– English Lyrics

Lyrics & Translation

[English]

[Music]

My solo trip continued as I  flew from Seoul to Suzhou.

This is the part of my trip where

I felt like I went back in time.

In one day, I felt like I  went from Kdrama to Mulan,

from a modern glitzy city

to stone bridges and ancient canals.

It felt like I had stepped into a Chinese painting

an ethereal world from an ancient time.

The energy shifted completely

from a fast-paced buzz to  an introspective presence.

All right, I just arrived  in Suzhou for my solo trip.

This is the city where my grandma is from.

And it's actually a city with a lot of sightseeing

like ancient Chinese classical gardens

and a lot of beautiful scenery I guess.

So I'm excited to explore.

And the hotel that I'm staying at is gorgeous

it really is the perfect mix of like

old Chinese historic building with

some modern elements tied in.

And I love this aesthetic like even

the view of my room like the view

outside is so quaint.

There's like some water, kids running around

some beautiful trees and buildings

and I am excited to explore more of this place.

It's also funny because some of

my interior design choices for my house

was actually like places like this

where it mixes like old traditional

Chinese style, some Asian elements

with some modern.

And like I literally have a  book about Chinese gardens

in my living room like as like a coffee table book

and now I'm here.

So yeah, I'm just going to enjoy it.

Okay fit check.

Literally whole outfit from Korea.

Top, jeans, bag, all all fresh from Seoul.

I'm a new girl. Oh and glasses too.

These are like $5 glasses from nyu nyu.

Love it. Let's go.

[Music]

I chose to come to Suzhou for a few reasons.

First, I've always been drawn to the beauty of

Chinese gardens and classical art.

It even inspires the way I designed my home.

Suzhou has the most classical  gardens in all of China.

It feels like a living gallery of ancient beauty.

On a personal level, both my grandma and

grandpa's families are from this region.

So I wanted to experience this place

that's so closely tied to my roots.

To connect with Chinese history

and my own family history.

And since Suzhou is just a couple hours away

from Shanghai by car, it was the perfect place

to explore before meeting up with my dad.

You guys it is, it is so  pretty here. I'm not okay.

It is so beautiful with the sunset,

I don't even know exactly where I am.

I just know this is in my  hotel's like backyard area

but this is like very very scenic, very historical

I'm going to have to do some research.

I need to look at a map where  am I, I don't even know.

It's so peaceful right now.

The sun, this view.

[Music]

So beautiful. Yeah. That's how I feel.

Excitement, beautiful, gratitude.

I'll show you the view.

[Music]

[Music]

This evening lighting it's so beautiful right now.

When you come to a place like this,

you got to get into character.

Honestly, I was most looking forward

to doing a Hanfu photo shoot.

I got my hair and makeup done and

I love that they're so elaborate.

They really go into the details with your hair

adding all these extra accessories and extra hair.

And I shot photos at my hotel and

the very beautiful Panmen  scenic area next to my hotel.

This look is inspired by the Song Dynasty which

was the era when Suzhou was the center for

silk production, art and  intellectual life in China.

This era was all about confusion values,

elegant aesthetics, poetry, calligraphy

and scholarly refinement.

As a strong Libra, my sun Mercury and Venus

are all in Libra and a Gemini rising,

I feel like this era emphasizing art, beauty,

knowledgeand and intellect really suits me.

No wonder I'm drawn to places like this.

[Music]

Hello from Song Dynasty version Aileen.

So today I am dressed in Song Dynasty

fashion from the hair to the makeup.

Apparently, these pearls are a Song Dynasty thing

and I'm just feeling like I'm in another era.

So I'm just going to walk around and

get some clips of me being me.

I don't know, I just feel so pretty.

When exploring this beautiful  place with ancient gardens

and thousand-year-old pagodas,

I felt such a deep sense of awe at the history

and the worlds that have existed before us.

The lives lived, the stories  lost, the countless people

who have come across the same place

and found inspiration or meaning here.

The places that stayed and the structures

that still stand after all these years.

There were many times when I found myself

getting emotional and tearing up.

Part of it was I couldn't believe I was here

that I had finally made it back  to China after so many years.

Part of it was also this feeling  of connection to my grandparents.

At being at the places that  they had also been before.

Of seeing the lifestyle here  and imagining their youth.

My heart felt full at the familiarity of hearing

their accent spoken by the people around me.

I hadn't heard this accent in years.

I was literally at a dumpling shop eating dinner

and getting teary-eyed because at the table

behind me was a grandma with two little kids

speaking Mandarin in that accent that

sounded just like my grandma's.

