Pre-spring sakura at Century Park

After the daily drumkit jam session at the Music Room (fortunately on the way to the subway station), we set off for today's main target: Century Park世纪公园. You never know quite what to expect when you enter a Chinese park - even the notion of a pay-to-enter park (albeit just a nominal fee) strikes us as a bit strange coming from Canada and Switzerland - maybe it is more comparable to a swimming pool?!

People from all walks of life (well OK let's be fair - most likely the more affluent walks of life) appear to come to Century Park to walk and enjoy a bit of peace from the daily hustle and bustle. Indeed it is quite convenient that you can find such a space so close to the city's core business districts - and it is also rather impressive that once you enter the park, a sort of idyllic calmness descends.

Century Park is built around a mini-lake that features foot-paddling and quasi-motorized boating options. In addition, the two- and four-person tandem-esque pedal vehicles were a very popular way of getting around the large space. We were lucky to be visiting in the pre-spring, just as the sakura (cherry) blossoms were starting to come out. It was really beautiful and for the first time we saw both white and pink cherry blossoms. In the bonsai garden, we even saw one tree growing in a single pot that seemed to produce both pink and white blossoms simultaneously. How cool is that!Read more