Tianjin
Jiangyin, China – After our victory over the Tianjin Steel CBA team we had an off day followed by a travel day. On the off day we spent some time at the Olympic Village shopping area and then took taxis to a place called “The Plaza” that is a smaller version of Beijing’s Silk Market. We had a practice scheduled so did not have a lot of time to bargain and make a lot of purchases but a few of the players got something.
Tianjin Train Station
Then it was off to Jiangyin, a city of 1-2 million outside of Shanghai. We got there by taking a high-speed train from Tianjin to Wuxi and then took a bus about an hour. The high speed train went about 1,000 miles in about 5 hours with the train speeding along at almost 200 mph. They run very smooth and you cannot appreciate how fast they travel while you are riding on the train. After we got off the train we saw a few trains speed past the station. As fast as they go you just hear a loud noise like a jet plane and then the train quickly gets out of your viewing area. It’s all very impressive. The USA could use a transportation system like that.
The hotel we are staying at in Jiangyin is a 5-star hotel, the Wyndham Grand Plaza Royale. The food and room are great and there’s an exercise facility and an Olympic sized swimming pool. So for the next three days we will be in a good spot. Our last city will be Wuhu (pronounced Woo-hoo), which is about a three-hour bus ride west of here.
Here in Jiangyin we will be playing the late (9pm) game each night. We’ll face Lithuania tonight followed by Ukraine and then China the final night.
We’re waiting to receive the All-Tournament teams from Tianjin and will post them tomorrow.
