Surrounding Yixing, the landscape is characterized by fields of tea leaves andsloping mountains that are covered in serene and lush forests of bamboo. Several official parks have been established in the area, charging visitors from near and far a fee to enter protected and enclosed portions of the famous “Sea of Bamboo” around Yixing.
Needless to say, living in a Chinese city has been wreaking havoc on our lungs, and so our periodic escapes to the oxygen rich atmosphere of the bamboo sea were quite literally a breath of fresh air!
Jia Ching and I had the chance to visit three parks around Yixing during this summer, two “natural” bamboo parks and one very large urban park that was impressively manicured around the site of a famous rock formation and a very old pagoda. These are some images from our explorations of the local parks, which are all within a less than an hour bus ride from downtown.
PARK #1 : TAO ZU SACRED SITE
Statue of Fan Li, to whom the park is dedicated.
Despite the very manmade appearance at the entrance, this park does highlight natural features such as the bamboo forest and the underground caves stock full of stalactites and stalagmites.
Undoubtedly, my favorite sign in all of China.
An impeccably paved path through a rather sparse patch of forest.
Descending into the caves…
Underground tunnels happen to scare me tremendously, and the disco lighting only made it scarier! Let’s just say we didn’t stay in the caves too long after this snapshot.
PARK #2 : “SEA OF BAMBOO” SCENIC AREA PARK
In case you didn’t notice.
Cable car ride up to the highest peak in the area, coasting over the sea of bamboo. A breathtaking view!
On duty?
Following the long steep path down the mountain through the bamboo forest. This woman did it in heels!
Hello bamboo.
Beautiful architecture awaits at a rest stop on the path.
And even more beautiful, tangled trees.
This is the stuff. I did in fact feel fully relaxed and quite joyous!
The city kids feeling rejuvenated.
PARK #3 : LONGBEISHAN FOREST PARK
Touring the park on tandem bikes with our friends Jenny & TW.
There is nothing quite like enjoying a summer breeze on a bicycle built for two!
The park’s beautifully manicured landscape.
Two famous rocks that are said to be naturally shaped like dragons’ backs are now topped by large sculptures of ferocious dragons’ heads.
Surrounded by fields of tea leaves.
At the center of it all stands the nine-story Wenfeng Pagoda, originally constructed in 1607 during the Ming Dynasty.
At the top, the pagoda offers the best possible view of Yixing and the city’s lush surroundings.
Last stop: bumper cars. Yes, the forest park also had a mini-amusement park inside offering children of all ages a go on the bumper cars!
