"Jiangsu Province-Tong Li and Zhou Zhuang" Jiangsu Sheng by stmlnyc

Tong Li and Zhou Zhuang in Jiangsu Province are about 1.5 hours by bus from Shanghai. The attraction is the roughly 900 year old town with its canals, stone bridges, and way of life.

Tong Li is by far the less touristy and more quaint of the two. Besides the expected tourist type shops, there are many storefronts selling pork shoulder cuts which is conveniently vacuum sealed. Prices depend on size/weight under 49 RMB.

Fishing with birds in Tong Li

This was an interesting display of fishing. The birds would dive into the water and catch the fish then the fisherman would 'choke' the fish out of the birds' throats.

Kwanyin Temple

There are many houses and temples to see. But after a while, they all seem to look the same...with the same garden, courtyard, rooms, etc. Nonetheless, it is interesting to see that the buildings are nicely preserved and maintained. Kwanyin Temple located on an island (have to take a short ferry ride to get there) was particularly interesting, it is a functioning monastery as well as a temple and tourist attraction.