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Excursions from Shanghai
SUZHOU AND HANGZHOU
'In heaven there is paradise, on
earth there are Suzhou and Hangzhou' is a proverb
known to every Chinese. While today both of
these earthly paradises have been invaded to
some extent by industries and modern buildings,
they still have considerable charm.
SUZHOU
Suzhou is the nearer of the two
(two hours by car, 90 minutes by train) and
makes a pleasant day trip. Known as the Venice
of the East, the old part of town is still a
city of canals, hump-backed bridges, and low,
white-washed houses. Above all, Suzhou is famous
for its exquisite gardens, over 100 of which
survive. The Garden of the Master of the Fishing
Nets (part of which has been reproduced in the
Metropolitan Museum in New York), the Humble
Administrator's Garden and the Lingering Garden
are some fine examp1es. The city is also notable
for its silk production, silk embroidery and
other handicrafts such as sandalwood fans.
HANGZHOU
Hangzhou's fabled West Lake was
formerly perhaps China's best-known beauty spot.
With its 
willow trees, lotus blossoms in July
and arched stone bridges, it conforms to everyone's
idea of what Chinese scenery should look like.
Many Chinese come here for their honeymoon.
The huge lake has four landscaped islands and
the whole area is dotted with pavilions and
temples.
In addition to enjoying the scenery, you may
visit silk factories (as in Suzhou) and also
one of the tea plantations producing the famous
Hangzhou Lonkjing (Dragon Well) tea.
Hangzhou is three to four hours
by train from Shanghai or 30 minutes by plane.
It can be visited in a day, but an overnight
stay is recommended to relax and enjoy the atmosphere.
SHANGHAL‘S OUTLYING COUNTRIES
Those with more time who have seen
Shanghai's major sights and visited Suzhou and
Hangzhou might be interested in visiting some
of the outlying counties, which are part of
Shanghai Municipality.
SONGJIANG COUNTY
In SonaJiang, a county seat for
over 2,500 years and situated 19 kilometers
(12 miles) southwest of Shanghai, is the beautiful
Square Pagoda (Si Fang Ta), which is 900 years
old. Although renovated in 1975, much of the
l1th-century brick and wood structure is original.
It is over 48 meters (157 feet) high with nine
stores and was once part of Xingshengiiao Temple,
of which one hall remains. There is also a Tang-dynasty
stele, engraved with Buddhist scriptures, lions'
heads, lotus petals and cloud patterns. It is
said that the stele was erected to redeem the
souls of crimina1s who were executed here. The
Hu Zhu Pagoda (Hu Zhu Ta), an octagonal scven-storey
leaning brick tower was built in 1079 during
the Northern Song dynasty (960--1127). The Xilin
Pagoda (Xi Lin Ta) was built during the Southern
Song dynasty during 1127--1279.
A lovely example of a classical
Chinese garden, with bizarre rocks, ponds and
miniature landscaping, can be seen on a visit
to Zhuibaichi Park. This once-private garden
probably dates from the late Ming dynasty and
became the villa of a painter, Gu Dashen, in
the mid-17th century.
The local specia1ity is Four-grilled
Perch, which is now rather rare and has been
known for centuries as 'the number one dish
south of the Yangtze'. Emperor Yang of the Sui
Dynasty (581--618) praised the fish, saying
it was 'as precious as gold and jade', while
the Qing emperor Qianlong (retried 1736--96)
had it sent to him annually.
JIADING COUNTY
Twenty--five kilometers (15.5 miles)
northwest of Shanghai is Jiading County, where
a Confucian temple has existed since the 13th
century. In the courtyard, stelae set into plinths
of stone turtles record the temple restorations
and meritorious deeds of various officials.
Three old cypress trees are all that are left
of 60 planted in the Yuan dynasty (1279--1368).
Memoria1 tablets of Confucius' disciples and
records of the achievements of local scholars
1ine two corridors, which are part of the county
museum.
