Hot days are here

This July started cooler than usual and ended with three weeks of very hot and humid days. The last two weeks we have had very unusual clear blue skies with some white clouds. Even many locals have been pleasantly surprised by the many days of such clear skies. I am enjoying this weather and taking advantage of it by riding my bicycle around the lake each morning (leave at 5:30 AM). At this early time the sun is already 25 or so degrees up from the horizon, the temperatures are at least 10 degrees cooler than what they will be at noon (last week we had a couple of days that reached 101 degree F and most were in the highs 90’s) and the roads are quiet. In short, the best riding conditions you can possibly want in Suzhou.

What to do during these hot days during weekends? Well, most people stay indoors as much as possible. During the morning you see some activity, by noon there is little movement, by 6:30 PM onwards people start coming out and having some outdoor fun. This past Sunday evening my wife and I went across our building and took some pictures of a spot next to Jinji Lake where families take their young ones for a refreshing and fun time outdoors.

I took this picture on Saturday at 4:56 AM; this is a portion of the view we have from out living room (have zoomed quite a bit for this view). As you can see, clear skies and a beautiful dawn, usually mornings are foggy/smoggy. Hope the clear skies stay for a while.

Sunday late afternoon, the air is cooling off and families come out with their children for some outdoor activities next to Jinji lake west shore.

Some could care less about sand, water or swings. I am not going to criticize this little fellow;he is having fun so to each its own.

Some think they are incognito as they sit on a bench and try to pass for a local…yeah, right.

Some have dinner in a floating restaurant that criss-crosses the lake. This is a very cool boat, we must try it soon.

Most are kids having a great time in the various swings and aerial equipment in this areas.

This little cutie, probably just wondering about all the commotion around her. You wait little one, in a few months you will be joining the crowd. Proud mama looking on.

What you see in the foreground is a very shallow pool next to the lake. Swimming is not permitted in the lake; if you look at the water in it you will understand. So this is the best kids and some adults have to cool off on a hot day – as you can see on the left, clothing is kind of optional for kids.

These two little girls seemed to be having a race on the swings; they were really having a blast together. This is just simple fun I remember having at this same age.

No life guards needed, just parents hopefully looking away from their cell phones to make sure their kids are safe. What can happen in a pool this shallow? You will be surprised, we saw several close calls were kids could have been hurt, but nothing happen. Just splashing and running around – had to cover my camera several times to avoid getting it soaked.

Remember when you were a kid and you would dig a hole…and you would say, “hey, if you keep on digging you will reach China.” Well, these guys are digging for…yes, USA. I think the boy standing may not agree with that…he seems to have a different digging strategy at the moment…lol

Father and son having fun together with boy toys. What can be better for a boy playing with sand that a dump truck?

Humans do not have exclusive rights to having fun on the water. This young pup was having a great time with this ball. He was 4 months old and had not yet quite figured out how to use his four legs fully. Most of the time he just wobbled and ran like a crazy lunatic; so much fun to watch him.
Many think that dogs are not liked in China; while it is true that in some areas they do eat dogs, in Suzhou and surrounding area this is not true at all. We see a lot of dogs and their owners take very good care of them.

Just a beauty.

Water toys are very popular in this area as you can imagine. This fellow had the biggest water gun in the crowd. He kept on checking around to make sure he indeed had the biggest gun around.

These two guys were taking turns at shooting water up in the air through the syphon like toys they have in their hands. Popular toy, but often they get in trouble when they spray older people.

These two gals asked us of they could take a picture with us. Of course we did.

Thanks for visiting. Bye and until the next post. Stay cool!

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