Live Your Best Lives
The sudden and continuous epidemic has made "traveling" extremely difficult, but "there are always more solutions than problems". For people in Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai, the developed high-speed rail transportation makes it very convenient to travel on weekends!
Just a few days ago, the high-speed rail network between Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai expanded again! Jiangsu finally welcomed the long-awaited Shanghai-Suzhou-Nantong high-speed rail!
Starting from July 1st, you can travel across Jiangsu and across the north and south by taking this high-speed rail!
The high-speed rail journey from Nantong to Shanghai only takes 1 hour. Yangzhou, which has suffered for many years, has finally gotten rid of the reputation of having no high-speed rail and has become more reputable!
Taizhou now has a direct one-stop connection to Shanghai via this high-speed rail! Whether willingly or not, everyone in the embattled province is now more closely connected, and the small cities that were once hidden in Jiangsu are finally emerging!
While inter-provincial travel is not yet fully open, why not take the high-speed rail at your doorstep to go shopping and eat, and take in more beautiful scenery and delicious food while exploring a small town you haven’t seen for a long time!
This year's epidemic coincided with the month of fireworks in March. The Moon City was not lonely at all. The flowers were in full bloom, the gardens were lush, and the water was beautiful, but there was no one living there.
Those poems always give people the illusion that Yangzhou is no longer beautiful once spring is over?
You couldn't be more wrong! In this summer of chirping cicadas, you absolutely must visit the water forest at Lvyang Lake Wetland Park. Take a boat ride on the lush duckweed pond, and watch the birds of the Egret Garden fly through the trees and overhead—a perfect shot for a truly captivating experience.
If it rains lightly during the rainy season, standing on the wooden trestle bridge in the rain with an umbrella, the smell of the misty Jiangnan region will immediately come out.
The lotus in West Lake is well-known, and the lotus beside the Twenty-Four Bridges of Suzhou's West Lake is no less famous. Take advantage of the flowering period, put on a thin Hanfu dress, sit by the lake like an ethereal being, and you will be in the most beautiful scenery of the lakeside in summer.
"The most famous garden in the late Qing Dynasty" is not just a title. Compared with the grand, exquisite and Zen-like Ge Garden, the He Garden's combination of Chinese and Western styles seems to be more distinctive.
Here is the only water-based opera pavilion in Chinese gardens - the Shuixin Pavilion. The 1,500-meter-long corridor can be regarded as the prototype of China's overpass. The garden is full of large-scale stained glass windows with different scenery at every step. The Pianshi Mountain House, which enjoys the reputation of the world's No. 1 rockery, can reflect the bright "moon" even during the day.
Under the cleansing of the long river of history, the famous capital of Huaizuo has lost its glitz and turned into a down-to-earth small city in Jiangbei. The life attitude of not competing or fighting is rooted in the hearts of the residents of this land. Taking things slowly and taking it easy, the small happiness in the ordinary has also evolved into the unique life aesthetics here. For people who grew up in this city, the happiest thing in the world is to have tea to drink, a haircut, and a pedicure.
Previously highly recommended by "12 Tastes of Feng Wei", and later selected as a Black Pearl Two-Diamond Restaurant known as the "Chinese Michelin", Quyuan Tea House enjoys the private garden view of Suzhou's West Lake and has now become a must-visit morning tea destination for tourists.
As for the dishes, from the thin Wensi tofu to the fresh, fragrant and tender boiled dried bean curd, all kinds of buns are definitely not disappointing. The five-shaped buns are dense and delicious, the pine nut siu mai are full of nutty sweetness, and the crab roe soup dumplings are large in size but the ingredients are not vague at all. If you sniff it with a straw, you will find that the soup is fresh, fragrant and rich, which is quite intoxicating.
If you are too lazy to queue up at Quyuan, the Yiyuan morning tea, a favorite of old Yangzhou people, seems much more down-to-earth. The Yiyuan restaurant is located in the city center, facing Wenchang Pavilion. The spacious hall on the second floor is bustling with people and filled with fragrance every morning.
Locals must order the "Three Musketeers" of xiaorou, hot dried bean curd strips and soul dry mixed noodles. In addition, the steamed shrimp dumplings and thousand-layer cake are also unique. The former uses solid and fresh ingredients, and each bite is full of happiness. The latter is fragrant and soft, and you will be tempted to pack some to take away after eating it.
This is a city where you don't want to walk once you slow down. You can call it comfortable or lazy, but the people here are leisurely and contented, with low material desires.
But looking back at our own lives, it's not hard to understand that for them, there's really no need to be busy in this city. Isn't the ultimate goal of people's entire lives just to achieve a leisurely life? They may have already lived the life we want in advance.
"Taizhou is a small city, but it hides a lot of happiness" - Marco Polo said
In this quiet little town, you can follow the high walls, explore the historical stories hidden under the carved eaves, and watch the people rushing around in the old streets of the ancient town. It has the aura of a "holy land" and the remnants of the market life of the years.
This is a thousand-year-old ancient town close to Qinhu Lake, surrounded by water and with beautiful scenery. It has more than 20,000 square meters of well-preserved ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing dynasties. You can wander through the alleys with blue bricks and black tiles, look for the three fascinating trees in Qintong Ancient Town, feel the quaint and lively atmosphere of the town, and listen to the stories of the past scattered in the streets and alleys.
With its dense network of rivers and interwoven waterways, Taizhou, a water city, is also an important waterway and land hub connecting the south and the north in East China. The wonder of the Qianduo rapeseed fields was born in this waterway in Xinghua.
