China Expat is a cultural and literary forum for expatriates interested in China and has been published by Asia Briefing Ltd since 2001. The sites resident China culture writers have included such expatriate luminaries as 
Xitang, A Separate Peace
Mid-April, and the wishy-washy trip planning is in full-swing. Your loved one wants Hong Kong, the buddies favor Sichuan. “How about Suzhou?” queries a noob, “I hear it’s peaceful, and the canals are really beautiful.” The needle screeches off the record.
Nothing’s that bad about Suzhou, especially this time of year when outdoors is no longer warmer than indoors, and it’s not as over-hyped as other tourist destinations we could name. But for a frequent traveler, success is measured in terms of how much you feel like a discoverer, and how little like a sheep being led through the shearing pen. Suzhou is a Blanche Dubois of a city, bright light exposing its faded charms, clinging too noisily to the past to give a visitor any peace.
Xitang, on the other hand, is Stella, Blanche’s quieter, warmer, more inviting sister. Too small to make a big fuss over itself, Xitang has still largely escaped the monetized re-invention of other ancient Chinese cities. Quiet, relaxed, with few of the touristy affectations that mar the experience, Xitang is one of the last peaceful little river towns. Equi-distant from both Suzhou and Shanghai, a two-hour bus ride either way, Xitang is easy to compare to its famous neighbors.
Nine rivers divide Xitang into eight parts, and 104 bridges unite them. These bridges were built in the Ming and Qing Dynasties, between 1368 and1911 CE. However, the town’s been around since the Spring and Autumn Period (770-221BCE), and prosperous since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). Whereas most of China has been rebuilt on the rubble of past glory, Xitang’s deep past remains relatively un-eroded, imbuing the place with a fatalistic calm.
Naturally, Xitang’s gentle action is on the riverside, characteristic Chinese bustle slowed to the rhythm of lapping water. 122 stone-paved lanes carve the town up into a maze only slightly disorienting, whereas the labyrinths of Lijiang can leave a visitor panicking like a hunted beast.
The frequent showers which frequently dampen spirits in this part of China only add to the fun in Xitang, where most of the lanes have continuous black-tiled awnings. A sudden downpour is an excuse to take a breather inches from the rain, and watch drops dot the river. The awnings likewise defeat the summer sun in its efforts to sap tourist energy. Ranging from over a kilometer long to driveway length, dwindling at times to barely a meter’s width, the lanes give strollers a quaint sense of comfort otherwise obliterated by the endless right-angled boulevards which dominate more modern Chinese cities.
The homes along these lanes gratify tourists in that they are almost entirely un-refurbished for tourist gratification. Instead, many residents make exhibitions of old woodcarvings, inscription rubbings, and other cultural relics. Nothing conveys the spirit of Xitang’s residents better than the grass growing on their rooftops, often cubit-high. Easygoing and unpretentious, they are at peace with drawing sustenance from the roots of their past.
A boat ride in Xitang is as mandatory as it would be in Venice. No Bridge of Sighs or gelato, but also no gondoliers coming on to your womenfolk. An hour’s drift along the waterways leaves you hypnotically tranquil, and ravenously ready for some of the fine seafood Xitang boasts. Most of it, such as the crabs, will be steamed rather than drowned in oil. Telling, that. Xitang lets its natural qualities flavor the tourist experience, rather than besotting you with snake oil and artificial flavoring.
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XiTang is a very quaint destination indeed. Although i prefer the river side cherry blossoms of Putang to Xitang.
Thanks for the lead!
thanks for the great information
this is such a lovely part of the country. I am going to travel hear next month. i am ready to go.
very Beautiful city. I would like to visit.
i just love this area of the country. This place is so beautiful. Thanks for sharing this great city.
this is such a beautiful city. I just love the history behind this city. I know there is hundreds of years of history for this city. I would love to hear more.
China is my favorite country too.I still remember those lovely days when we friends were touring China for a study research and we all mostly visited all those beautiful places there.Just in words you can say, “A Heaven in the world”.
