The undoubted highlight of my trip to Shenzhen (apart from spending time with my other half, of course) was visiting this 40,000 ton decomissioned Soviet aircraft carrier, complete with MiG fighters, helicopters, tanks and missile launchers!
Dotted around the "theme park" which surrounds the ship are various items of military hardware and dozens of these bizarre soldiers. They look like statues until they suddenly move and you realise they are actually actors painted to look metal! This one took exception to me tapping his helmet (and their guns make a loud bang when fired too!) Still, not much fun for them wearing full combat gear in 30ºC heat.
The aircraft carrier itself sports a variety of weaponry, as well as it's complement of aircraft, and looks an awesome fighting machine. However, we'll never know for sure - it was decomissioned after 20 years service, having never been involved in any conflict! Down in the bowels of the ship, things get more surreal, with a 4D film showing a simulated attack on the ship (somehow including a swarm of rats and a mine railway!?) and then a great song and dance show recreating the transformation of happy Russian peasant farmers into Soviet soldiers who then all go off to war to get killed. Nice!
To finish the day off perfectly, Jiajia surprised me with a half-birthday treat at a fantastic, if rather expensive, steak restaurant. The lamb chops were delicious (a rare dish in China), the salad bars and bread were free and we both ate far too much.
Jiajia had endured, rather than enjoyed, the boat visit and, coming so soon after the "Dwarf Empire", she just kept muttering "Biantai laowai"... mentally disturbed foreigners!
Jiajia had endured, rather than enjoyed, the boat visit and, coming so soon after the "Dwarf Empire", she just kept muttering "Biantai laowai"... mentally disturbed foreigners!
