A Visit to Zhouzhuang Village Outside Shanghai

Even though the day was cloudy and a bit rainy, Char and I signed up with a guide to visit the water village of ZhouZhuang. It took about and hour and a half to get to the village. There were supposed to be quite a few tourists going with us, but the others all backed out.  Fortunately, our guides were willing to take us in spite of the weather. They did downsize the vehicle to a van, and off we went.

These are some of the first scenes we saw as we entered the village. The guide told us that usually the paths would be filled with many tourists. We practically had it to ourselves.

The first stop was to visit the estate of the land owner. These doors invite us into their home.

After we proceeded through the doors we entered a beautiful courtyard. Just follow along enjoy the walk.

Our guide for the afternoon.

After a stroll around the courtyard, we started on our journey on the waterways - thanks to the man steering the boat. Unfortunately, he didn't sing.

We finished our ride and walked across this bridge and started back down a little street full of shops.

I took this picture especially for my daughter-in-law Jenna.  I was sure she would be thrilled to see all of the ducks waiting to be purchased and eaten.

We finally made it back to the start - and just in time. The sky became a little blacker, and the rain began falling in earnest. Just a few more pictures looking back on the village before heading home to Shanghai.