Socioeconomic Differences

This photo was taken by the Suzhou River, which runs adjacent to the campus.
 The dilapidated buildings with their tin roofs is a drastic contrast from the mall that I posted a photo of on September 5th. The mall is only a 10 minute walk from this area. My history teacher took us here to explain the situation of why, except for this area, all the surrounding areas are developed. The main reason is that these people are living/setting-up stalls illegally here. Every morning, many people rely on these stalls because the produce is sold at a cheaper price than at the commercialized stores. Due to conflicts with the hukou system, the government cannot simply kick these people out.

p.s. happy bday h!~