Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province (江苏徐州) : A 48 hour whirlwind tour

A friend of mine from Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province (江苏徐州) , has been trying for a very long time to get me to go and visit him, but I've always been too busy to go or just otherwise missing good opportunities. With the labour day long weekend upon us, I took the opportunity to hop the fast trian down to Xuzhou and hang there for a couple of days.

At 4 million people, it's not one of China's bigger cities, and there are maybe 50 foreigners total, but people are very friendly and take their food very seriously. In the smaller Chinese cities, where there aren't that many 老外 (lǎowài, foreigners), the locals tend to gawk when confronted by one, especially if there's any proficiency at all in the local language. More likely than not, that person will be among the few they've ever seen. It's normal for people to stop and take photos of you, and otherwise just stop whatever they're doing.

I was continually amazed at how a city of over 4 million people (roughly the same population as Toronto) can feel so small. Standing on one of the 200m tall mountains dotting the city, you can see all four corners of the place, never more than 5-6km away. The air quality is immeasurably better than Beijing's, and the traffic is definitely much better. However, I noticed that bicyclists in Xuzhou proper appear to have a death wish: They cut across the street in the most insane ways in front of fast moving buses, without a single glance over the shoulder. I saw at least two accidents right in front of my eyes and almost witnessed two more.

The people are, however, quite proud of the place, and take eating very seriously. Much more so than the rest of China, food is a topic of constant discussion, and there's nothing they won't eat. I am 100% convinced that if the Chinese were to encounter a unicorn in the wild, there were would be no arguments at all about whether or not it was a gift from the heavens, something to be cherished, or otherwise having some divine meaning. Instead, all discussions would centre around whether it would be best stewed, deep fried, or barbequed.

On this trip, I had the pleasure of eating:

Barbequed little house sparrows
Sheep eyes

I wish I could say that I have never eaten either.

2 trip report(s) total. Showing all

		2009-05-04 The first 24 hours: Trains, food, and some exploring
		Today I hopped the train to Xuzhou from Beijing South Station, and then wandered around the city with my friend. We had some great food for dinner and then spent much of the next day checking out key sites in the city.

		2009-05-06 The second 24 hours: Temples, Civil War monuments, and the Ride Home
		The second 48 hours in Xuzhou would be spent eating BBQ skewers (known as chuànr - 串), visiting an ancient temple, more local food, and lots of civil war stuff. Finally, the D train back to Beijing.