During the Tang Dynasty, rules were passed that required horses to be treated with the respect of a member of the royal family. The Yuan Dynasty depended on them to mobilize the armies that made Genghis and Kublai Khan the most powerful people to have ever lived. Horses have played a major role in China’s past, but they aren’t common place today and haven’t been for some time. One of the only places you’ll find horses in Suzhou is the Lakeville Country Club. It took some effort for us to find it. We didn’t have the address but had heard it was on the shore of Yongcheng Lake. There are busses that will take you there, but it’s almost certain that you’ll have to change at least once, so taking a taxi is probably your best option. It cost us 38 kuai from the western edge of the SIP to reach the club in the northeast of downtown Suzhou.
As easy as it looks, riding horses can be dangerous. We once heard tell of a woman in Finland who died after a horse bit her head. No joke. And let’s not forget all the Christopher Reeves’ out there. But horses are bad-ass. There is a reason why every actor from Clint Eastwood to Jackie Chan has donned a cowboy hat and made a Western. You gotta be tough. With that in mind, the country club will provide you with a helmet, gloves, leg guards and a riding instructor if you need one. All of that is included in your 100RMB for a half an hour’s ride. For beginners, there is a sandy track. Got some experience? Take the horse for a picturesque ride along the shore of the lake. If you’re looking for something else, there are rooms for rent, bicycles, a spa, archery and, best of all, go-karts. We paid 60RMB for 10 minutes in a very speedy go-kart, but they were generous and let us run the track for a half an hour.
Maybe the Chinese knew something a few hundred years ago when they abandoned horses long before the rest of the world. Galloping on the back of a horse requires muscles you didn’t know that you had, leaving you a massive ball of pain the next day. Does that scare you? Stick to the karts then. Still, nobody is gonna make a movie about go-karts.
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