Hangzhou, The Song Dynasty Performance

Looking for an over-commercial Song dynasty atmosphere? look no further than Hangzhou’s Song Dynasty Town which is a bizarre attempt at a cultural theme-park, obviously very local tourism oriented. If you’re interested in context – Hangzhou, with its long history, was the capital of Song dynasty since 1229 and is generally remembered as time of great prosperity. The town offers a few unrelated attractions and side-shows, but the main attraction, and the reason for my visit, is the one hour grand performance which included cultural dancing, acrobatics, pyrotechnics and battle scenes.

As the largest theme park based on the culture of the Song Dynasty (960-1279) in China, Song Dynasty Town is situate d south -west of West Lake Scenic Area with Five Cloud (Wuyun) Mountain to the north and Qiantang River to the south. 

This is a perfect place for a family. I discovered that this theme park is huge. Inside, one can find many street performances, food stalls selling various kinds of exotic food. The centre of attraction was the outdoor playground for kids (and adults too), surrounded by castle-like tall buildings.

• Location: 148, Zhijiang Road, Xihu District, Hangzhou
• Bus routes:308, 514, K504, Y4, Y5, K658,5 and (游) 4
• Opening hours: 10 a m to 9:00 p m each day 
• Show time schedule daily : 14:00 - 15:00 & 19:20 - 20:20

 

Overall, this stage performance is worth every single dollar paid. Besides the well-choreographed dances, it showcased colourful costumes and excellent stage props and new technology such as laser lights, a very compact one-hour performance.