Just two weeks after the 2016 May Day holiday self-driving tour, we went to Suzhou to visit ancient towns and villages. The biggest regret of this trip is that the weather forecast is not reliable. The forecast said it was sunny to cloudy, but it was actually cloudy. This self-driving tour lasted 382 kilometers. We stayed in Jiaxing, Zhejiang for one night in advance, but all the scenic spots we visited were in Suzhou, Jiangsu, with Wujiang as the main one. I visited Wujiang for the first time in 2003 and Tongli Ancient Town in 2008, but neither trip was a self-driving tour. This is the 6th time to Wujiang and the 4th self-driving tour in Wujiang. Among them, January, May and August last year were self-driving tours in Zhenze, Lili and Luxu in Wujiang respectively. Wujiang is very close to Shanghai, only more than 80 kilometers to Shanghai Hongqiao Airport. But for me who lives in Pudong, driving to Wujiang is quite time-consuming, mainly because it is easy to encounter traffic jams when crossing Shanghai. I visited Zhenze, Wujiang again this time and took more films, making up for the regret that I had very few films taken during my visit in January 2011. Time was limited that time, and I couldn't visit Shijiantang.

May 13, 2016(Jiaxing weather: cloudy, 16 to 26 degrees)

At 18:25, after my wife got off work, they set out from their home in Pudong, Shanghai.

At 19:20, I arrived at the Puxing Highway Toll Station of Shenjiahu Expressway and drove a total of 23 kilometers.

At 19:25, I arrived at the terminal service area of Shenjiahu Expressway to rest and drove a total of 25 kilometers.

At 19:55, I arrived at the Shanghai-Zhejiang Main Line Toll Station of Shenjiahu Expressway. A total of 82 kilometers were traveled and the high-speed toll was 35 yuan.

At 20:16, I arrived at Wangjiangjing Toll Station of Shenjiahu Expressway. I traveled a total of 112 kilometers and charged 15 yuan for the highway.

Stay at Hanting Hotel Jiaxing New Culture Plaza, a superior twin room, platinum member 144 yuan. I live on the 23rd floor, Hanting version 2.0. The room is very large, with two 1.5-meter-wide queen beds. This is my third time staying in this store. The accommodation environment in this store should have been very quiet, but this time something strange happened. From 12:00 a.m. to 3:00 a.m. the next day, planes passed through the air repeatedly, about every 3 to 5 minutes. The sound I heard was very loud, and there was probably a plane training for low-altitude night flights.

As of that night, a total of 125 kilometers had been driven.

May 14, 2016(Weather in Wujiang: cloudy to cloudy, 18 to 26 degrees)

Take photos out of the window from the hotel's 23rd floor guest room.

Hanting Express Jiaxing New Culture Plaza Branch is next to Jiaxing May 4th Culture Museum.

Jiaxing Street View.

The driving route map from Jiaxing to Wujiang Tongluo is about 26 kilometers. Wujiang Tongluo is located at the junction of Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces and was formerly called Yan Tomb. It is said that the tomb of Yan Ji, a retired official in the early Western Han Dynasty, was buried here and became famous. Tongluo was originally a town but has now been merged into Taoyuan Town.

Tongluo Fengqiao River Corridor is a cultural relic protection unit in Suzhou City.

The road map from Tongluo to Zhenze is about 12 kilometers away.

Ze Town, Wujiang earthquake area, Suzhou City, is the sixth batch of famous historical and cultural towns in China. Zhenze is a famous town in the south of the Yangtze River with a history of more than 2,000 years. It is also a famous hometown of silk. The main attractions include Shijian Hall, Ciyun Temple Pagoda, Wang Xichan Tomb, etc.

Zhenze specialty, black dried tofu.

