Wuzhen - a water town in China

From 05.05. to 07.05.2017 we are in Wuzhen, which is a very famous water town reminiscent of Venice.

https://www.chinarundreisen.com/hangzhou/hangzhou-sehenswuerdigkeiten/wuzhen-altes-dorf.htm

Anyway, you should see it. It's beautiful there. The weather was fine, no rain, a bit cloudy.

So we will go to the airport on Friday at 13:30. From Xiamen we will fly to Hang Zhou (Xiaoshan Airport) at 15:30. The flight takes about 1 ¼ hours.

In Hang Zhou Airport we will inquire about the bus to Wuzhen. We can also buy the tickets there.

The bus leaves at 18:00 and takes 1 ½ hours to Wuzhen. From the bus station, we will take a taxi for about 10 minutes to the old town of Wuzhen, to our hotel "Boutique Hotel".

We will put our things in our room and then go to have dinner. After dinner, we will walk through the alleys of the old town. It is already dark and the lighting of the houses on the water creates a pleasant atmosphere. We will leisurely walk over small bridges and walk along paths directly by the water in the old town.

https://www.welt.de/reise/Fern/article12663206/In-Wuzhen-lebt-ein-Stueck-altes-China-weiter.html

… China is changing rapidly, much old has to give way to the new. But in Wuzhen, about 120 kilometers from Shanghai, the past is still preserved. …

https://www.welt.de/reise/staedtereisen/gallery12664218/In-Wuzhen-ist-das-alte-China-noch-lebendig.html

https://www.chinarundreisen.com/china-info/top-china-liste/die-beruehmten-chinesischen-wasserstaedte.htm

… Wuzhen is divided into two districts, namely Dongzha (East) and Xizha (West). Tourists are recommended to take an evening cruise in the Xizha district, as the lights here create a uniquely beautiful atmosphere in the darkness. …

The lights go out at 23:00. I just managed to take a few photos. We return to our hotel.

The next morning, we will have breakfast at 09:00. Then we will go out for sightseeing and photography. Have a snack in between, take a nap at noon, and then go back to the old town.

There are many small shops here that sell a variety of delicious food. We try a few things. Among other things, sticky rice wrapped in leaves. Tastes very good. Handcrafted items are also offered for sale.

In the evening, we will enjoy the unique atmosphere of the illuminated houses. It is still pleasantly warm, so we can take a walk. When the lights are turned off, we will return to the hotel.

The next day, we have to check out of our hotel room at 12:00. We can leave our suitcases at the Customer Service Center until we have to go back.

We will take another look at the most beautiful places in the old town and then go to one of the many food stands to each have a homemade ice cream in a freshly baked waffle and later, a few dumplings to eat.

Then we will treat ourselves to a foot massage.

Before I conclude here, I would like to mention something about the picture with the fisherman. We saw this man with his boat and cormorants during our breakfast. I found it interesting that these birds were sitting on his boat and not flying away. Later I learned that the cormorants are used for fishing.

For this purpose, cormorant chicks are hand-raised and trained for fishing. Their caregiver is the fisherman. They are fitted with a ring around their neck that prevents them from swallowing large fish. This allows the fisherman to simply pour all the caught fish into his basket and release the birds back into the water to catch new fish.

https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kormoranfischerei

… In central, western, and southern China, cormorant fishing still has some economic importance, but it has been in decline since the 1980s. Like in Japan, it is developing into a tourist attraction in many places. Among others, the Bai ethnic minority, who mainly live in the Yunnan province, are known for this fishing method. They still raise cormorant chicks by hand and sell trained birds at the age of about six months to fishermen from other provinces. Prices range from 300 to 1000 yuan. In China, knowledge of cormorant fishing is also kept as a secret within the fishing family. …

https://blog.chinatours.de/2014/04/10/die-traditionelle-kormoranfischerei-in-yangshuo/

At 17:15 we will take bus number 350 to the bus station in Wuzhen. There our bus will depart at 18:20 to the airport in Hang Zhou.

We will check in and then look at the departure board to check our flight. It is displayed with a delay. We will go eat something. Can't hurt, you never know how it will continue.

It's unbelievable, our flight has been canceled. Now we have to find out what to do next. We have to stay overnight. A bus will take us to a hotel.

The next morning, we will be woken up at 04:30. Quickly get dressed and go downstairs. A bus will take us to the airport. We will check in, drop off our suitcases again, and go to the gate. Now everything is going pretty fast.

We will arrive at Xiamen Airport at 08:00. Quickly pick up the suitcase and then take a taxi home.