Qibao Ancient Town | Picturesque, retaining the flavor of the Jiangnan water town

Qibao Town is a historic town that not only has the natural scenery of the Jiangnan water town but also has a long cultural connotation. The ancient town is not very large, centered around Qibao Old Street, with Qibao Central Square being its landmark building. It also boasts attractions such as the Bell Tower Square, Puxi Square, the Ancient Opera House, Zhang Chongren Memorial Hall, Cricket Pavilion, Zhou's Micro-carving Museum, the Temple, and the Cotton Textile Museum. Qibao Ancient Town got its name from the Qibao Temple, and by the end of the Yuan Dynasty and the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, it was already a gathering place for merchants and scholars, known far and wide as a major town. Water is the soul of the Qibao Ancient Town's landscape, adding ink-wash charm to the ancient residences with white walls and black tiles on both sides of the river. It is also a commercial and cultural channel. In the past, ships departing from the docks of Qibao Town could reach different places through the developed network of waterway transportation, truly achieving wealth reaching all corners of the world and goods circulating like wheels. There are many delicacies in the ancient town, traditional Shanghai cuisine includes sweet rice balls, square cakes, pig's trotters, crab-apple cakes, Qibao mutton, and Old Street stinky tofu. You can pick a bottle of Shanghai-style sauce in the sauce garden. If you like local Shanghai dishes, you can also find old riverside restaurants on the Old Street and taste the flavor of old Shanghai. As the water town closest to the Shanghai city area, Qibao Ancient Town has a strong commercial atmosphere. But if you come during the off-season, you can still taste the ancient Jiangnan charm here. Qibao has a history of a thousand years, with historical records, but there is also a folk tale of 'Seven Treasures'. These 'Seven Treasures' are: the flying Buddha, the floating bell, the golden lotus sutra, the divine tree, the golden rooster, the jade axe, and the jade chopsticks. The floating bell is located in the central square of Qibao Ancient Town, built during the Ming Yongle era by the abbot of Qibao Temple, Monk Boqia, and is said to have floated up from the river. Around the floating bell, there is also a bell corridor where visitors can write their wishes on a wishing card and hang it here.