Ciyun Temple Pagoda, the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units announced by the State Council on March 5, 2013, is an ancient building category, and the era is Ming. Ciyun Temple Pagoda is located in Ciyun Temple. Admission to Ciyun Temple is 10 yuan. Ciyun Pagoda was built during the Xianchun period of the Song Dynasty (1260-1274) and rebuilt during the Zhengtong period of the Ming Dynasty (1436-1449). It was formerly named Guangji Temple. During the Tianshun period (1457-1464), the emperor awarded the "Ciyun Zen Temple". In the fifth year of Wanli (1577), the forty-third year, the seventh year of Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1668), the twentieth year, the twenty-second year, and the twenty-third year, the eighteenth year of Qianlong (1753), the fifty-third year, and the 16th year of Daoguang (1836), the Pagoda and Temple were built or added many times. In the tenth year of Xianfeng (1860), the temple was destroyed in the army, leaving only the pagoda. At the turn of Tongzhi Guangxu, people in the village raised gold to build the pagoda. In the 15th year of the Republic of China, strong autumn winds destroyed the fifth floor of the tower. In 1950, Ciyun Temple was requisitioned as a grain depot. In 1954 and 1982, the government allocated funds to overhaul the tower.

The Yuji Bridge in front of Ciyun Temple spans the ancient pond. In the fifty-fourth year of Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1715), it was built by local people to commemorate Dayu's achievements in water control. It was renovated in the 40th year of Qianlong (1775) and rebuilt in the 44th year of Qianlong (1779).

Admission to Ciyun Temple, 10 yuan.

Shi Jiantang, the sixth batch of national key cultural relics protection units announced by the State Council on May 25, 2006, is ancient buildings, and the era is Qing Dynasty. Shijiantang and Ciyun Temple are located on the same old street in Zhenze, more than a hundred meters apart. Tickets for Shijiantang are 20 yuan. The owner of Shijiantang was originally surnamed Xu and was a prominent family in Zhenze. Shijiantang was included as a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province in 1995. It began to be renovated in 2002 and opened to the public in 2004.

There is a Hoeing Sutra Garden covering an area of only 240 square meters in Shijian Hall, which is the smallest garden in the country.

Zhenze Street View.

The driving route map from Zhenze to Shengze is about 20 kilometers. Shengze Town is an important silk textile production base and product distribution center in my country. Historically, it is famous for its "tens of thousands of pieces of silk at the sunrise, and the world's clothes and quilts" and is known as the "Silk Capital."

Xian Cancun Temple is the seventh batch of national key cultural relics protection units announced by the State Council on March 5, 2013. It is an ancient building and is in the Qing Dynasty. Tickets are 10 yuan. Xian Silkworm Temple is also known as Silkworm Flower Hall or Silkworm King Hall. In ancient times, the silkworm god played an important role. Sericulture farmers sacrificed to the silkworm god and prayed for a bumper harvest in the coming year. Shengze Xian Silkworm Temple was built in the 20th year of Daoguang of the Qing Dynasty (1840) for Shengze silk merchants.

At 14:36, we arrived at Shengze Toll Station on Changtai Expressway and traveled a total of 183 kilometers.

At 15:03, I arrived at the Wujiang Toll Station of Changtai Expressway. I traveled a total of 214 kilometers and charged 15 yuan for the highway.

Stay at Jinjiang Inn Wujiang Economic Development Zone Hotel, standard room A, 178 yuan. This store is very close to the highway entrance, convenient parking, and very quiet at night. It is about 7 kilometers away from Tongli Ancient Town. However, the store is not located in the Main City of Wujiang and is not very convenient for non-driving guests.

There are many 4S shops around the hotel. The picture below is taken from the guest room on the 4th floor to the east.

There is also Zhu Hongxing's store in Wujiang. The noodles with freshly fried toppings are cheap and have the same taste as those found in Suzhou.

As of that night, a total of 228 kilometers had been driven.