After not hearing it for so long

it just felt so familiar and comforting

like I had never been to this place

and yet it reminded me of my childhood.

[Music]

On my sightseeing days I didn't vlog as much.

Partly because it was so crowded

but mainly because I just wanted to be present.

I visited a few famous gardens, museums and

famous ancient roads where there were lots of food

and shopping red bean milk tea.

At the Suzhou West Museum I was amazed to see

old artifacts dating back 5,000 to 7,000 years

that they dug up here in Suzhou.

It blew my mind to think  that people have lived here

for thousands of years.

That this land has carried so many generations,

so many stories.

I just went to the museum and I bought

such cute stuff at the gift shop.

I normally don't buy things  at the museum gift shop

but I don't know, the  aesthetic called to me, right?

It's like Chinese aesthetic but  make it pastel, cute and modern.

Which is so my style.

So I'll show you what I got.

First is this keychain.

It's actually a mirror behind this thing and

I just thought the colors were so pretty like

I think it's tangerines and it's so pretty.

The colors, the aesthetic, the shape, love it.

Okay this is like, what do they call it?

Oh this is a popsocket.

That's in the shape of a gourd  and it's like yellow and blue.

I have been trying not to  get a popsocket for so long

cuz I like my phone to be slim but this was so cute

I just I had to get it. I had to.

This one is a mirror and it  comes with like a little tassel.

I thought it was so pretty.

It's just, yeah it's just  a mirror. It's so pretty.

[Music]

So there's like this beautiful  mountain shape with a lake

and I'm going to go explore  it cuz it's just so pretty.

I also really love the Confucious Temple

and Ancient Tablets Museum

where you could see an array of ancient

stone tablets that truly thrust you into the past.

I was having my Google camera out

just trying to translate  as many tablets as I could.

It was just so fascinating.

As I was researching why Suzhou

has so many beautiful gardens I learned that

it was once the cultural heart of China.

Home to some of the wealthiest and

most educated people in the country.

Suzhou was known for its silk, its scholars

and its refined way of life.

These gardens were built by scholars, artists

and officials as private retreats to reflect,

write poetry, paint and connect with nature.

They were a place to think  deeply and cultivate the self.

What really fascinated me was learning that

in ancient China they tested  scholars and future leaders

not just in knowledge but in confusion values,

ethics and the arts like poetry, music,

painting and calligraphy.

I was like, why test the arts?

Like what does poetry or music have

anything to do with leadership?

Apparently, they believed that to lead well

you needed to have heart,  depth and artistic sensibility.

In those times, the best leaders were meant to be

artists at heart, people with compassion,

discipline and vision.

That's why so many officials were also poets,

painters and musicians.

That was so eye opening to me because

it's so different from how  we view our leaders today.

They placed a strong emphasis on character,

wisdom and cultivation of the self because

they believed to be a great leader

you first had to be a great human.

I thought this was so beautiful and

something we've lost along the way.

Through the rise of industrialization and

capitalism we've come to prioritize

qualities like efficiency,  productivity and output.

What society deems valuable has shifted.

We now live in a time where

artists are not truly valued  for their wisdom or leadership.

Their voices are often dismissed as if

they don't know what they're talking about.

As if creativity has no  place in shaping the world.

That's why it inspires me  that there was once an era

where art wasn't just  appreciated. It was essential.

A time when creativity, beauty and self-expression

were seen as reflections of  wisdom, refinement and leadership.

[Music]

I did another Hanfu photo shoot because why not?

I wanted to try another style  so I went for this lavender look

that felt more on brand for me.

We shot in this private garden just for people

doing Hanfu photo shoots so it wasn't as crowded

with people like a famous garden would be.

Hi loves, I wanted to try a different look cuz

I noticed that the girls get better hair when

they do it outside cuz I did mine at the hotel.

So this is just a different look, you know,

just so I have options. A girl loves options.

[Music]

And here are the photos from the shoot.

I do like this concept better than the first one.

I understand the photos are still pretty edited.

You know what's funny?

I already asked them twice to please

tone down the editing because Chinese people

really like to overedit everything  to their beauty standard.

Like they make your skin lighter, eyes bigger,

face smaller, they make you taller, skinnier.

And I sat down with the editor the first round

and asked him like: "Please  don't make my face a V shape.

I know you guys like the V shape but please

keep my face normal, I want to look like me,

Don't make me so skinny."

And so he had to like adjust everything

cuz he already edited it once.

And then he sent me the photos on WeChat

and then I told him like:

"No, no these are still they don't look like me."

And so I asked for a second round of re-editing

so this is after two rounds maybe even three

for some of the photos.

But you know what? I will take it.

