”), and joined us at a table.
Canal at afternoon with city buildings and pagodas in background. From patio of Red Lion bar.
Jack and I discussed our itinerary for returning to Shànghăi and reasoned that it might take just as long, and be simpler, to hire a driver to drive us back to Shànghăi instead of taking the train. The bartender overheard us and recommended us a driver he knew and used. In no time we’d made contact and scheduled a pickup for the evening. Therefore, we’d spend the rest of the day in Wúxī hanging out at Red Lion and socializing. Taking it easy.
We ordered drinks and food. Ate and socialized. Relaxed.
Wúxī Nánchán Temple pagoda behind parked e-bikes.
Jack and I left Red Lion at some point to walk around and explore the canals area. It was packed full of people for Dragon Boat Festival. It was really cool seeing how bustling Wúxī was and how nice their canals area was with waterfronts, boats, and traditional Chinese architecture. It felt like a far-cry from Shànghăi.
Canal at late afternoon with city buildings in background. From patio of Red Lion bar.
We returned to Red Lion until our driver arrived. It was about a 2-hour drive back to Shànghăi in the relative comfort of a newer Volkswagen. Jack slept. I tried to sleep, but couldn’t manage it. Jack got dropped off at his hotel and we parted ways. I continued on with the driver to Yángpǔ district to start cleaning Ricky’s apartment and packing my belongings for my flight back to the United States.