Holiday in Kunshan

About Kunshan

Kunshan is strategically located between Shanghai and Suzhou and is one of the wealthiest county-level cities in China. The city on the banks of Yangcheng Lake combines high-tech industry with a history of over 2,000 years as a water town and is considered the birthplace of Kunqu opera — the oldest living form of opera in China, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. The ancient water town of Zhouzhuang, just 30 km southwest, is the crown jewel among Kunshan's historical settlements: stone bridges from the Ming and Qing dynasties span winding canals, whitewashed houses with black tiled roofs line the water, and gondolas glide silently through the narrow waterways. Zhouzhuang is often referred to as the Venice of the East and is one of the best-preserved water towns in the Yangtze Delta. The Double Bridge (Shuang Qiao) in Zhouzhuang — two stone bridges connected at right angles over the intersection of two canals — became world-famous through the artist Chen Yifei, whose painting of this motif was used as a stamp by the United Nations in 1984. The Shen House and the Zhang House are magnificent merchant houses from the 15th century with private docks and intricate wooden carvings. In addition to Zhouzhuang, Kunshan offers the less crowded water town of Jinxi, whose 36 bridges from various eras form an open-air museum of bridge construction. The Bacheng region on Yangcheng Lake is nationally famous for the best hairy crabs in China — a seasonal delicacy that attracts gourmets from all over East China every autumn. The Kunqu Opera Museum in the old town documents the 600-year history of this refined art form: with its elegant gestures, poetic texts, and subtle bamboo flute accompaniment, Kunqu opera has influenced all later forms of Chinese opera, including Peking opera.