DATE 2019 Week 3: Half-day Trip to WuZhen, Landscape at night is better

WuZhen

One of the recommended places near Hangzhou is WuZhen. The main attractions are the antique building. The building at the exhibition area had gone through restoration and reconstruction to preserve the atmosphere of ancient China.

To WuZhen

To reach the attractions in WuZhen from ZJU, we had to take DIDI, which is like Grab in Singapore. It took about forty minutes to an hour to their 高铁 station (high-speed bullet train). The train ride would be about 15mins train ride.  We were presently surprised by the quality of the bullet train as the seats and leg space where more comfortable and spacious than most airplanes that I had taken. Upon reaching WuZhen station, we had to take another did to reach the sightseeing area. The overall trip took about two hours.

The attractions are separated into East and West District. East mostly displaying the relics of the past and showcase how the people of the past carried out their daily activity. We decided to purchase the tickets for both districts which cost about 190 RMB (about 40 SGD).

East District

We decided to go to the East district first. Upon there the area, I was taken aback by the atmosphere created by the architecture in the area. It felt that I had traveled back in time to experience the past. Moreover, this area of Wu Zhen is also a hot spot for filmmakers due to their rich historical buildings. We took a man-power boat ride around the east district which was a unique experience. There are also some museums within the east district such as the cloth museum, wooden structural museum and also the currency museum. These museums are rather insightful as they show the historical and cultural richness of WuZhen.

There were also shops which sold traditional snacks, drink and some souvenir too. I personally got calligraphy written based on my Chinese name for a blessing for my studies.

West District

After about an hour in the East district, we headed to the West district which was about one to two kilometer from the East. The West has more scenic spots where there are also accommodations within the exhibition area. This allows their guests to be able to experience living in the WuZhen of the past. We arrived around five and it started to rain so we were unable to access some of the attraction. Hence, we decided to take shelter and have our dinner in one of the restaurants.

After the rain has stopped, we went out again. We were then pleasantly greeted by the change of atmosphere. The whole district lit up with lights which made the district a more beautiful view compared to it before the sunset. Moreover, there where lanterns that are skillfully designed were placed around the West district, adding to the beauty that was already present.