Silk Museum

Saturday, July 5th, 2014

We decided that we would go to the Silk Museum today since it was the last day before Connie and I start Chinese class, the kids go to camp for 8 weeks and it's not blistering hot out yet. We had been told if we go now, we would actually get to see the silk worms. In the fall they don't have any of the worms.

I looked it up on the map and planned out route of travel. We took bus 178 which was supposed to take us and turn right on Linden Lu which is a metro stop that we have gone to before. I was watching and was pretty sure where we were at. I was looking for the driver to make a right turn and then we would get off in 4 stops. At one point I saw the bus stop sign that said Qi Men Lu which I new as a road we needed to be on but, it was too late to get off. I decided we needed to get off at the next stop. We ended up getting off the bus on the north side of Old Town which I thought was the West side of Old Town. Some how I got really confused and missed when the bus turned onto Linden Lu. I knew we weren't where we needed to be but I wasn't completely lost. We started back to where we should have gotten off, so I thought.

 


As we were crossing the street, we were kind of running to avoid some cars that were coming. My camera fell out of my bag. I looked back and saw my camera on the ground and the batteries out of it. I decided to keep going because I had Davids hand and didn't want to get hit. Rachel was so kind to scoop down pick it up and keep coming with me. Luckily we were blessed. Everyone made it to the other side of the street safely. The camera was not scratched or damaged in any way. I took a picture of Rachel to test it out and make sure that it still worked.

As we walked, we found some cool bridges and scenery. One of my favorite things about China is the texture in the architecture and all of the bridges. The bridges are just beautiful! They also have some amazing walk ways with very intricate designs. People must have spent thousands of hours placing each pebble in to make the designs. We took lots of amazing pictures and saw many local Chinese people in there everyday lives.

 

Mason

 

Bethany and David

 

We got back to Qi Men Lu and saw a sign for Humble Administrators Garden so we started to follow that sign. We found a hotel called "Guest Room" so I went inside to ask for directions. I showed them the taxi card and finally figured out that we were way north. Vern was right and I had to eat crow. No big deal. We walked back to and eventually found Xibei Jie and then were able to find Ren Men Lu which is where the Silk Musuem was located.

Just across the street from the museum was the food stand and we bought a few things to try.  We bought the flat bread with onions in it, which I had had before with Stacy Chen and it was pretty good. Connie then went back and got one of the other foods he had. One was a rice hash brown that was delicious!! Very similar to a hashbrown patty that you would get at McDonalds but it was made with rice. The other was a ball with sesame seeds on top that was sweet inside. I liked both of them. We took pictures outside the Silk Museum to commemorate the fact that we finally arrived.

I learned new things today about the silk making process. Suzhou is the capital for all of the silk produced in the world. Amazing! The silk worm eggs are as small as a mustard seed. The silk is actually made from the cocoon before it hatches to a moth. They had some history of silk and a display of the different stages of a silk worm life cycle. In another room, there was a tray of silk worms feeding on mulberry leaves. The worms are similar to a tomato worm and are a 2-3 inches long. They also had a number of cocoons laid out so you could see what they look like. It's quite fascinating to see them.

Another room showed the process of creating silk fabrics/patterns. They had 4 different people working the machines by hand to weave these fabrics. The loom is similar to that of the Navajo Indians but, is more complicated. There are two people working together but, who don't talk to each other and are pulling on silk threads to create this fabric. Connie and I really want to get a silk duvet made to take back. Vern said that we should get them now so Connie can take them when she goes back for Allison's baby in October. It's about 1000 RMB for each duvet that is 240cm X 260 cm (king size). The duvet's will last a good 10 years before they are flat. Once flat, you can pull the silk out and fluff it and then put it back into the duvet.

 

I really enjoyed the silk museum and seeing all of the different products that are made with silk. I would like to also get some smaller Christmas ornaments made as some gifts. It think that would be fun for people.

We were so close to the Bein 'Tai Temple (North Temple Pagoda) so we went. I'm glad that we got to go. We went up in this huge temple and climbed all the way to the top. David and Mason were my buddies as we climbed to the top. Connie didn't know if she was going to make it but she did. We were really sweating and wet from the humidity. I'm so glad that we did get to go explore the temple. It cost 25 RMB for each person to get in. As we started to climb higher, Mason decided he didn't want to go as he was scared of heights. I explained to him that I had the same fear but, that we could conquer it. I told him how to look out and on look down at his toes. He was a trooper and went all the way to the top with us. 9 stories high! As we got to the top the diameter became smaller and entry points out to the deck were smaller. I'm sure it had to do with construction design but it's just amazing to see these structures that were built years ago and how well they were constructed.

There was another building that had a golden Buddha in it. This one we could not take pictures of. There was a family that went and knelt at the alter and prayed to Buddha. Connie mentioned how it is interesting to see little strands of truth still alive but they are far from the truth. The family, husband, wife, and child, went to the alter to pray. Their actions were similar to things that happen in our temples and you read about in the Bible. When they left the large Buddha at the entrance, they went to a smaller one to the left. I noticed that the child did not go to the alter with the parents at this one until they motioned him there. I wish I could share insight and truth to these people and help them understand. It's sad that those that worshiped graven images did not listen to prophetic guidance and have created a culture that does not believe in God.

The temple was lots of fun for me and made me cheery! The weather was great as it wasn't too hot or humid. There was a light drizzle but nothing that was a huge down pour. We walked back to the bus stop, that we should have gotten off in the morning, and headed home. At the bus stop, we ran into our Jonathon, Brandon and James. Small world even with millions of people in China. We rode the bus back with them. I ended up getting separated from the group and talked to Kyle, an intern from Osaka Taiwan. He was very nice and we had a some friendly conversation on the bus ride home. I hope I brightened his day as he was traveling alone. I told him about Hyrum being in Taipei on a mission and that we wanted to go and pick him up next May. Kyle said that we should go to Su4 li3 Night and Summer Lake. I'll have to ask Hyrum about those places and see what he thinks. 

Overall we had a good outing. We had a situation with Daniel before we left. Connie and Vern discovered that he has been stealing money from Connie's wallet. So he is now not allowed to have any money until Christmas. He lost all his words and had to stay by Connie or Vern "in prison". As soon as we got home, Connie searched his room and found other things that he has taken since we have arrived. Daniel had to stay in his room the rest of the night. It's sad but, the family functions alot better when he doesn't have words and is not around.

I had a situation with Rebecca. We got stuck behind the group when crossing the street. Rachel listened too me and stopped. I grabbed Rebecca's hand and she jerked it out. When we did decide to cross the road I told them to stop in the middle and then had her hand, she jerked again and went behind me and started to dart across the road. Both times, she would have gotten hit by a car. When we rejoined the group, I explained the situation to Connie and told her that Rebecca is not allowed to come with me on an outing because of it. Connie, Vern, Rebecca and I had to have a conversation. Connie said that she wasn't worried to leave me with Rachel and Rebecca when we got separated. She was disappointed that I had to deal with that with Rebecca. They tried to explain to her that she has to listen, that she's not in control, and if she wants to be she can go be on her own now. She just does not get things sometimes. This is not the first time that she and I have had this issue so Connie and Vern told her that she cannot go on outings unless they are there.

We played Duto Peruto tonight as a family and I lost! First one to go out. :( I did so well last night but couldn't figure out the strategy tonight. I think I am just exhausted. It was a fun day and I enjoyed it very much. Tomorrow will hopefully be a relaxing day and I can catch up on my journal and blog before my Chinese class starts on Monday.