Parks...Dandong style

This post is a hot mess....I'll reformat it later if I have time. Can someone tell me if the videos work? I was having some trouble with them again.

Bell and I had some extra time before taking a trip to a restored section of the Great Wall so we took a walk to the edge of town where this big arch was. Upon seeing the arch and its surroundings, I thought that we were about to go for a scenic hike through the woods. The first sign we came across pointed us in the direction of Happiness Woods. That seemed benign enough. But I should have known that I was getting much more than I bargained for when I came across another sign that said something like Lion and Tiger Woods. I didn't even take a picture of it because I figured that these were just figurative lion and tiger woods...especially since they love tigers so much here...well I was wrong!

The first thing we came across (probably somewhere in the vicinity of Happiness Woods) was a big open area where many people were dancing to some loud music and enjoying the sunshine. Even in Dalian, many people (usually older people) gather in the mornings to dance together in an open square near my apartment. From what I've seen, they typically dance in unison. However, at this dance party in Dandong, a lot of people were just doing their own thing. Some people were stretching, some were working on tai chi-ish poses, some were clapping, some were moving very slowly and others very quickly...it was a hodge podge. Then I saw this elderly woman in a pink sweater who had to have been the happiest lady that I've ever seen in my entire life. The whole time she was dancing she looked absolutely ecstatic to be there. She was a good dancer too! Considering her age she was extremely fluid and spry. The other woman she was dancing with looked quite a bit younger than her but she was having trouble keeping up. At one point, as you can see in the picture, the younger woman just stopped dancing with the woman in pink, put her hand on her hip and smiled at her incredulously. The woman in pink started laughing so hard and just went right on dancing with out her. I got such a good picture of her mid-laugh!!





















After spending some time here and living vicariously through these people's happiness, Bell and I continued our ascent. I thought this square was the main public center of the park, but soon then we stumbled upon a fairly large amusement park tucked away in the forest! I thought it was such a strange place for an amusement park because you can't even see it from the road. It was pretty early in the morning when we got there so there were not that many people there but I imagine that this place probably gets packed in the summer. I think most of the rides would be okay- the merry-go-round, the choo choo train, the rafts, the bumper cars...I would have even tried the strange peddle-coaster thing...but they had a few things that I would be a little skeptical about going on, like the swinging pirate ship. It looked a little worn, lol. They also had a haunted house that I really wanted to go in but we didn't have time. I am so curious to see what the Chinese consider to be scary. By the way, they love that little sheep pictured on the choo choo train- I see it EVERYWHERE. I know it is some kind of cartoon but I have yet to figure out what it's all about.





















Then we stumbled upon what must have been the Lion and Tiger Woods because lo and behold there were real lions and tigers there. I don't think I have ever been so close to a lion or a tiger before. They were in these really small, dingy, rusted metal cages and it seems like they could have escaped them if they really wanted to. However, they have probably completely lost their sense of will from living in very small, concrete-floored box for so long, so maybe that's why they just stay put. I had heard some bad things about Chinese zoos before but it almost seemed like they were trying their best to create really terrible living conditions for the animals- there was no where for them to roam, no water, no grass, no dirt or anything for them to walk on besides the concrete. The only good thing I can say about this zoo is that they had a pretty sweet monkey house....those rocks look sort of fun to climb around on.

All in all, I think the Chinese can be very fun loving people. The Chinese word for play (wa[n]r) is used quite often and can be said in the context of both adults and children. I noticed that when Chinese people speak English they often directly translate wa[n]r to play, so I am often asked what and where I played that day hahah. So, this was my first experience with a Chinese park!!