Brief introduction of geography of Shaxi old street in Taicang

It is divided into two parts: West Street and East Street. There is an archway at the east and west street corners, engraved with couplets. Entering the ancient street, the signboard of "Gu Xiang is the best in the world" looms large. The antique old shop stands on the street, the yellow flag flutters in the wind, and the door of the Ming and Qing bridges flashes from time to time, which makes people suddenly dream.

An unguarded ancient town

You don't need tickets to enter Shaxi. Shaxi is an unguarded ancient town. Walking in it, we can see that many people have not closed their doors, and their bicycles and motorcycles are not locked. The residents of the ancient town are very friendly and can visit their home. Since the reform and opening up, rapid changes have taken place in shaxi town. Today, shaxi town is adjacent to Jinlang Town in the east, Chengxiang Town in the south, Kunshan and Changshu in the west and Guizhuang Town in the north, with an area of 67.5 square kilometers and a permanent population of 57,000. It has become one of the first towns opened to the outside world in Jiangsu Province, one of the top 100 towns in China and one of the top 100 towns in Jiangsu Province. In recent years, it has been rated as an advanced town in social security, family planning, greening work and culture and education in Jiangsu Province.

Shaxi town is one of the famous towns in the south of the Yangtze River that introduced western culture earlier. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, a group of people went abroad to study. Shaxi is full of talents and celebrities. Historian Sang Yue, guqin expert Xu Shangying, astrologer Gong Shumo and children's writer Bao Gong were all born and raised in Shaxi. The long history and profound cultural background add a rich humanistic atmosphere to the ancient and beautiful Shaxi. Shaxi was once one of the birthplaces of national industry in history and an important industrial town in Taicang. In the thirty-second year of Guangxu reign of Qing Dynasty, the first textile industry in Jiangsu-Ji Tai Shachang (the predecessor of Lee Tae Textile Factory) was born in Zhenxi Street.

The folk customs in shaxi town are interesting and simple, and the folk lantern festival is full of fun. Shaxixiang has been very popular since ancient times, especially in Fushou Temple, Changshou Temple and Yanzhen Temple. Shaxi's lard rice candy, Tao Zhen cake, Pan Xiang cake, Tusong Mountain taro and other flavor snacks and specialties are also well known. South of the lower reaches of Yangze River

The ancient town is the most striking feature of Shaxi. "Gu Xiang has the same household width, the ancient street is three miles long, the ancient bridge has a single hole, the ancient houses are all beams, every family carves flowers, the parents window, the bridge enters the front door, and the boat swings in front of the door", which constitutes a beautiful and elegant water town genre painting. Zhu Guangya, a professor of architecture at Nanjing Southeast University, a doctoral supervisor and an archaeologist in China, believes that Shaxi waterfront architecture has its own advantages compared with Tongli and Zhouzhuang. Every household has a shed, a small bridge with flowing water and a long window facing the river. The back, doors and windows of the house are beautifully carved, which is rich in the characteristics of Jiangnan water town. On June 28th, 1999, an expert group of famous historical and cultural towns in Jiangsu Province evaluated shaxi town, and twelve experts unanimously approved it. They all praised Lisan Ancient Street in Shaxi for being so well preserved that it is rare in China. "Meicun Poetry" includes Jiangnan Poetry Hall, Textile Promotion Hall, Comic Book Hall, Comic Book Hall and Meicun Inn.