Woke up at 8am today, walked over to Zhi Wei Guan for our breakfast before heading back to Shanghai. Our original plan was to try out the dim sum at Zhi Wei Guan..but when we reached there, we were greeted by sight of a normal foodcourt. It was kind of surprising as I was expecting a restaurant. We were kind of in a hurry, I did no think too much or ask around, we went into the foodcourt and started to orfer our breakfast items.
On a consolation note, having a bowl of piping hot noodles sure beats having another MacDonalds' breakfast. :)
Probably still early..breakfast crowd not in yet..
After paying for our orders, self collection over the counter..
In case you are interested, there is this hotel diected opposite Renhe Hotel. They share the same lane once you exit from the either hotel! I am not sure how good or cheap the hotel is, but definitely it is in a good location. The main entrance is directly opposite of Renhe Hotel and is less then 20 steps away. Yes,that close!
After breakfast, Driver Tom was already waiting for us with a bright smile. :) Before we reahced Shanghai, we detoured to Zhu Jia Jiao, an ancient water town just outside of Shanghai. There are a few water towns around, but we chose this.
IMPT : Before you enter the water town, please take note of the Entrance or Exit No. Eg: Exit 1 etc. We did not take note as we were too eager to enter the town..end up when we were ready to leave, we got lost. There are lots of nooks and corners and if you happily walk around where your heart leads you, then chances is that you may forgot the directions you come in from. Luckily for me, when we first enter, I took a photo at the main entrance. Showed it to the shop owners and they pointed me to the correct directions...where our driver was waiting for us.
But if you are taking a taxi there, I guess it does not matter which exit you are coming out from. Just flag down a taxi when you are out, that's it. But if intend to take public buses, where you alight will also be where you board the bus so you still need to take note of the entrance/exit number.
Entrance to the town is free, unless you want to hire a guide (we did not). Also, entrance to certain places of attractions needs tickets, but again, we did not buy. The town itself is interesting enough, no time for temple visits etc.. LOL! But beware of scams too if you intend to visit the temples - google to read up more.
When you first enter the town, you walk along shops like this..it seems really boring and look too modern. I was really dissapointed at first, thinking that it is purely a tourist "few shops" trap. But surprise! You have to walk really further in where bustling old streets suddenly burst into life ! We thought of spending 2 hours there, but end up spending 4.5 hours! And could have stayed longer if not for the fact that we suddenly realised that we forgot whcih way we entered from..panic a little and started to find out way out.
Carefree town life...
Old Dad insisted that I take a photo of this post box...
Strong recommendation, have some snacks at this shop ! In fact it is very popular and you will see people coming and going almost consistently..
This? Guo Ba 锅巴..its like those "crispy rice" you find at the bottom of your claypot rice's pot..NICE NICE NICE! The lady placed these near to the wok that she used for deep frying the smelly tofu..which is another delight!
These very tiny shrimps are just steamed, lightly salted. You are supposed to bite of the shrimp head and chew the rest in your mouth. No need to de-shell. The fish on top..it is called "flat fish" and it was fried till so crispy and good that we ordered 2 portions.
Salty soya bean..
Wanton.
Smelly Tofu... good stuff !
Raddish cake..
See this little opening to the canal...this is where the locals wash their dishes, including the stall we just ate at. But as long as you don't see, you don't care lor..:))
Lots of shop selling these...
All lanes look something like this...but you can tell that those building structures are old with years of history
Finally, our visit to Zhu Jia Jiao ended. Time well spent. Most shops sell similar goods and food stuff, but it is the atmosphere and the surrondings that makes this place awesomely captivating. I am so glad that we did not turn around and go back within the first few minutes upon arrival as the front shops are so deceiving, giving this place a "modern“ feel that I thought it will not lead to more. How wrong!
Finally reached back Shanghai, checked into Sofitel again. Relaxed for about an hour, and we set off to Tian Zi Fang.
Once you come out from Damuqiao metro station, Exit 1, you will see this road. Cross it, walk towards the right hand side and you will see a small gate entrance into Tian Zi Fang. Before you enter Tian Zi Fang, please look opposite the road- you will see a SEAFOOD MARKET STREET. Remember this street as I will tell you how to go to Hai Di Lao Hotpot for dinner later. It's a must to go and try at least once. Service top notch. They have a branch in SIngapore too but food items offered is different, and so is the price !
This is the entrance to Tian Zi Fang..
Lanes..
We did not finish walking the whole of Tian Zi Fang as my kids were getting hungry. We went back to the main road that we came in from, look for the SEAFOOD MARKET street..walk walk down all the way to the other end of the street. There is actually no roadside seafood stall etc..but rather there a few restaurants at the side. So, you are actually walking down a wide lane. About maybe 4-5 mins of walk, you will come to a busy road. Opposite the road, you should be able to see the following building or signs. ( the following 3 photos)
Look for this building. Hard to miss..it is slighted to your left, opposite the road. Once you see the Jin Yu Lan Guang Chang, you will see escalators leading up to the entrance of Hai Di Lao.
Many diners..
They will pass you an ipad to place you food order. All the waiters / waitresses are very very patient and they make sure that you are pampered and well taken care of! They covered up my bag too in case it gets dirty. Very attentive to details too. In fact, we dined here twice during our trip !
Look ! For dips and sauces, we are really spoilt for choices!
Free fruits..eat all u can..
Best thing is the toilet. Look at those items that is being provided. The even have an uncle / aunty outsie the washroom just to hand you warm hand towels after u wash your hands! My cheeky kids went at least 5 times to the washroom ...just for fun!
Computers and internet were made available too..
After our dinner, we went to have our nails done..free! We can even choose what we like..
PS: When you arrive there and there is a long queue at the nail bar, you can take a queue number from the counter and they wil notify you when it's your turn. U need to have a phone number for them to do so though.
Worth the experience. Must go and try at least once time!
After that, we took a train back to the hotel, with our full belly..
After a full day out, from Hangzhou back to Shanghai to a sumptuous dinner, slumberland was most welcoming !
ZzZzZzZzZzZzZ !
DIRECTIONS
Tian Zi Fang
Alight at Damuqiao, Exit 1
Hai Di Lao
Please refer to my direction desription in the above post. HOWEVER, if you don't intend to go to Tian Zi Fang but would like to go straight to Hai Di Lao for dinner, take Exit NO 2. When u are out from the MRT, Hai Di Lao is just opposite the road, at 11 o'clock direction.
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