May 15, 2016 (Weather in Wujiang, cloudy with light to moderate rain, 14 to 25 degrees)

The ruins of Chuihongqiao located in Wujiang's Laocheng District. The Chuihong Bridge was originally built in the eighth year of the Qingli Dynasty of the Northern Song Dynasty (AD 1048) and was originally a wooden bridge; it was destroyed in the first year of Deyou (AD 1275) in the military chaos, and in the same year it was rebuilt into 85 holes. In the eighth year of the Dade of the Yuan Dynasty (1304 AD), 99 holes were built, and soon the bridge collapsed and blocked more than 500 feet. It was not until the second year of Taiding (1325 AD) that the magistrate Zhang Xianzu changed wood into stone and converted it into a joint arch stone bridge. It was built entirely with white stone, more than 500 meters long and 72 holes. It collapsed on May 2, 1967, and the ruins were listed as a cultural relic protection unit in Wujiang County in 1986. In 1996 and 2005, the Wujiang City People's Government successively repaired a total of 17 holes in the west and east ruins. In June 2006, it was once again listed as a cultural relic protection unit in Jiangsu Province. The ruins of Chuihong Bridge at the east end are located at the corner of Chuihong Road on Huayuan Road. The tower behind it is called Huayan Tower.

In the picture below, the broken bridge in front is the ruins of Chuihong Bridge, and the one behind is the bridge on Chuihong Road.

The Huayan Tower was originally built in the fourth year of the Song and Yuan Dynasties. It has seven levels on four sides. It is commonly known as the Square Tower. It is the first historic site in Wujiang. The tower collapsed in the second year of Xuantong of the Qing Dynasty, and the Huayan Tower was rebuilt in 2005.

The ruins of the Chui Hongqiao Bridge at the west end.

From Wujiang Urban area west to Kaiping Road along Taihu Lake.

Parking at the west end of East Taihu Avenue, walk along the billboard on the right side of the picture below, and you will see the Lake Reading Platform when you turn around. Taihu Lake in this area is called Suzhou Bay.

Building under construction by the lake.

Renderings.

Taihu Lake Suzhou Bay. The water surface of Taihu Lake located between Wuzhong and Wujiang Districts in Suzhou is called Suzhou Bay.

Yuehu Terrace. It consists of an "8"-shaped landscape bridge extending 211 meters. The whole shape is like a bird spreading its wings and flying.

The lake is very stormy, and tourists are not open to the lake reading platform. This is a free attraction, but it is about 6 kilometers away from Wujiang's Laocheng District. If you are not driving by car, I'm afraid it will be inconvenient to go there.

Villa under construction by Suzhou Bay Lake.

Wujiang Street View.

At 13:38, Sinopec Wujiang Zhongying Avenue Gas Station added No. 92 oil by 100 yuan, 5.77 yuan/liter. A total of 263 kilometers have been traveled.

This gas station does not provide No. 95 gasoline, but sells No. 98 gasoline known as "noble gasoline" at 6.72 yuan/liter.

The subway station under construction on the streets of Wujiang is Suzhou Rail Transit Line 4, which leads to the urban area of Suzhou.

At 13:53, we arrived at the Wujiang Toll Station of Changtai Expressway, driving a total of 269 kilometers.

At 14:22, I arrived at Qiandeng Toll Station of the Suzhou-Shanghai Expressway. I traveled a total of 310 kilometers and charged 20 yuan for the highway.

Xiemaqiao Village, Qiandeng Town, Kunshan City, is the third batch of traditional Chinese villages to be evaluated. Xiemaqiao Village is very close to Qiandeng Ancient Town. It is an ancient village that few tourists visit. Of course, there is no need to buy tickets. Xiemaqiao Village was once a market town of a certain scale. It was formed in the middle of the Qing Dynasty and became a village in the 1990s. According to local legends, this village is related to Han Shizhong's resistance to Jin.

Xiemaqiao Shiban Street, a cultural relics protection unit in Kunshan City.

In the villages that are free to visit, a wooden plank road across the river has been built for tourists.

At 15:09, we arrived at Qiandeng Toll Station of Suzhou-Shanghai Expressway and drove a total of 313 kilometers.

At 15:13, I arrived at the Dianshanhu Toll Station of the Suzhou-Shanghai Expressway. I traveled a total of 316 kilometers and charged 5 yuan for the highway.

At 15:49, I arrived at Jiangqiao Toll Station of Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway. I traveled a total of 349 kilometers and charged 20 yuan for the highway.

At 17:40, I returned to my home in Pudong, Shanghai, and drove a total of 382 kilometers.