Starting from Shanghai, a 2-Day Self-Drive Trip to Suzhou in 2015 (Panmen Gate, Beisi Pagoda, Wufeng Garden, Xietang Old Street)

October 6–7, 2015. My wife worked on October 4 and rested on the 5th, so we used the 6th and 7th for the 'second half' of our National Day self-drive trip (the first half being our 4-day self-drive trip to Xiangshan, Ningbo from September 30 to October 3, 2015). With only two days and a desire to avoid a rushed pace, we opted for a self-drive trip to nearby Suzhou, covering 241 km in total. As the saying goes, 'Heaven above, Suzhou and Hangzhou below,' Suzhou is just over 100 km from Shanghai and one of the most familiar tourist cities for Shanghai residents. I've taken many day trips to Suzhou by car over the years, visiting five times last year alone. The last time I remember staying overnight in Suzhou for sightseeing was about 20 years ago. Honestly, even after visiting Suzhou so many times, there are still plenty of sights I haven't seen. This time, we went to Wufeng Garden, a renowned classical Suzhou garden I've long admired but visited for the first time. Xietang Old Street is a newly developed area in Suzhou, with some sections having just opened on October 1, 2015. Although October 6 and 7 were still part of the National Day holiday, visitors were noticeably fewer than from the 1st to the 5th, making the trip more comfortable. The Home Inn we stayed at started offering 40% off-peak discounts on rooms from October 6. I booked in advance and got the deal—if I had booked on the same day, the room would have cost over 120 yuan more. Also, since many people worried about highway congestion returned to the city early, our drive back to Shanghai on the afternoon of the 7th was smooth all the way; even at the famously congested Jiangqiao Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, there was no queue.

October 6, 2015 (Suzhou weather: overcast, 20–23°C)

11:15, departed from our home in Shanghai's Pudong.

12:02, arrived at Jiangqiao Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 29 km driven.

12:12, arrived at Anting Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 48 km driven.

12:38, pulled into Yangcheng Lake Service Area on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway for a break, 86 km driven.

12:53, arrived at Suzhou Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 100 km driven.

There was no traffic jam on the expressway, but after entering downtown Suzhou, we were stuck in a jam on Baita Road for over half an hour.

First, we went to Zhu Hongxing on Xizhongshi for noodles.

A bowl of freshly stir-fried shredded eel noodles cost 15 yuan—very reasonable. The noodles at Zhu Hongxing are exceptionally delicious. In Lu Wenfu's novel The Gourmet, the protagonist would only eat noodles from Zhu Hongxing. I've come to Suzhou many times just to savor these noodles. There are several Zhu Hongxing branches in Suzhou: one near Guanqian Street and another on Qimen Road by Zhuozheng Garden. Compared to the others, the shredded eel noodles at the Xizhongshi branch are the cheapest.

Changmen Gate at the western end of Xizhongshi.

Panmen Scenic Area, admission 40 yuan. Ruiguang Pagoda, designated a Major National Historical and Cultural Site by the State Council on January 13, 1988 (third batch), is an ancient structure from the Northern Song Dynasty. The pagoda lies within the Panmen Scenic Area, which boasts two such nationally protected sites.

Admission to climb the pagoda: 6 yuan.

Panmen, designated a Major National Historical and Cultural Site by the State Council on May 25, 2006 (sixth batch), is an ancient structure from the Yuan Dynasty.

The Suzhou moat outside Panmen.

That evening, we checked into the Home Inn Suzhou Zhuozheng Garden, a standard twin room for silver members at 143 yuan per night. The hotel is in a small lane a hundred meters east of Shizilin, separated from Pingjiang Road by just a narrow canal. It's especially quiet and has a large parking lot. The room was equipped with a water purifier.

Pictured below is Yuanlin Road. At night, the streets of downtown Suzhou were sparsely populated.

From Yuanlin Road, we turned south onto Baita Road, which is lined with many restaurants.

The Yaba Shengjian (pan-fried buns) on Lindun Road are quite famous in Suzhou, and I think they're tastier than the Xiaoyang Shengjian in Shanghai. The downside is they sell them in batches of eight per order, unlike in Shanghai where shengjian are usually sold by four, so some diners end up throwing away a few if they can't finish.

A street stall selling osmanthus cake.

Night view of Guanqian Street and its surroundings.

I've been to Pingjiang Road many times, but this was the first time I photographed it at night.

By that night, we had driven 120 km.

October 7, 2015 (Suzhou weather: overcast with showers, 19–23°C)

Home Inn Suzhou Zhuozheng Garden.

The hotel parking lot. Among the five cars on the left, the one in the middle is my "Little Ai".

A short walk from the hotel are the famous Zhuozheng Garden and Shizilin. I've visited them many times before, and the admission is pricey—90 yuan for Zhuozheng Garden alone—so we didn't include them this time. The canals around this area perfectly capture the charm of Gusu's water towns.

Next to Zhuozheng Garden, the Suzhou Museum offers free entry. There were quite a few visitors queuing at the entrance. Part of the museum occupies the Prince Zhong Mansion of the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom, the residence of Li Xiucheng, Prince Zhong. It was listed in the first batch of Major National Historical and Cultural Sites by the State Council in 1961.

Zhu Hongxing on Qimen Road—here you can try the "Fengzhen Damiàn" noodles.

Beisi Pagoda (Bao'en Temple Pagoda), designated a Major National Historical and Cultural Site by the State Council on May 25, 2006 (sixth batch), is an ancient structure dating from the Song to Qing dynasties. It's a paid attraction—25 yuan—but for some reason it was temporarily closed, though visitors could enter for free through a side gate. Unfortunately, we couldn't climb the pagoda.

The many canals in Suzhou city create beautiful scenes everywhere.

Taibo Temple can be visited for free.

Wufeng Garden, open to the public free of charge.

In the garden stand five Taihu Lake stone peaks, two zhang high, exquisitely wrinkled and slender. They rise together on a mound, resembling elderly gentlemen, hence the name "Peaks of the Five Elders." They are: "Zhangren Peak," "Guanyin Peak," "Sanlao Peak," "Qingyun Peak" (clouds of celebration), and "Qingyun Peak" (clouds lifted high).

Xizhongshi, with Changmen Gate in the distance.

Suzhou streetscape. In the distance, the pants-shaped building is a landmark on the shores of Jinji Lake.

Xietang Old Street, located in Suzhou Industrial Park, is promoted as the third famous historical and cultural street after Shantang Street and Pingjiang Road.

15:49, arrived at Suzhou Industrial Park Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 155 km driven.

16:09, arrived at Huaqiao Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 173 km driven.

The Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway back to Shanghai was smooth all the way.

16:25, arrived at Jiangqiao Toll Station on the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, 205 km driven.

17:05, returned to our home in Pudong, Shanghai. Total trip: 241 km.