Shaoxing Attractions

Orchid Pavilion is 12.5km southwest of Shaoxing at the foot of Lanzhu Mountain. It's the site of China's most famous drinking party and spawned a drinking game that inspired men of letters all over China. In the 4th century AD, Wang Xizhi, a renowned calligrapher organized a party at Orchid Pavilion. Since poets tend to be romantic souls, they found various ways to entertain themselves in style. Wang Xizhi devised a literary game where the poets would sit on the banks of a small stream then float a small cup filled with wine downstream. Whomever the cup stopped in front, that poet had to compose a poem or drink the wine as a penalty. A mixture of good wine and tranquil scenery inspired 37 poems that day. Wang Xizhi compiled the poems into an anthology and wrote its preface, which became the Orchid Pavilion.

Today Orchid Pavilion is a pilgrimage site for those who daydream of holding their own drinking party. The Goose Pool is a major sight at Orchid Pavilion , so is the stream where the poets played their game. Wang Xizhi's Memorial Temple is also at this site. One of the pavilions features a memorial tablet written by an emperor in his honor. The Lanting Calligraphy Museum is a good place to check out Wang Xizhi's flowing calligraphic style. On 393 Lu Xun Zhong Lu is the Former Home of Lu Xun, China's most influential modern writer and essayist. Born in 1881 in Shaoxing, Lu Xun went to Japan to study medicine. His life changed when one night he and other Chinese students were ordered to watch a slideshow of Chinese prisoners being executed by Japanese soldiers. His indignation and feeling of helplessness compelled him to become a writer in order to examine why China was so weak and to build a national consciousness. He felt that as a doctor, he could only help one person at a time, but as a writer, he could reach the whole nation. To this end, he became a leader of the New Culture Movement, which was a drive at cultural modernization. In 1918 he wrote The Diary of a Madman, a moral allegory condemning China's oppressive Confucian past. His most famous short story is The True Story of Ah Q. It's set in Shaoxing and is a morality tale about the shallowness of society.

The Lu Xun Memorial Hall is across the street from his former home and is a great place to learn about Shaoxing's most famous son. Inside the bright museum are large exhibitions with photographs of Lu Xun, early editions of his works and some of his old possessions.

Lu Xun's family home is a large series of dark buildings grouped around courtyards characteristic of grander buildings of the region. Behind is a vegetable garden that he used as his playground when young. Across a nearby is Lu Xun's old school. Built in the manner of a typical private school of the period, it's reminiscent of the old one-room schools of the West.

A short walk north on Laodong Lu from the home of one of China's foremost writers is the ancestral home of one of China's greatest leaders, Zhou Enlai. A veteran revolutionary and a refined statesman, Zhou Enlai rose to become premier of the Chinese government. Because of his reputation for uprightness, he was China's most beloved politician when he passed away in 1976. Despite never living in Shaoxing himself, it's considered his ancestral home because it was where his grandfather lived. Inside his ancestral home is an exhibition of his life.

Other famed Shaoxing residents include Xi Shi, a famed beauty of the Warring States period, Song dynasty poet Lu You, revolutionary martyr Qiu Jin who was executed in 1907 for conspiring to topple the Qing dynasty, and Cai Yuanpei, dean of the prestigious Peking University during the

New Culture Movement.

Shaoxing is also known for more than its people, Shaoxing wine is famed throughout China. From the lowliest farmer to the highest official, they all take pleasure in imbibing this delight. The wine is made from glutinous rice and is distilled to a low alcohol content, which is a blessing for those who've had enough of fiery Chinese spirits. Perhaps only an excuse to drink more, Shaoxing wine is also claimed to have therapeutic effects like aiding digestion. The most famous brands today are Guyuelong Shan and Kuaiji Shan. The wine become famous during the Qing dynasty and one small restaurant has been immortalized because of it.

Lu Xun wrote a short story about the decline of the scholarly class, once the elite of Chinese society by the end of the Qing dynasty many intellectuals were reduced to mere paupers. In his story, Kong Yiji, a failed scholar and alcoholic visits a small restaurant called Xianheng for a cup of wine and a dish of beans whenever he scrounged up enough money. Lu Xun set his story in Shaoxing and based Xianheng on the restaurants near his home. A real Xianheng opened its doors not long after his story was published. Today the restaurant retains its turn-of-the-century atmosphere; from the furniture and décor to the recipes, everything has been preserved. Many visiting tourists have a small meal and a bottle of Shaoxing wine at this restaurant and locals claim that everyone in Shaoxing has eaten here at least once.

Being a water city it's natural that Shaoxing would have many bridges and waterways, and the city doesn't disappoint with over 4,000 stone bridges crisscross the waterways connecting the roads. The waterways are filled with tiny sampans called wupeng, which are unique to Shaoxing with their black awning, and despite being extremely narrow they can seat five to six people. Built low, these boats give passengers a feeling of precariously sitting in the water. The rowers wear traditional Shaoxing hats and row using the feet and steer with their free hands. Sitting in a while watching the street scenes float by is a defining Shaoxing experience.

One peculiar bridge that connects the streets in Shaoxing is called the Bazi Bridge because it looks like the number eight in Chinese. This exceptional bridge connects three streets over three waterways. It's 5m high, and uses large rocks for the walking surface. With the railings also made of stone, this 800-year-old bridge was made to last. The bridge and the surrounding area is typical Shaoxing beauty with relaxed waterways crowded with and white painted buildings covered by black tiled roofs.

A visit to Shaoxing is more than escaping the frantic city to a quiet water-crossed city; it's taking a step into history and paying homage to some of China's most influential and prestigious movers and shakers.