Five streams converge at the site
of the Huilong Tan (Pool of Convergent Dragons),
and adorning the surrounding stone railings
are 72 different lions (Confucius had 72 disciples).
During the Taiping Rebellion, the soldiers of
the Dagger Society were bound to the trees beside
the pool and executed. Yingkui Hill in the centre
of the pool dates from the Ming dynasty, while
the Literary God Tower, on the eastern bank,
was restored recently after being bombed in
the Sino-Japanese War.
The Garden of Autumn Clouds (Qiuxia
Pu), near Hui1ong Pool, is another example of
private garden architecture. This was laid out
by Minister of Defense, Gong Hong, in around
1520. Another garden, Guyi Yuan (Garden of Ancient
Splendor), built by a high official of the Ming
dynasty, can be seen at the town of Nanxiang
in Jiading County.
Nanxiang dumplings are famous in
the area, their skin being especially thin.
Chen He set up his dumpling shop 100 years ago
and his recipe was so successful that the dumplings
took on the name of the town, rather than of
his shop.
QINGPU COUNTY
Qingpu County is 22.5 ki1ometres
(14 miles) west of Shanghai, is the city's main
supplier of fresh Water fish. Zhuiajiao is a
delightful old town criss-crossed by canals,
spanned by l6th-century stone-arched foot bridges,
with traditional wooden boats moored alongside
ancient stone houses. You can spend a day walking
along the narrow stone-paved lanes, riding in
the boats or sitting beside the canals at sidewalk
cafes. There is an active 18th-century City
God Temple (Cheng Huang Miao) and an active
Christian church daring from the l9th century.
The town is one hour away from Shanghai by bus
or taxi, and about l5 minutes' drive from Dianshan
Hu. This town is similar in style to Zhouzhuang
but less crowded.
DIANSHAN LAKE (DIANSHAN HU)
This huge lake covers 6,300 hectares
(15,570 acres), some 12 times larger than Hangzhou's
West Lake, and teems with fish, freshwater shrimp
and crabs. A holiday resort popular with Shanghainese
has been developed near Yangshe Village on the
southeastern stretch of the lake.
The landscaped garden, Daguanyuan
(Grand View Garden), is on the shores of Dianshan
Hu. Constructed in 1984, it represents authentic
Song-Qing-Ming architecture. It is presented
as a 'Heng Lou Meng' theme park, with music,
costumed characters, and exhibits all based
upon the stories from that most famous of Chinese
novels, The Dream of the Red Chamber. Look for
the 'wishing trees' onto which people have tossed
written wishes tied to bright red ribbons. You
can only see the lake if you exit the walled
enclosure. An expansive free garden area stretches
along the water's edge. Across the road from
Daguanyuan sits a Nationalistic Village with
examples of traditional architecture from each
of China's 43 ethnic minorities.
DAYING LAKE
The Meandering Stream Garden (Qushui
Yuan), on the bank5 of the lake, is also a popular
excursion for Shanghainese. It was built with
funds donated by local townsfolk in 1745 and
redeveloped in 1927.
CHONGMING ISLAND
This is a delightful piece of rural
countryside, incorporating several National
Parks, situated in the middle of the Yangtze
(Chanajiang) River's mouth. It is a part of
the Shanghai municipality although the environment
is light years away from the urban centre. You
can take a relaxing hour-long ferry boat ride
from Wusong Port up the Huangpu and into the
ChangJiang to this island. Many former residents
of the Three Gorges have been resettled on Chongming
Island. It is also the place where the transatlantic
telecommunications cable connects China with
the U.S.A. It is home to the Dongping National
Forest Park (Dongping Guojia Senlin Gongyuan).
• Shanghai
• River Rites
• What
to See in Shanghai (1)
• What
to See in Shanghai (2)
• Shanghai's
History Through Its Names
• Cool Depths
• Revolutionary
Sites
• Excursions from Shanghai
