Exploring the Water Towns of Jiangnan: A Budget Traveler's Unique Experience in Wuxi
🌟 Wuxi, this poetic city, is the thirteenth stop on my budget travel journey through China. Not only does it boast the beautiful scenery of Taihu Lake, but it also has a profound cultural heritage. Today, I'm going to take you all to explore the charm of Wuxi and share my two-day and one-night travel strategy. Are you ready? Let's go! 🚀
🎒 Essential Packing List
- Identification: ID card, student ID (don't forget, many attractions offer half-price discounts)
- Clothing: Bring a jacket🧥, comfortable sneakers👟, and enough spare clothes
- Electronics: Charger, power bank, headphones🎧, camera📷, mobile phone📱, can't miss any of them
- Other items: Umbrella☔, tissues, a small amount of cash💰, cold medicine💊 just in case
- Best time to travel: March to June in spring and October to December in autumn
🗺 Itinerary
DAY 1:
- Morning: Start at Nanchan Temple to experience the tranquility of the ancient temple (free admission)🕊️; then stroll through Hui Shan Ancient Town to taste the charm of the old town (also free)
- Afternoon: Take a breeze to the Turtle Head Isle of Taihu Lake to enjoy the lake and mountain scenery (adult ticket price 90 yuan)
- Evening: Don't miss the Cherry Blossom Tower at Turtle Head Isle, where the cherry blossoms at night have a unique flavor (free, located within the Turtle Head Isle scenic area)🌸
DAY 2:
- Morning: Head to Lingshan Grand Buddha to experience the solemnity of Buddhist culture (adult ticket price 195 yuan)
- Afternoon: Visit Nianhua Bay to experience the Zen lifestyle (adult ticket price 140 yuan)
- Evening: The night view of Chong'an Temple is not to be missed, with its brilliant lights; Nan Chang Street pedestrian street is a great place to taste authentic snacks (both are free to visit)🌃
🏨 Accommodation Tips
- Near Hui Shan Ancient Town: Suitable for friends who like to take a walk at night and taste delicious food, with convenient transportation
- Near Chong'an Temple: The night lights are too beautiful to miss
- Youth hostels are my favorite, budget-friendly, and a great place to meet friends from all over the world
🍜 Food Exploration
- Xin Wanxin Silver Thread Noodle Shop: Crab roe mixed noodles🍜 and Wuxi small steamed buns, every bite is a delight
- Mu Guiying Delicacies: An old snack shop to taste traditional food
- Overlord Roasted Pig's Trotters: Marinated and then roasted, chewy and flavorful🐷
- Nanchan Temple Vegetarian Noodles: Good value for money
- Hui Shan Tofu Pudding: Delicate texture, appropriately salty and sweet
💭 Personal Reflections
Traveling alone, I felt the peacefulness of the years on the stone-paved roads of Hui Shan Ancient Town. Even a simple magnolia cake became more delicious because of the auntie's enthusiasm. On Nan Chang Street, the craftspeople's skills were an eye-opener for me, sugar painting, paper-cutting, each one an artwork. The Jiangnan atmosphere of Wuxi made me, a girl from Chongqing, feel incredibly relaxed. Cycling by Taihu Lake, with the lake breeze gently blowing and the sparkling waves, that tranquility seemed to make one forget all worries. Traveling is not just about the destination, but also a process of spiritual purification and self-discovery.
Came on April 30, 2023. Nanchan Temple is just outside the south gate of Wuxi City. It is one of the "480 Temples in the South Dynasty", and has a history of nearly 1,500 years. According to the Qing Dynasty "Rebuilding Wuxi Nanchan Temple Stele", Nanchan Temple ranks second in the "Liangxi Ten Great Temples", after Huishan Temple, and is a classic tourist attraction in Wuxi. Moreover, Nanchan Temple is connected to Nanchang Street and the Qingming Bridge Ancient Canal Scenic Area newly renovated in recent years. There is no doubt that this is a popular attraction for Wuxi tourism and it is not to be missed. Now every holiday, it is crowded. If you like lively, you can feel the pomp of "people crowded" in the past, but this experience is really not very good, it is recommended to avoid the peak. For self-driving foreign tourists, it is difficult to find a parking space around during peak hours. Everyone should take the subway.
Although Nanchan Temple is not big, it is full of incense. The historical district built along the ancient canal of Wuxi is connected to the temple. The Miaoguang Tower in the temple is very conspicuous in a white wall and black tile building, which is a landmark in this area. After the temple ceremony Buddha is completed, you can go shopping and eat food nearby, and the night view here is also worth seeing. Nanchan Temple was built in the early years of Liang Wu Emperor Taiqing in the southern dynasty (547 AD), and future generations have repeatedly been in the past. The temples you see are now rebuilt in the 1980s and 1990s. The gate of the temple is at the southern end, and there are only several buildings such as the Grand Palace on the central axis of the north and south direction. The Miaoguang Tower on the east side is 7 floors high. On the tower, you can see the roof of the antique buildings connected into one piece. You can look at the Nanchan Temple Pier on the south side of the ancient canal. There is a vague feeling of an ancient canal painting unfolding in front of you. The Nanchan Temple Vegetarian Restaurant on the east side of the temple gate has vegetarian food and you can order takeaway. The business district has been formed around Nanchan Temple, with snacks, antiques market, flower and bird market, bookstores and everything, you can go shopping and find some gadgets. Snacks are similar to most tourist attractions in Wuxi. Smelly tofu, Wuxi ribs, and roast chicken wings are available. Out of Nanchan Temple is Nanchan Temple Pedestrian Street. A few steps east, there is a Mu Guiying food next to the temple. Some tourists call it "must go to eat after visiting Nanchan Temple". The main cakes and snacks, magnolia cakes, youth groups, small cages, dumplings are good. Whenever night falls, the old house by the Nanchan Temple and the ancient canal lights up. A string of red lanterns hanging on the old house reflect in the canal. The beautiful night scene attracts a lot of long guns and short guns. It is recommended to take a walk along the canal, or take a cruise to Nanchan Temple Pier to visit the ancient canal scenic spot of Qingmingqiao. Canal water bus (that is, cruise ship), from Nanchan Temple Pier to the southeast to Narcissus Domain, and then turn back to Nanchan Temple Pier. Sitting on the cruise ship, from Nanchan Temple Pier to the cross-tang bridge, I saw a fashionable old building, Yangchun Lane business district. From the cross-tang bridge to the Qingming Bridge is the essence part, known as "Jiangnan Water Alley, Canal Out of the Print", from the old house into a historical block, you can find many water-front beauty rely, small terrace. It is recommended to take a cruise to the Narcissus Dome, and then walk back to the Nanchan Temple Pier. If you are interested, you can also turn to Yangchun Lane for a stroll.
从锡剧博物馆步行去南禅寺,步行1.5公里左右,路上顺便在地下商场食其家吃个午餐。景区很大,大雄宝殿和妙光塔古色古香,美食街游客如云,烟火气息浓郁。
The night view of Nanchan Temple is very beautiful. It is the most beautiful sunset pink glow, which reflects the background of Nanchan Temple. It is so beautiful! The night view lighting effect, the charm of the water town in the ancient town of Jiangnan came out immediately!
The antique Jiangnan water town is very comfortable for the first time for northerners, and the cruise ship is also very worthwhile!