Wu Guanzhong, the famous modern Chinese painter, has commented in his articles that the Yellow Mountain has all the charm of the rivers and mountains of China, while Zhouzhuang Town boasts all the beautiful features of a Chinese waterside town. Zhouzhuang was even bestowed the title of number one waterside town in China by overseas press.

Location

Zhouzhuang Town is located 38 kilometers southeast of Suzhou City and 33 kilometers southwest of Kunshan City. It is one of the many wonderful daytrip excursions from Shanghai. You can arrive to Zhouzhuang from Shanghai in 4 hours via the well-networked highway system of the Yangtze River Delta.

Arrival

I visited several places last summer with many friends, Zhouzhuang being one of them. Shortly after a stop in Wuxi, my friends and I reached Zhouzhuang one afternoon. Maybe because of the comparatively mild climate of this riverside town, I didn't feel suffocated as I do in Beijing.

The first task was for us to find lodging for the night. The hotels and inns there easily fill up during the hot tourist season. On the main street leading to Zhouzhuang Town (the tourist area requires admission), there are flocks of vendors, often mobilized with their motor bicycles, persistently asking whether you need a guide, a map, an inn or something else.

We finally chose an inn outside of Zhouzhuang Town. We could have also chosen to stay within the town, but it seemed that those rooms were nearly rented out and the prices for those remaining would be a little bit high. The inn we chose was a common two-story house with rooms of 120 RMB per night. I was too impatient to wait, so as soon as I put down my bag, I went back out to the street.

The architectural style in the Jiangnan area at the lower reaches of the Yangtze River is very different from others. Houses are all built along the river, and all of them are similar to each other, with white walls, black tiles, and tip-tilted eaves.

A Riverside Dinner

Many restaurants line the riverside. We had a special dinner at one of them, and it was for me one of the most special memories of Zhouzhuang. I sat on a bamboo chair before a wooden table, watching the passing boats beside me. After sunset, red lanterns lit up, and under the romantic and relaxed atmosphere, we tried some of the typical tastes of Zhouzhuang. Wansan Pig's Trotters, a kind of pork leg, is the most famous food there. In addition, we ordered the Shaoxing yellow wine, heated just a little bit. I am not a wine drinker, but this wine made me recall the famous Chinese writer Lu Xun's famous novel Kong Yiji, whose main character likes Shaoxing yellow wine very much. But after my first sip of it, I was extremely confused as to why he loves it so much. It tastes strange. Just at that time came a young lady with a dish and chopstick in her hands. She asked whether I would like to listen to her song, I felt a bit uncomfortable to let her stand and sing while I sat and ate, so I refused her politely. However, I still heard her sweet voice and the rhythmic tapping of her chopstick on the dish for a neighbouring table.