Yongquan Town
Yongquan Town is tucked just off the Tongling East exit of the G50 Shanghai–Chongqing Expressway, so the drive from the highway is short. It started life as an abandoned mine; more than 20 years of gradual reworking have made it a recognizable local destination.
There are three entrances, and the parking lot is large. Parking costs 10 yuan per visit at the moment, which is reasonable. Admission is sold with the Twelve Jiangnan Scenes for 70 yuan per person, or you can buy a hot-spring ticket for 88 yuan.
Food is the town’s specialty. The shops are all self-operated rather than rented out to outside vendors. You change money into copper coins at the town’s ‘money house,’ and those coins work throughout the site.
The Twelve Jiangnan Scenes is a small hill. The scenery is fine, but it is damp and the insects are out in force; centipedes turn up everywhere, and I am genuinely afraid of them. Water runs through much of the town, which keeps the air cool. Even in the heat of summer there is a constant breeze that feels good.
There are plenty of activities for children, all free to join. Guoguo liked the pond best. It is stocked with crucian carp, and if you catch one you can take it to the barbecue rack nearby and grill it yourself at no charge.
OnePlus Pad Pro
When I was in a mall, I tried tablets from several brands. They felt more comfortable than a phone, so I started thinking about buying one. Then came the choosing. I had bought an iPad before, but after handling these, the Android experience did not feel inferior. Screen size, processor, memory, storage—the options were dizzying.
Oppo’s new 13.2-inch model was too awkward to carry, while the 8.8-inch performance model felt a little small. The Oppo 3 Pro at 12.1 inches seemed just right. I was ready to place the order when I realized the OnePlus Pad Pro was the same device in every way except the name—and more than 200 yuan cheaper. I ordered it without hesitating.
After a week, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 has shown no performance problems, and the 144Hz refresh rate is very smooth. The battery does drain rather quickly.
The software I would recommend most is TVbox. Once you use it, you understand that all those video subscriptions can go to hell—ha.
