Every morning, like many retired people in Shanghai, mom and dad go to a nearby park to exercise.
The park they go to has a pretty name - Spiritied Stone Park. I am not sure where the name comes from. I did not find any spirited stone, although there are indeed some beautiful stone mounds in the park. Stone mounds is one of the unique features of Chinese gardens. They come in variable sizes, from as small as a fridge to as large as a small hill. Unlike the big, round and clumsy boulders we see in Canada, these stones have the most interesting shapes. They have sharp corners and edges, large holes and crevices and almost impossible curves. They owe these peculiar shapes to thousands of years of water-erosion. These stones are excavated from mountains that rose above sea-level during earth's movement. They are heavily used in gardens of eastern China. Su Zhou, a city two hours away from Shanghai by train, is famous for its gardens with stone mounds. In some of Su Zhou's most outstanding gardens, one could easily believe that the stone mounds indeed have their own spirits - they look like they are from a different world.
I always think of parks in Shanghai as gyms with a view.
Most people in Shanghai live in small apartments. Green spaces are limited in this city of concrete. Thus public parks become a favourite destination for retired people when they do their morning exercises. Public parks are built and maintained by the municipality. They are usually quite large. The Spirites Stone, for example, spans 58 hectares and costs 1.8 billion RMB ($250 million CAD) to build. It is listed among the top 10 public sights in Shanghai. Since it is situated among the densely populated Zha Bei district, it quickly became the favourite exercise destination for retired people.
The park opens at 5 AM and closes at 6 PM. To encourage usage from retired people (who usually has limited income), entrance into the park is free before 8 AM. After 8 AM, one need to purchase a ticket for 2 RMB ($0.3 CAD). Needless to say, on the morning I go with my parents to the park, I have to get up at 6 AM.
Mom and dad quickly found their usual spot - on a small path in front of Paris Wedding Photo Studio, underneath the heavy shade of some euclyptus trees. This is "their spot", where they do their exercise every morning. Their routine includes the popular 18 Ku Fung movements and two different versions of Tai Chi. Regular morning visitors to the park all have "their spots", places that they claim unofficial ownership. It is a big no-no to invade someone else's "spot".
When dad pressed the Play button on the little tape recorder they brought with them (for playing exercise music and instructions) and started their Kung Fu movements, I decided to explore the park by taking a run through it. That's when I realized it is a gym with a view. And what a view it has!
In the center of the park there is a large man-made lake surrounded by weeping willows. The morning mist suspends over the lake like the finest fabric. The Fruit Mountain lies on one side of the lake. It is a small hill covered with fruit trees - persimmons, oranges, loquats and pomegranates. Earlier in the season these trees were heavy with fruits. The other side of the lake is the marshland. The reeds that were cut down last winter have grown to almost 9 feet and form a natural barrier for the marsh. Lotus blossoms, pink with tender yellow in the center, quivers in the morning breeze. The entire park is covered with trees and flowers I cannot name, even though I took a horticulture course two years ago. Our horticulture teacher told us that some large astroids fell across North America and burnt away many flora species. That is why Asia has many more flora variety compared to North America. Some of the plants in the park have a name tag, showing their genus and species as well as common name. One can easily spend an entire day learning about these trees.
The amount of wildlife in the park is also surprising. One would expect, in a city as crowded and polluted as Shanghai, there will be almost no wildlife. But that is not true at all. I saw at least 5 different types of birds - tiny sparrows, mourning doves and 3 birds I have never seen before. The lake has a permanent inhabitant - a tiny white egret. It always waits patiently beside people who are fishing, hoping to get a scrap of food when small fish are caught. Mandarin ducks swim in pairs in the lotus pond. Apart from these free souls, in one area of the park right beside a beautiful stone bridge, there are many caged birds. I counted 15 cages. They are all birds of a feather - Painted Eyebrows. Painted Eyebrow is about the size of a Canadian robin and grey in color. Its most remarkable feature is the beautiful white marking around its eyes that slants upward (like a true Asian beauty). The marking looks so perfect that it trumps any painted eyes I have seen in fashion magazines. Painted Eyebrow is a songbird. It has the most incredible singing voice. To train a Painted Eyebrow to sing, you would put it next to a bird that already knows how to sing. That's why they are alwasy seen in groups. I stood beside a group of 4 cages and examined closely one of the birds. It cocked its little head and studied me for a minute. Then it started to sing - it was the most beautiful music I have ever heard. The chorus of the 15 birds was very impressive.
What I found most interesting in the park is the people. The average age of park visitors in the morning is probably around 65. Unlike in the gym, here you can see so many different activities. Group activities include fan dance (dance-like movement decorated by colorful Chinese fans), Tai Chi, ballroom dancing, badminton, sword dance, bamboo bell dance (manipulation of an empty bamboo bell with very long string to make whooshing sounds), jogging and other martial arts. But the individual activities are more interesting. I learned the following forms of exercises that morning:
It was a true eye-opener. Compared to the limited activities in a Canadian gym, a visit to the park is most entertaining. And I am certain if I should stop someone who was doing a funny-looking exercise and ask him about it, I would get an earful of the benefits and origin of the exercise. After all, who says exercise is only about running and lifting weights?
Fan dance Dad and myself at "our spot"
1 comment:
So you can't get KFC in the park? Seriously looks fantastic...and I am now more convinced than ever that EVERYONE in China knows Kung Fu...
Post a Comment