Suzhou wakes up early. Meet your guide at 9am near the Pingjiang Road entrance (Suzhou's best-preserved Tang-dynasty canal street, 1,200 years old). Start with a traditional Suzhou brunch: sweet osmanthus rice porridge, scallion oil rice cakes, pickled mustard greens, and a fried 'crab-shell' biscuit. Then a 1.5km walk along the cobblestone canal: pause at a 200-year-old Pingtan teahouse where retired masters still perform, watch fan-painting at a Ming-style craft shop, taste candied gourd at a 70-year-old confectioner, and end at a tiny silk-embroidery atelier. Walking pace, perfect for jet-lagged morning travelers.
