Fujian Countryside

This past weekend, I was invited to Brian's partner, Gorden's, hometown. Gorden's hometown is located about 40 kilometers to the southwest of Fuzhou. The town is old and quaint. It is nestled into the side of a hillside right beside a lovely river.
Up until recently, the town could only be accessed by taking a boat across the river. The area is starting to be developed now and a bridge and a road connect the town with the main road to Fuzhou.
Brian and Gorden are in the process of having a factory built not too far from Gorden's hometown. I took a couple of photos of the proud owners at the foundation of their future factory.
Gorden, Brian, and I spent the day exploring the area and swimming in a beautiful stream.
The area has very rugged topography, lush vegetation and is very beautiful!!
We completed our outing by enjoying a delicious meal at a local restaurant before returning to Fuzhou in the late afternoon.
A most enjoyable day!!

Fuding

On the weekend of September 13th I had the opportunity to accompany my good friend, Brian Hodge, to Fuding in northern Fujian Province.

It was my first opportunity to travel outside of Fuzhou and to see some of rural China.

The Highway between Fuzhou and Fuding is a modern freeway. The road passes through some very rugged terrain in places. It also passes through some lovely farming areas. I was able to see both rice and tea plantations. We also passes by some beautiful inlets.

Unfortunately, we caught the edge of a Typhoon so the weather turned wet and windy. I was not able to get out and take many photos.

The reason for the trip to Fuding was to celebrate the first anniversay of one of Brian's shops. I played the pipes out on the street to help out with the celebration. That went over really well and drew a large and curious crowd.

Brian and I were treated royally by both Judy (English name) who runs the shop and her family.

We also had some nice meals out with some of Brian's other business partners and their friends.

Here are a few of the photos I did manage to take during my stay in Fuding.

West Lake Park

Last Wednesday, I visited West Lake Park (Xi Wu Park) in downtown Fuzhou. Once again, this is a very impressive section of Fuzhou!! The Lake is surrounded by some posh hotels (The Lakeside Hotel is pictured here) and modern buildings.

The park contains a zoo, an aquarium, an amusement park with rides and lots of lovely paths to wander. There are also boats to take out on the lake. It also has a lovely temple located in the middle of it. At night time there are colourful lights and fountains in the lake. (I will try to add some evening shots at a later date.)

Statues

Some unique statues are also displayed along various sections of the foreshore parks.

Modern Buildings

Many very modern buildings are visible from the foreshore walkway.