We’re visiting Zhouzhuang (周庄) near Suzhou. It’s a 5A attraction so I know I’m warned about the crowds, but on photos, it does look like a very nice Watertown, with original old buildings rather than cheap recreations.

The historical village center is a gated off area, with hotels and restaurants build around it. The entrance is 100 RMB per person, but free after 17:00 — hence on Saturday afternoon we first have an early dinner before going into the scenic area. But this late in the afternoon, there are still the crowds who paid for their tickets hours ago, and also a fresh wave of freeriders like us. The whole village is packed and moving through the old alleys and across old bridges at a crawling pace. On the edges of the village, it opens up a bit, which gives a bit of a breather, but I start to regret coming here.

It’s different the next day. After a night at our guest house, I wake up before wanting to enter around 5:00 in the morning. Tickets are free before 7:30, but I’m expecting another wave of tourists around that time. This gives me a head start of a good hour. Some seniors and a single baoan make their way through the village, but otherwise, I mostly see cats, blackbirds, and a single chicken. On these empty alleys, I can move faster, and I don’t have to look at the path to see if I’m bumping into someone, so I can actually look around to enjoy these old buildings. I once read about a lady who would queue up at the Louvre and be the first guest inside the museum on a regular day, and because she was so familiar with the layout, she’d arrive at the Mona Lisa way before anyone else. That’d give her, on many days, ten minutes alone with the famous painting. I feel like that woman now.

05:00 Sunday

17:00 Saturday