Friday, January 22, 2010

Water Village


A few readers were curious where I took the photo of my last post.
Just outside of Shanghai is Zhouzhuang, the town is known as the "Venice of the East". I have never been to Venice, but from what most people have said, the canals in Zhouzhuang are narrower and obviously the residences are of a different style.



The gondoliers are both men and women steering up to 8 people in each boat. If you pay them extra, they will belt out a song.
I imagine the passengers are mostly made up of tourists. The locals probably have their own boats to get around.



Here is the same bridge as my previous post. People live along this tourist spot. Being this town is over 900 years-old, the houses are run down, but they have not lost their charm.


- Karen

14 comments:

Rune Eide said...

It lives up to the name, maybe even more picturesque:

rainfield61 said...

A very unique place.

Mandy said...

Wow. I have wanted to go to Italy and venice for a long time but this post has just about made me want to go to Zhouzhuang even more! It looks lovely!! Very nice photography.

Joanne Olivieri said...

These photos are priceless. I love those sampans and had the pleasure of riding on them while in Hong Kong, they were so much fun. What's cool too is that the village is decorated with the red lanterns. I am just loving your series of pics.

lina said...

A very picturesque town. The first and second photo seems to be an onset of boat traffic jam. :D

SANDY said...

900 years old, wow! No wonder it's in need of repair. How do they do that? I mean getting equipment in to make repairs must be very difficult given the narrow little water ways? Do they have trouble with insects living like that, open to the water?

Very interesting picture, thanks for sharing.

sandy

betchai said...

i agree, though they were old but definitely did not lose their charm

jam said...

Simply breathtaking and serene!

AVCr8teur said...

Thanks everyone for your comments.

RuneE: It was quite picturesque even in the overcast skies and rain.

Rainfield61: I have never seen firsthand a place like this where people have to get around with boats. The locals must be accustomed to the tourists year round.

Emm: Maybe you can go to both and give us a report of the differences and similarities. :D

Poetic Shutterbug: I imagine riding in a sampan would be such an unique experience. On the other side of the waterway are shops and restaurants and it's possible the red lanterns were there to highlight their stores.

Lina: I did see a few traffic jams and it's probably worse during the height of tourist season, but the gondoliers are quite skillful.

Sandy: When I was there, I saw a small gas-powered motor boat bringing in supplies. I was there during late Fall so I didn't notice any insects, but you might be right about bugs during the warmer seasons.

Betchai: The people there are quite poor so I don't know if they leave their homes in disrepair due to lack of money or if they want to keep the look authentic.

Jam: It was fairly quiet there except when the occasional busload arrival of tourists. One can spend hours just watching the people pass by.

LR Photography said...

Great post Karen, wonderful places, great pictures!

Linnea said...

Yes, I've heard of this spot and seen photos of it before. It's so picturesque. Looks like there's a bit of a traffic jam on the one canal! (Maybe it's rush hour!)

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Ruby's Raiser said...

Wow, I loved the previous shot, but I love it even more with the dilapidated house! Really beautiful photos, enjoying them immensely!

Anonymous said...

Charming water village! :) I love scenes like these.