Every spring, Xinghua's floating rapeseed fields become a must-see destination for appreciating the springtime charm of Jiangnan. Nearly a thousand acres of rapeseed fields, draped in a golden hue, showcase their unique splendor. Only by sailing through them can one truly experience the magnificent spectacle of "the river's thousand bends, its clear waters overflowing, and every rapeseed field is covered in yellow flowers."
The Lizhong Water Forest Park, not far from the rapeseed fields, presents another beautiful water wonderland.
In summer, the place is shrouded in clouds and mist, and the air is filled with fairy air. The entire forest is dominated by pond cypress trees, and all kinds of beautiful protected birds fly through the forest. Riding on a bamboo raft, slowly floating among the forest, feeling the birdsong and the fragrance of flowers, it is worthy of being a real-life version of "The Wizard of Oz", which is very pleasant.
Since ancient times, Yangzhou and Taizhou have been inseparable. When it comes to enjoying life, people from Taizhou are no less inferior to those from Yangzhou. The day of people from Taizhou also starts with "skin wrapped in water" and ends with "water wrapped in skin".
Taizhou, a city on the tip of the tongue, makes the local people's eating style more delicious with its unique taste art. "Thai" morning tea usually opens the taste buds with a pot of clear tea. Flower tea has a pleasant aroma and green tea is refreshing.
A bowl of authentic fish soup noodles can truly unlock the early morning time in a small town. All the essence is concentrated in the soup. The milky soup is rich, delicious and refreshing. After eating a bowl of noodles, you will feel refreshed!
Maqiao wontons are made with pork, green vegetables, leeks, spinach, etc. as fillings, and a delicious freshwater shrimp is placed inside. The skin is thin and the filling is rich, and it is topped with pork fat. Once you put it in your mouth, you can't stop.
Xinghua's preserved eggs are bright and transparent in color, with clear pine flower texture, a yolk that is just the right hardness and slightly runny, and not too spicy. A bite of them leaves a lingering aftertaste, and they are a must-have on the tables of local Taizhou people.
The children's favorite is Jingjiang pork jerky, which is as thin as paper, square in shape, and as bright as agate and red jade. It is free of fat and is delicate but not greasy. It has undergone more than ten ancient production processes. It has a moderate sweet and salty taste, is crispy and slightly crunchy, and has a long aftertaste that lingers on your fingers. This taste is an indispensable part of the childhood of every Taizhou person.
Since the Ming Dynasty, the development of opera in Taizhou has been prosperous. Opera performances organized by the government and the common people are held all over the cities and towns. Taizhou opera can be heard everywhere where a stage is set up. As a result, a generation of opera masters such as Kong Shangren, Liu Jingting, and Mei Lanfang were born.
To this day, leisurely enjoying morning tea and listening to storytelling and ancient music are still part of the daily life of some old Taizhou people. This city does not compete or rush, but takes its time, continuing its unique small town story with a unique rhythm.
Nantong reaches the Yellow Sea in the east and the Yangtze River in the south. It faces Shanghai and Suzhou across the river. It is located at the confluence of the Yellow Sea, East China Sea and Yangtze River. It can be said to be a place chosen by God!
Despite its advantageous geographical location, this treasure town is often underestimated.
It has both the graceful elegance of the Jiangnan water towns and the simple ancient charm of the thousand-year-old temples. The whole city is surrounded by five mountains, forming the lush Wushan National Forest Park.
Among them, Langshan Mountain, although not high, only more than 100 meters, is a Buddhist holy place that has been popular since the Tang Dynasty. The Guangjiao Temple and Zhiyun Pagoda on the mountain have gone through the ups and downs of history for nearly a thousand years and are still standing tall, solemn and peaceful.
In Rugao City, Nantong, there is also such a "unique copy of Chinese Jiangnan garden architecture", which is the Shuihui Garden built in the Ming Dynasty.
Above the blue waves of the lake, there are various pavilions and terraces in series. The most unique of them is the Chinese Rupai Bonsai Garden, where Rugao's characteristic bonsai are neatly arranged, including Song Dynasty bonsai that are more than a thousand years old. Walking in the garden, every step is a scene, every step is a poem, and it is magnificent.
Nantong people love to eat and know how to eat. They can always find unique flavors in the trivial daily life. As the "Pearl of the River and the Sea", the food in the city is naturally inseparable from the taste of fresh river and seafood.
Food connoisseur Su Dongpo once said, "Pink stonehead still has no bones, and snow-white pufferfish is not a poison to humans."
This is about the catfish in Nantong. It has white and tender meat, plump skin, elasticity and rich in gelatin. It has the deliciousness of puffer fish and crucian carp, but without the toxins of puffer fish and as many bones of crucian carp. If you don’t try a bite of catfish, don’t say you have been to Nantong.
Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty once named clams "the most delicious food in the world". Nantong's pan-fried clam buns are famous for their crispy skin, rich juice and delicious meat. Take a bite and you will be rewarded with the aroma of oil, meat, green onion and sesame... It lingers for a long time!
Lin Zichao cake is a traditional Nantong specialty cake, famous throughout the country. It is made from high-quality glutinous rice and mixed with white sugar, osmanthus, pine nuts and peach kernels. It is not sticky when it comes out of the oven and does not fall off for a long time. It is fragrant but not turbid, sweet but not greasy, soft, refreshing, elegant and pure.
The beauty of Nantong can only be appreciated by visiting it in person, and every visit may bring new gains. It can bear the heavy responsibility of the country and also hide the taste of the people. It blends prosperity and simplicity, and also depicts dreams and innovation. Take the high-speed rail and get to know the city of Nantong again.
Are you attracted by this high-speed rail where you can eat all the way?
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