Self-driving in southern Zhejiang｜Starts in the hometown of overseas Chinese and ends in Celadon Town, one scene and one theme per day

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ENRICH YOUR LIFE

I often wonder why I am so keen on writing guides, maybe because of my forgetful memory Bar. If you don’t sort out each trip, then every two months it will be overwritten by new travel memories. Fortunately, while my guide can save my own memory, it can also give some suggestions to fellow travelers, and that’s enough.

DAY/

01

Starting from Qingtian, the legendary hometown of overseas Chinese

Route: Shanghai Qingtian Qianxia Lake Ecological Tourism Resort

Taking Qingtian as the starting point of the trip was purely accidental, because the original destination was affected by the epidemic and the self-driving route was temporarily adjusted.

Qingtian is unfamiliar to most people. If you hear it, it is most likely Qingtian jade. Looking through the information on the Internet, you will find that Qingtian has been given many prestigious names, such as the most famous jade. It is a European-style county, the county with the highest housing prices in China, the top ten financial counties in China, the first county with foreign exchange, the first county with per capita deposits, etc. Some articles even describe it as "the only county in China where euros can be used."

It took 2 hours to take the high-speed train from Shanghai to Qingtian. It was almost noon. We rented a self-driving car at a car dealership in the county town and started our trip. The first thing is to fix our lunch.

This restaurant called Itakake is located on the ground floor of a residential building with a period feel. It has been renovated and full of literary and artistic temperament. The prices of the dishes are not expensive, but the portions are also small, because the taste of the dishes is good, and the atmosphere is just right, so I ordered more delicious dishes.

After dinner, start exploring the city. You will find that the lifestyle here is indeed very Westernized. Cafes and Western restaurants are almost every few dozen meters away. This is different from the hundreds of thousands of local people. Related to the overseas Chinese community.

If you ask me if Qingtian is very European? I will tell you that it is that kind of rustic county town. Don’t be fooled by those irresponsible marketing accounts that use a few pictures of sculptures in the park to make it look like a European town. Just read that kind of article.

We stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in Qianxia Lake Ecological Tourism Resort that night. We need to remind everyone that it is recommended to have dinner in Qingtian because there are no restaurants in the scenic area. If you want to eat something after checking in, , the only things the hotel can provide are instant noodles and soft drinks.

DAY/

02

A day with a super rich itinerary

The second day’s itinerary is also the highlight of this self-driving trip , you can not only enjoy the natural landscape, but also appreciate the cultural customs.

We woke up early in the morning and visited the Qianxia Lake landscape next to the hotel. The correct way to open the entire scenic spot is to take a cruise ship and sail into the reservoir area to visit, but we chose to drive along the lake and visit it in a stop-and-go manner. Lake District.

On the way to the second stop, Zhengkeng Rice Terraces, we encountered two ancient villages. One is Lingli Village and the other is Wubu Village.

It is said that Lingli Village has a history of more than 500 years. It looks like an idyllic mountain village. Although it is difficult to capture the traces of history from its current appearance, you can walk around carefully. , you will find some shadows of time on the old trees and small bridges by the roadside and river.

If I were to recommend it, Wubu Village is a place where you can spend some time walking around. This is a relatively original village of the She people in Jingning. Ancient pavilions and buildings can be seen everywhere in the village. Underneath these buildings are layers of rice terraces, which have relatively completely preserved the original ecological life of the She people.

Since I didn’t do enough homework here before going, otherwise I would have brought some refreshments and rested for a while in the small pavilion at the head of the village to look at the pastoral scenery. It was a good choice. It's a pity that a sudden heavy rain didn't allow me to take more photos. I would have a chance to make up for them.

Ten minutes’ drive up the mountain along the road from Wubu Village is the Zhengkeng Rice Terraces Scenic Area. There are more places with terraced rice fields in southern Zhejiang than here. I chose to go to Zhengkeng firstly because of the new development, and secondly because there are few people and I wanted to try it out.

When you walk into the scenic spot, you will first be shocked by a huge ladder. The long ladder arms stick out in the air, and you feel a little frightened when you step forward. The Zhengkeng terraced landscape is characterized by the combination of villages, forests, and terraces, showing different levels of green. When the rice fields mature in early autumn, it will turn into distinct layers of yellow-green tones.

When I was young, I didn’t know much about Zhejiang. I always felt that it would never be a province with great tourism resources. Later, after going back and forth several times over the past twenty years, I discovered that the tourism resources are really rich. One of the most important symbols is the covered bridge. .

The next stop after leaving the terraces is to visit Yonghe Bridge in Anren Town, Longquan City. The appearance of this bridge has been seen in many pictures and texts before, but its geographical location makes it difficult for travelers to come for it alone. This self-driving trip just included it in the itinerary, achieving what I wanted to see with my own eyes. desire.

Yonghe Bridge was built in the Ming Dynasty, was destroyed by fire in Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty, and was rebuilt to this day. I especially like the 125-meter-long extension of this covered bridge, and I also like the raised cornices at the head of the bridge. Walking among the complex and overlapping wooden structures inside, the beauty that has accumulated over time is extremely intoxicating.

Residents on both sides of the bridge are still walking through it. In the evening, people are sitting on the bridge, laughing and chatting. The comfortable feeling of small town life makes people linger. Walking along both sides of the river, the old houses, temples and water conservancy projects repaired by the ancients have become the best parts of my memory.

We arrived at Longquan at night and settled in Fanji Boutique B&B by the river. In general, the B&B is average and the price/performance ratio is average. If you come, you can try Longquan Seclusion Hotel.

DAY/

03

Somewhat declining celadon town

Route: Longquan (Celadon Town in China) Qingtian (lunch) Shanghai

The last day's itinerary was relatively relaxed. After breakfast, I went to visit the Chinese Celadon Town with my friends.

The town is a bit like a cultural and creative park, and a bit like a porcelain museum. You can get a general understanding of the history of Longquan celadon by walking around. There are almost no tourists in the entire holiday town, and there is no staff guidance. The displays and exhibition areas are superficial. It is obvious that the cultural, artistic, and commercial atmosphere here has not been developed. Compared with the prosperous Jingdezhen, the distance is far behind. Not half a star, sorry for the 50 yuan ticket.

However, a friend recommended the former site of the Bamboo Architecture Biennale, which is half an hour's drive away. It is said that there are some good bamboo art works and ceramic studios there. If your travel time allows, you can go and have a look.

Return to Qingtian after leaving Celadon Town. In the afternoon, we had a delicious meal of local dishes at Wuji Baijia Private Kitchen in Qingtian, announcing the end of this trip. What surprised me a little was that the dishes in this restaurant not only tasted good, but the presentation was also quite good and it was worth eating.

As I boarded the high-speed train and drove out of Qingtian, the brilliant sunset in the distance told me that the next trip was about to begin.

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