2011 is the sad year when mid-autumn festival was already on September 12 - way too early to have it combined with PRC birthday celebrations - and giving for the working forces only 1 day off.
For me Mid-Autumn festival gave an opportunity to take a bus 2 hours South from Rizhao to a city called Lianyungang. To see and feel the place in 1.5 days.
Lianyungang (population ~4 million) is a typical fast developing city with hundreds of high-rises being constructed, many blocks of newly completed high-rises standing there with all windows dark, wide straight lined streets connecting these blocks of buildings. In other words a typical new Chinese city looking exactly the same as hundred others.
The city has a small island that is connected nowadays with 8km long causeway. The island is being developed as a top tourist trap (rated: AAAA), but on one corner of it there is still an old fishermen village with all the boats and colourful life.
Restaurant offering fresh poultry for 38, 28 or 20 RMB. Knock off the head yourself.
Harbor, dust created by unloading and the city behind it.
Being alone with all the big reds
Water park never being opened. The sliding tubes are ending against the concrete wall (the blue wall loosing paint), making it impossible to be used for sliding down.
The island is a popular place for wedding shoots
Architecture for European taste, from distance these buildings looked very interesting, beautifully placed on hill side, nice green lush around and at the background higher rocky hill top. Windows pointing towards the harbour & city at the other side of the water. Sadly all of the houses were empty, and by the way paint was pealing off, they had been empty already for few years.
Small fishermen village hidden at one edge of the island.
These big pots are used to boil small shrimp into mass. All the harbour was totted with these kind of coal and wood heated boiling pots.
Unloading
Here we go again... not with this suitcase.