So I just finished taking

my second round of photos and I think

I'm going to explore a little bit.

I'm not sure if the other gardens are still open

I might just explore the streets and this wear.

So I get to wear this until I  guess for like a couple hours

until I have to return it.

I'm leaving Suzhou tomorrow.

So tomorrow I go to Shanghai

and so I'm really taking in all the historical

parts of this environment because I'm going to go

to a completely modern place tomorrow.

[Music]

After the shoots I kept the outfit on of course.

And I explored a famous  ancient street by the canal.

It was really crowded but I did get to shop

for some cute souvenirs.

I bought a couple fans. I'll show you guys later.

[Music]

I made it in and it is crowded but very lively.

I didn't have to wait in line.

In the end I realized I was already inside.

I just had to cross a bridge but yeah.

There's a line to get in this  area because it's it's a holiday.

It's just very busy you know.

[Music]

I got some buns.

I had to find a quiet corner  cuz the street is so crazy.

[Music]

I wasn't sure if it was salty or sweet.

Can't tell what it is cuz there's like sesame.

There's green onion, something.

It's like a pastry.

After this I want to find a drink or some dessert.

I don't know if I'm going to  keep vlogging cuz it's crazy.

I don't want to take out my camera

when it's too crazy out there.

If you guys notice I only  vlog when it's like calm.

But today since I'm dressed up,

I'll vlog in the crazy crowd but if it's crazy

normally I don't like vlogging.

[Music]

My week in Suzhou was a quiet, reflective

and artistic break in my trip.

I was deeply inspired by the  culture and history here,

moved by the people

and the unexpected ways

I felt connected to my family roots.

Over the days I began to open up more

and started striking up  conversations with strangers.

Chatting with cab drivers,

helping other travelers translate and so on.

There was even a moment of synchronicity.

I met a shop worker who was wearing

the exact same necklace as me.

And we found out that we had bought it

on the same day and at the same place.

It's funny the little connections

and serendipitous moments that unfold

when you're traveling solo.

This world is full of curious moments

just waiting to be experienced.

That's the beauty I find in traveling.

Those surprising, joyful moments.

Moments of awe, moments of inspiration,

moments of connection.

It's goodbye for now but I know

I'll be back again someday.

After Suzhou I'm heading to Shanghai

for a week to visit my dad ´

who I have not seen in 6 years.

I'll share more of that story in the next video.

So stay tuned for that one.

Thank you so much for watching and allowing me

to share my thoughts and inspirations with you.

Sending you so much love.

Bye

[Music]

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
explore /ɪkˈsplɔr/ A2	verb - to travel through or into an unfamiliar area to learn about it
ancient /ˈeɪnʃənt/ A2	adjective - belonging to a very old time in the past
garden /ˈɡɑrdən/ A1	noun - a piece of land where plants, especially flowers, are grown
traditional /trəˈdɪʃənl/ B1	adjective - following or belonging to the customs or ways of behaving that have continued over a long time
aesthetic /esˈθetɪk/ B2	adjective - concerned with beauty or the appreciation of beauty
inspire /ɪnˈspaɪr/ B1	verb - to make someone want to do something or create something
historical /hɪˈstɔrɪkəl/ B1	adjective - connected with the study or representation of history
scenic /ˈsiːnɪk/ B1	adjective - having beautiful natural views
refinement /rɪˈfaɪnmənt/ C1	noun - the process of improving something by making small changes
calligraphy /kəˈlɪɡrəfi/ B2	noun - the art of producing decorative handwriting or lettering with a pen or brush
confusion /kənˈfjuːʒən/ B1	noun - a lack of understanding or uncertainty
scholar /ˈskɒlər/ B2	noun - a person who studies a subject in great depth
introspective /ɪnˈtrɒspəktɪv/ C1	adjective - characterized by examination of one's own thoughts and feelings
ethereal /ɪˈθɪəriəl/ C1	adjective - extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world
synchronicity /ˌsɪŋkrəˈnɪsəti/ C1	noun - the simultaneous occurrence of events which appear significantly related but have no discernible causal connection
quaint /kweɪnt/ B2	adjective - attractively unusual or old-fashioned
serendipitous /ˌsɛrənˈdɪpɪtəs/ C1	adjective - occurring or discovered by chance in a happy or beneficial way
cultivate /ˈkʌltɪveɪt/ B2	verb - to try to develop and improve something
artifact /ˈɑrtɪfækt/ B2	noun - an object made by a human being, typically an item of cultural or historical interest
pagoda /pəˈɡoʊdə/ B1	noun - a tiered tower with multiple eaves, common in Asian architecture