Wow what a place that is? Xitang is surely very beautiful place to visit for tourists and I also love to visit this part of world. The scenarios in this article are very very beautiful.
i just love this area of the country. This place is so beautiful. Thanks for sharing this great city.
Wow, I cannot believe there is such beautiful place in the world.
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the lightening they have done is good
Xitang is a great village, the seafood recipes are amazing , some very spicy , and also heard that a part of Mission Impossible 3 was filmed there and that the film company payed 12 million dollars for the space
this is such a beautiful city. I just love the history behind this city. I know there is hundreds of years of history for this city. I would love to hear more.
I would love to visit Xitang one day. But I wonder if the Xitang would still be quite if tourists starts visiting the place.
Wow, I cannot believe there is such beautiful place in the world.
Xitang preserves a tranquil ambience and scenic beauty, which makes it a very popular tourist attraction, and is frequently depicted in Chinese landscape painting.
I wish i could visit there but it seems impossible for me…
Xitang is a famous town with thousands of years of history. It is famous for its large number of covered corridors, lanes and bridges.
China is a very beautiful country and has a great history. I really appreciate this kind of link. i also want to go there
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There are many beautiful places in China to visit, I will visit them when I have the money.
Well if I am talking about China, the only thing came into my mind is, the Great China Wall. But now I realized that there are many other place to see here in China. Thanks for sharing.
China is one of the Oldest country in the world with more than 1 billion people living inside. It has becoming leading exporter in elecronic products. China Wall is one of best creation by the Humans. I would like to visit China in future. Thanks for the post.
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I am happy to find that Xitang is one of the oldest city in China and has its own traditions. China Govt. must come up with a plan to save these cities. Thanks hostgator coupons
I was checking the facts about the Chinese people, China come into existance on 1949, only 60 years old country with thousands year old tradition. It has many beautiful place to visit like Great wall and this city Xitang as well. Designer Sunglasses
I really love china and want to visit the great wall. Thanks for sharing another historical place in china. Berkeley Architecture
By seeing those feeling to go there
I love boat travel..I never go …I have to enjoy wiht boat travel once in my life..
Like other historical cities in China, Xitang also has no example in the world with its own unique scenes and traditions. Thanks for sharing information about the city. biograd
I love History, and this article contains so much information that i cannot describe in any word. I find it very informative and instructive. A great work by author. Cheers.
Xitang, A Separate Peace, beautiful!
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What will you do when you are on a long trip bus and you want to go toilet urgently and cannot control?
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Xitang is really good place in china I am happy to find many useful information about Xitang. Thanks for sharing.
hmm.. beautiful place in china..!! and after reading all of this i have come to know a lot about it..:D
Yhose are some beautiful pics. I cant wait to visit china
Very very beautiful photos!!!
thanks for posting so many pictures
I love those photos. It kind of looks like an Asian Venice.
this is such a beautiful city. I just love the history behind this city. I know there is hundreds of years of history for this city. I would love to hear more.
I just love the history behind this city. I know there is hundreds of years of history for this city. I would love to hear more.Teleradiology Services
Why dontcha just teleradiolize yourself over there and see for yourself?
Great stuff
China is my favorite country too.I still remember those great days when we friends traveled to China to study the studies and we basically had all these beautiful places there.Just words can say, “Heaven in the world.”
Your photography has captured some of the best photography I have ever seen.
Really a nice place to make a visit to witness the beauty of the place.The look of the place in the night is surely something to remember.
I enjoy getting a trip to Suzhou because it is “a Blanche Dubois of a city, bright light exposing its faded charms, clinging too noisily to the past to give a visitor any peace” as you said.Thanks for the sharing. It is extremely helpful for me and everybody.
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This is good. Well, we know that there are lots of beautiful places in every country, somehow, some of the pictures above are kinda lack of cleaning. However, they can still fix it and make it one of a kind tourist spot.
The ambiance here is really mesmerizing. How I wish my place would be like this. But it cannot beat this out since it is part of China’s history.