A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Before the teaching craziness of this week began (I added five new classes of freshmen!), Brad and I spent a morning at Xuanwu Lake.  Only two subway stops from our apartment, we enjoyed a beautiful, warm, not humid day, at the lake with hundreds of Nanjing families.  It was Mid-Autumn Festival, a time for families to reunite and lots of them reunited at Xuanwu.

The city wall entrance to Xuanwu Lake.

The main entrance to the park goes right through the old city wall of Nanjing.  As we entered through the gate, we saw the lake filled with small boats and other water craft. Everyone was having a great time.  Merchants knew a good day to sell, lining the sidewalks -- food, toys, scarves, coconut milk in the shells, and popcorn!  Everyone had a camera and people posed at every beautiful spot along the paths.  Families set up small tents for a little urban camping, and much to our surprise, a miniature train carried a number of delighted children.  We sat on the lake's edge and watched some men "driving" their battery-operated speedboats on the lake, weaving in and out of the regular boats.

We walked from one entrance of the park to the other, probably three miles, exiting through another opening in the city wall.  It was such a beautiful day, the distance didn't seem to matter--a far cry from our normal exhausting heat experiences of the last few weeks.  It was so nice,we actually ended up walking all the way home.  Nanjing is a great walking city, maybe because the traffic is so bad, it's often to just walk.  This day, the weather made it the perfect time to be on the streets.  Wonderful day!

Boats dotted the water.

Vendors lining the sidewalks at the lake.

A scarf for every taste.

Popcorn!

Ah. . .a nice cold drink. . .Not!

Beautiful setting for a beautiful family.  Cameras were everywhere.

Everyone was having a good time.

Looking across the lake at Purple Mountain, another place to visit.

A little urban camping.

What a surprise!

Leaving the lake and park.  A perfect day!