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March 25, 2015

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Home » City specials » Hangzhou

Old lanes come to life with spring flowers

By Wu Huixin | March 25, 2015, Wednesday | Print Edition

PICTURE a beautiful woman wearing a cheongsam and holding a Chinese-style umbrella as she walks along a narrow lane flanked with old houses. For many this is a classic scene associated with jiangnan, or the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.

Hangzhou is a great place to come across such a scene as it is crisscrossed by lanes with traditional houses in lanes famous for flowering trees.

Shanghai Daily recommends four flowery lanes known for their charm and spring blossoms.

Wuliu (Five Willows) Lane

People named the lane after Five Willow Imperial Palace, which was built in the Southern Song Dynasty. Though the royal building no longer exists, the lane has been kept and listed as a key protected site in the city.

The lane starts at Doufu No. 3 Bridge and goes to Daoyuan Lane. The word doufu means “comparing the wealth.”

It is said three wealthy individuals who liked to show off their money lived along the river. They each built a stone bridge in front of their house to flaunt their wealth — even though the distance between the bridges is only around 100 meters.

In the early Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) the Hangzhou Railway Station was built nearby. The lane soon prospered as a trading center for rice and vegetables.

A few years ago, local authorities launched a plan to protect the lane and nearby houses. The wood and brick structures remain while the buildings have been renovated into businesses or homes. Owing to its long history, the lane and its old buildings are covered with moss in the spring, which attracts numerous photographers.

Baimamiao
(White Horse Temple) Lane

It is said that the first emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhao Gou, was saved by a white horse when he was chased by Jin people, who at the time had taken over northern China and forced the Song Dynasty to retreat south of the Yangtze River.

Zhao rode the white horse to Hangzhou and established a new court. However, the horse melted into mud when it drunk water from a well. To commemorate the horse, Zhao built White Horse Temple.

The temple was later destroyed but the lane kept the name alive. Baimamiao Lane has since been rejuvenated to its original appearance with classical Zhejiang-style folk houses.

In spring, the lane’s Chinese violet cress trees blossom. The violet flowers are a sight to behold. They are also known as “February flower” in Chinese as they bloom during the second lunar month.

In ancient times soldiers picked the flowers and ate them when food was scarce.

Caiguang Lane

It is said that a military officer surnamed Cai lived in this neighborhood in ancient times. However the lane became famous because of Lin Huiyin, an author and the first female architect in modern China. She and her husband Liang Sicheng, who is referred to as the “Father of Modern Chinese Architecture,” spent their careers restoring ancient buildings.

The lane is only 200 meters and corydalis flowers are now in bloom. In Chinese, the flower means “inseparable love” and reminds people of the romance between Lin and her husband.

Gaoshifang Lane

Dating to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), Gaoshifang Lane used to be the locale of the Three Departments and Six Ministries, a governmental body that resembled the present-day State Council that was in charge of national affairs.

Owing to the former glory days, the lane is home to antique houses characterized by traditional Chinese architectural details including upturned eaves, painted beams and carved rafters.

Over time, these buildings became homes and they are now listed as protected historical structures. Today the lane is no longer heavily guarded. Only the black roofs and white walls remind people that it was once the heart of the country 1,000 years ago.

The lane was named after Xu Fu, a frustrated scholar living in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). He lived secluded in the lane after failing the imperial examination that was used to select state officials.

Although Xu was denied by the royal court, he didn’t stop studying. The then Song Dynasty emperor gave him the title gaoshi, which means noble and respected scholar, to praise his character. In Chinese, gaoshifang literally means gaoshi’s lane.

The lane is now ablaze with oriental paper bush flowers, which are also called “dream flowers” as Chinese believe that tying a knot on a paper bush tree will make their dream come true.

Hangzhou


 

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