Zhou Zhuang - A Romantic Water Town

Singapore to Shanghai Pudong Airport - 4.5hours
Shanghai Pudong Airport to Kunshan Station ( 昆山航站楼 ) - 2 hours
Kunshan to Zhouzhuang (周庄) - 1 hour

I was in China for 2 days and 2 nights before I went over to Taipei. Having only visited China once (Shen Zhen), my impression of the country was less than positive: overcrowded, dirty toilets and oily food. However, this visit to Kunshan, Shanghai has left me intrigued with the beauty of China. Kunshan is a city in Shanghai and I had the opportunity to visit a town called Zhouzhuang in Kunshan. It is about an hour drive from Kunshan Station, and definitely worth the time spent travelling. I apologise again for not being able to advise on public transport as I have friends here so my friends were driving me around.

In Kunshan, I stayed at Hanting Express 汉庭连锁酒店. Rooms were clean and small, perfect for budget travellers, though somehow the hotel does not provide tissue box. It is convenient to walk around Kunshan and the streets did not feel dangerous or even dirty (except for spits, and don't let your guard down just because you are indoors!)

Food is considered cheap in Singapore standards and they have really good Xiao Long Baos 小龙包~~ I think a plate of ten is less than S$4? And sometimes you have to order food by weight, so don't be shocked when the shop owner asks you 'ni yao ji jin' 你要几斤？Basically one jin 斤 is 500 grams. And I am sure you can't actually imagine how big a portion 500 grams is, so just go for ban jin 半斤. If it is good, go back and get more! Otherwise just save space to try other delicacies.

Anyway, moving on to Zhouzhuang~~ There is an entrance fee of ￥50 and from the ticket counter, you have to walk quite a distance to get to the official entrance area to get into the tourist area for the water town. The whole town has a really romantic setting, with lots of rivers running parallel along the streets, stone bridges and olden mansions with wooden roofs.

In Zhouzhuang, there are many attractions, souvenir shops and restaurants. There is even a Starbucks and a cafe that I would really want to visit the next time I have a chance to revist called Zuo Shou Hou Yuan 左手后院 literally means a Lefthander's backyard. It is a cafe owned by a couple that loves travelling, didn't have the chance to sit and bask in the atmosphere of this quaint little cafe but if anyone did have an opportunity to try this place out, please drop a comment to let me know if it is worth visiting!

纸箱动物园 Cardboard Zoo - made by a group of really 'crafty' people using only cardboard and glue. There is a mini zoo section and huge ones that are the size of a human. Tigers, pigs, wild boars, monkeys, alpaca and sheeps and you can even buy the cardboard with the shape cut out for you to bring home and get crafty! My favourite cardboard animal is the monkeys, hanging off trees and even carrying their babies. Just so realistic!

陈逸飞之家 Chen Yih Fei's Humble Abode - Compared to the other mansions opened for viewing, Mr Chen's house is considered much, much smaller. Mr Chen is the artist that drew the Double Bridge of Zhouzhuang that made Zhouzhuang famous overseas. The inside of his home is decorated with art pieces and old editions of Vogue magazines.


沈家 Home of the Shen Family - This has to be the largest mansion opened for viewing. Mr Shen was a businessman, helping the government to open up the Chinese market overseas. Copper murals are decorated along the walls of his house describing his life story and how his life was not simply a bed of roses.

 游船 Rowboats - There are different rates charged for different routes. Maximum of 6 adults on a boat so if you are only two, you can join another group to split the cost. Most boats are rowed by women of Zhouzhuang. The lady that rowed the boat asked if we would like to add on ￥30 to have her sing and introduce the attractions. The Chinese people bargained and finally she agreed to sing at ￥15. It was kind of sad as she is obviously tired and thirsty from rowing under the hot sun (though the weather was still cool around that season), but an opportunity to earn extra bucks should not be given up so easily! Go lady! I like how the little baby girl that I shared the boat with was so fascinated by the lady.
Row, row, row your boat~
The boat ride brings you along the many streams of Zhouzhuang and at some point reaches the part of town where the locals actually lives in. There, they have fish nets to catch river fishes and prawns. According to the boat lady, the locals do not poop or pee in the rivers (i bet you were asking this question in your head). I am not sure which route I took but the boat ride was pretty short. Even so, I recommend this attraction!

I did not get much souvenirs though I did buy the sesame biscuits because of the old school chinese style wrapping (as seen on the left). Still have not tried the biscuit.. And another thing I recommend is to drink tea at any of the cafes or food establishment along the river. Tea is really fragrant and scenery is so peaceful.

All in all, I felt that Zhouzhuang is a really pretty place and I highly recommend this place to anyone who are in Shanghai or Kunshan. I spent about 5 hours there but that is only because I had a wedding dinner to attend at night so I could not stay too long. More information can be found at their official website, which I think is really pretty too. Do feel free to give your feedback on Zhouzhuang in the comments box below! http://www.zhouzhuang.com/