Gu Lang Yo

Ok, more interesting serious post time, and some pictures worth looking at.

For starts. This is the sky line of Xiamen so you can have a reference point to where I am!


Just a little city of 3 million, says Lindon.

Alright on too the weekends happenings. Yesterday 3 of my fellow Enry employees went on a little sight seeing mission too Gu Lang Yo or Piano Island as westerners call it. For you Rhode Islanders its like Block Island meets Newport. BI in that it is a hot spot for beaches, bars, and restaurants, Newport in that it has fantastic old architecture from vacationing rich people of a time passed.

From the main land you jump on a ferry for 5RMB or $0.75.


In about 15 minutes you dock here


On arrival you are greeted by an abundance of shops, tea houses, and snack places like any other tourist place. We chose a place to grab a snack and tried this.


I can only describe it as the texture you would imagine the little jelly fish you find on the beach to have with a noodle inside. In other words the weirdest thing I have tried in China so far. I only had one.

There are beautiful trees and flowers every where heres one for mom


Piano Island has some interesting history to it. It gets its name from a reputation it earned almost 200 years ago. During this time Xiamen was one of the few places Europeans could go and trade. German traders claimed the island as theirs and set up a treaty saying so. They built lots of building here that looked like this.

Only newer.

On any given night you could have strolled down the street and heard the sound of musicians playing piano for wealthy traders floating from just about any window. It is now home to Chinas only piano museum. (pictures not allowed)

Oh, and did I mention its beautiful EVERYWHERE? Asia has all these cool islands that are really mountains that rise out of the water that the east cost just doesn’t get close to. It makes for easy picture taking because you can get impressive mountain range and beach in the same picture. Sort of like this


After the piano museum we had a walk along the coast...



Where there was some pretty impressive things.

This is a big rock

I know because it says “big rock” on it in Chinese.

There was also a super spiffy traditional Chinese garden. I happen to think these take the cake when it comes to gardens.


There was also this elaborate maze of stone and cement with lots of arches and funny little animal sculptures in it.


That’s really the best description I can give b/c I have NO idea what it is. Maybe some pictures will help




Then we stopped and turned on the time to get a group shot

From left too right (and as it happens, ability to communicate in English from Native speaker to not a word) Me, Shita, Jolin, “Louis” Lindons brother

Picture of me required because it is “typical Chinese place” according to Shita


Piano Island also has some military history. I climbed a few of the old concrete gun structures and walls much to the enjoyment of whatever 20 or 30 Chinese people where around. Apparently this is not typical but I they seemed to be built to climb pictures of this will come when I get them off Jolin’s camera.

This one was made to be tricky.




This is the “flower of Xiamen” it is their cities flower.


This is a giant peapod.


And this is the point where my camera ran out of batteries :-/ Jolin let me use hers for the ret of the day but I haven’t gotten the pictures off yet. I’ll finish up this post when I get them.

Thanks for looking. Its so nice to hear from you all! Miss every one.

More later.