The Yu Yuan Garden
St . Margaret ' s Co-Educational English Secondary and Primary School ( Secondary Section ), Leung , Samantha - 15
L
ate in the summer , my mother decided I was too much of an indoorsy person , perhaps because I never left the house , or because she just wanted an excuse to have me leave the Internet . She started to take me to those Chinese restaurants with my grandparents , where people love to shout all their secrets , chanting food names at the waiters and spilling tea . Oh and also those little carts that will break your feet , no apologies included . “ Why aren ’ t you eating , Eva ?” asked Grandpa . “ I don ’ t like it here ,” I responded . Mom gave me a death shot . I dodged it and concentrated on the yellow lights . “ Sorry Eva , it ’ s a bit too loud here . Can you say it once more ?” “ Poor appetite .” “ You ’ ve been like this for a couple of days now , I think you should see a doctor . A Chinese doctor .” No way , I thought . “ Yes , I know one in Shanghai , an old friend of mine actually . You should go Eva ,” aid Grandpa . “ Will you be going , Gramps ?” “ No , Eva . I ’ m too old to go that far ,” sighed Gramps . Just as I thought life couldn ’ t get any worse , mom convinced dad to go , for real . “ Darling , you have been a very stressed man lately . I think we should go to somewhere for a short vacation .” She paused . “ What about Shanghai ?” My father and I sighed . He then grinned and nodded his head to approve the idea unwillingly . “ Brilliant ! This would be spectacular for the both of you ,” Mom said with full excitement . “ So , we will be leaving next week , don ’ t worry about the air tickets and hotels , it ’ s all on me .” She continued to annoy my father about the details of the trip . And I , luckily , managed to exclude myself in the conversation .
I woke up in a room . Alone . Strange . Unfamiliar . I started to panic for a second , but then , I realised I was in this deafening city , Shanghai . I never liked the city ; it was a bit too old , a bit too dirty , a bit too unlikable . I went on to check my social medias . Signal blocked . Tried to Google why . Signal blocked . Asked Siri why . Couldn ’ t get the connection to work . I had been poking my phone furiously for a solid 30 minutes , moaning about every single thing that annoys me , and I was about to go bonkers until my driver finally arrived . My brainless driver dropped me off at some random , packed street , which I was certain , wasn ’ t where I was supposed to go . I tried to get my location on my phone but the signal was blocked . I looked around ; cars , bags , phones , unfamiliar faces . I paused and stood where I was , trying to figure out what to do next . And so I did .
I walked along the streets . All I saw was shiny things and fancy fabrics , which I would have bought if I had my money . My mood escalated quite quickly . I was pushed around by a crowd of tourist , who couldn ’ t take their eyes off those sparkly items . Plus those sharp paper bags , my body felt like being poked by thousands of needles . I figured this wasn ’ t the best idea . I went for the more natural-related kind of a place , and I stumbled across a wall . Not like any wall . An ancient China wall . I reckon it was for some kind of protection back in the days . I walked into the area of old architecture , which was exactly how it was shown on television . I ambled around and took some photos . I started to wonder how life was back then , children running here and there , parents yelling them to come back , selling food along the streets … My thought vanished when I saw this garden ahead , it was simply beautiful . Venerable , in fact . I walked into the garden and I woke up lying on the floor . Why ? I asked myself . My mind was full of confusion . Full of unanswered questions . Echoing . I was still on the floor . Unable to move . Headache . “ Lady ! Lady ! Are you alright ? Oh no ! What happened ? Oh my ! Someone call the doctor ! Oh my Lady !” Cried the woman . I was too weak to process what happened . Minutes felt like hours . Days felt like months . How was I blacked out ? No idea at all . The moment I woke up , the sunlight blinded my eyes . I covered my eyes with one hand , and pushed myself up with another . I felt weird , my head was heavy , my feet felt small , and my body just wasn ’ t mine . I was wearing Chinese styled clothing ; a pink dress with damask-weave design of lotus , the sleeves were big and covered with