Shimen enchants with delights for all the senses

Feng Zikai's former residence takes on southern residential features, exquisite with a compact layout. [Photo/China Daily]

On a rainy fall day, when the small water town of Shimen is filled with the sweet fragrance of Osmanthus flowers, it is exhilarating to take a walk in the quiet area, where famous writer, cartoonist and artist Feng Zikai once lived.

It takes 40 minutes to drive from Wuzhen to Shimen, an escape from the buzz of big cities, with almost no tourist in sight.

Walking on the Muchang Bridge is like walking into an old picture. The river connects to the Shimen bend, which is part of Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, and the houses on both banks have black roofs and white walls mottled by the humid climate.

In an article about his childhood, Feng wrote that he often went fishing on the bridge back then. Feng's residence was just on the other side of the bridge. The original Yuanyuan Hall was destroyed in 1938 when the Japanese army invaded the town. In 1985, the new structure was built according to the original design and opened to the public.

I am quite alone as I go around the elegantly decorated house. All of a sudden, it is as if I have become the owner of this house, standing in the hall, watching the withering creepers and oily green plantain leaves against the white walls daubed with moss in the chill drizzle of the south. It is so quiet and comfortable that I wish time would stop and I stayed here forever.

The rooms, furnished simply, are elegant and tidy. Descending from the wooden stairs and turning into the backyard of Yuanyuan Hall, I see the concrete surface covered with golden flowers falling from the Osmanthus trees. The sweet fragrance fills my heart.

Beside Yuanyuan Hall is a two-story building, especially built to display works by Feng and other Chinese artists. It was built in late 1998 on the 100th anniversary of his birth.