Changzhou - Taizhou - Xinghua Jiangnan Five-Day Tour

I've always wanted to check out the rapeseed flowers in the paddy fields of Xinghua, Taizhou, so I took the chance to visit Taizhou and nearby Changzhou for a five-day spring tour in Jiangnan. Day 1: Beijing - Changzhou, Museum, Qingguo Lane The Wenpu Hotel in Changzhou is amazing, with a great location. The building itself is a scenic spot, and the facilities and management are excellent. The breakfast even includes local snacks. Nearby is the old-chain Yinsi Noodle Restaurant, where the sweet and sour pork ribs have a strong Jiangnan flavor. At the Changzhou Museum, the town’s treasure, a Southern Song Dynasty vermilion lacquered makeup box, was surprisingly not on display, so I bought a fridge magnet as a consolation. However, other artifacts in the museum are also worth seeing. Qingguo Lane, known as the first lane of Jiangnan literati, has many attractions inside. The shops are lively, offering shrimp cakes, sesame cakes, tofu pudding, hairtail fish wontons, and a variety of snacks. You can easily spend half a day wandering here. Day 2: Tianning Temple, Dongpo Garden, Baolin Zen Temple, Banshan Bookstore At Hongmei Garden and Tianning Temple, unfortunately, the red plum blossoms had already withered, but Tianning Temple was bustling with incense offerings. Walking along the river to Dongpo Garden, the purple bauhinia flowers were in full bloom by the roadside. Dongpo Garden is built on an urban oasis, with a quiet and elegant garden. After 2 p.m., many famous restaurants were closed, so I went to a very small private kitchen. The sweet and sour fish was delicious, and they even had dishes like stir-fried garlic sprouts with broad beans. At Baolin Zen Temple, I hoped to catch the late cherry blossoms but was too late, so I just took a photo of a large pineapple. The popular Banshan Bookstore was really mediocre, just a wall of books, not worth a special visit. Most books were sealed and not allowed to be read, which was baffling. Day 3: Taizhou Qiao Garden, Plum Garden, Old Street Driving to Taizhou, Qiao Garden, praised by Chen Congzhou as "the first garden on the left of the Huai River," is a hidden gem in the garden world. It is low-key and luxurious, with every glance like an unfolding painting. Plum Garden was built to commemorate the art master Mei Lanfang. I ate at an old Taizhou cuisine intangible cultural heritage restaurant, trying white sauce pufferfish and crab roe tofu, which were not too impressive. Strolled around the old street, right next to Taoyuan, but there was nothing particularly new to see. The old tea house Haitangchun was less crowded in the afternoon, so I had an early evening tea there. The buns were exquisite, the fish soup noodles fresh, and the fried stinky tofu tasty. Day 4: Xinghua Duotian Rapeseed Flowers, Water Forest A day tour in Xinghua: you can buy a combined ticket for the paddy field rapeseed flowers and the Li Zhong Water Forest, which includes boat and bamboo raft rides, making it quite cost-effective. The rapeseed flowers are very photogenic, and the water forest is even more beautiful, like entering a fairyland. In Xinghua city, I visited the former residence of Zheng Banqiao, a very small courtyard next to the Zhuangyuan Square. I ate at a local restaurant with home-style meatballs, eel, and tiger shark, all very fresh. It is said that Xinghua’s morning tea is also delicious. Day 5: Taizhou Morning Tea, Taizhou Museum, Liuyuan I went to Huibinlou for morning tea, recommended by the hotel staff. It was not crowded, the environment was comfortable, and it felt a bit like Cantonese morning tea. The buns were bigger than those at Haitangchun, and the lotus root starch balls were very distinctive. A tour of Taizhou Museum showed the tomb of the Ming Dynasty couple Xu Fan and his wife, exhibiting two complete mummies that are lifelike. Finally, I took a walk in Liuyuan opposite the hotel, which houses the Liu Jingtian Storytelling and Talk Museum, focusing on collecting various materials in this field, which was quite interesting. In the evening, I took the train back to Beijing. In five days, I checked off two Jiangnan cities, enjoying full spring gardens, rural scenery, regional culture, local cuisine, and fresh fish, truly a joyful experience. April 2025