Not entirely ready to sweep my own tomb this Qing Ming Festival, I decided to once and for all return to Zhengzhou, the sprawling capital of Henan Province, and see an old friend I’ve known since my early days in China circa 2010. Once upon a time, I regularly visited Zhengzhou for English testing work. All I remember from those days was endless concrete, haze, traffic congestion and overhead expressways that seemed to criss-cross in every direction. Zhengzhou still has, perhaps unfairly, the reputation as not worth visiting or to be used as a stopover for seeing the nearby Longmen Grottoes in neighbouring Luoyang or the Shaolin Monastery at Song Mountain. However, this reputation is no longer warranted. I was very surprised by what a nice big city it has become.
A Brief History
As it turns out, over the past decade, there has been a massive push by the powers that be to shed Zhengzhou’s image from gritty industrial hub to green city splendour. This has included creating green belts around the city and along major highways, a plan to create hundreds of parks so that residents are never more than a 10-minute walk from a green space, and planting one million trees by 2030. The initiatives proved so successful that in 2019 Zhengzhou was awarded the title of ‘National Forest City’. Similarly, around 25 years ago, a plan was hatched to reclaim farmland in the north east and build a new modern area and a university town around a lake. This also included the opening of Zhengzhou East Railway Station, the main high-speed station, at which I arrived late morning, trying to beat the holiday crowds.
Despite a lack of sleep and impending flu, the journey was a breeze, taking less than 2 hours. Zhengzhou East is a behemoth, reminding me very much of Hongqiao Station in Shanghai and Beijing South (but without the manic throng). From the front entrance, the facade towers overhead. I crossed the large concrete square enjoying the warmth of the sun as I headed a block away to my hotel. After check-in and a room change, I attempted to take a nap, only to find my new room was a sauna and the fan made zero difference. Nonetheless I sort of rested then headed back to the train station, realising the sun now was quite fierce despite the cool breeze outside, and went below ground to take Line 1 of the Zhengzhou Subway.
I’d already set up my subway card so there was no mucking around, and the train arrived instantly. It was clean and identical to the trains in Beijing. I rode 8 stops to Erqi Guangchang (Erqi Square) which is the main downtown area. The most striking thing here is the Memorial Tower, which is a clocktower designed as a pagoda. It was built to commemorate striking railway workers in 1923, a key moment in China’s labor movement.I walked around the square and then down Dehua Street, just another pedestrian walking street that could have been in any city here. It was already mid afternoon and the smell of creamcakes from bakeries was quite tempting, and the offerings at a shop called Chicken Sticks Bro were intriguing, but I settled on iced coffee and consulted online help on what to eat.
Hui Mian
North Shuncheng Street was nearby and is the home of the local Hui Muslim population. It was quiet when I arrived. The first thing I noticed was a largish food truck on the corner but was really a bar complete with a bunch of beer taps. Walking further down the street, I passed colourful trees and stores that were restaurants doubling as butchers. There were many snack places selling fried and roasted breads and various nuts. I wanted to try Hui mian, and was trying to work out where to try some. I crossed over to explore the other side and stopped by a vendor who had a steaming vat with hunks of lamb. She offered me a little taste and I ended up buying a tiny amount. I couldn’t really understand her Hui mian directions but went where she pointed. Back at the main intersection I found what I was after, in a plastic-looking restaurant. I was ushered to the empty upstairs confines and motioned to sit at the first table near the staircase and fire hydrant, on impossibly low red chairs.
After positioning myself so as to try to avoid a steaming soup-in-lap mishap, then unnecessary communication breakdowns, Hui mian was ordered. Thick, tender hand-pulled noodles simmered in a mutton soup with herbs, Hui mian is a must try local dish. Although my bowl had less than a spoon of meat, it was extremely flavoursome and very similar to the mutton soup in Xi’an although a different texture. Notwithstanding the fact that I had to meet my friend for dinner a couple hours later, I finished all the soup and lumbered out. I passed an elaborate duck restaurant which featured a statue of a man holding a duck outside, and then a cluster of musical instrument shops before reaching the subway station.
One Tasty Burger!
I made it back in time to change and complain about the room sauna before my friend arrived. We walked 15 minutes, passing through an open air mini mall to have dinner at a local institution - Zax BBQ, an American style bbq restaurant. It’s so well known that apparently the American Embassy had once got catering from them. After a couple of beers, we ordered and I settled on their signature burger. It was large, juicy and tasted just like what I’d get back in Melbourne at any artisan burger joint. My friend’s coworkers arrived as well and we later sat together talking about our travels and experiences including hearing interesting tales about Myanmar pre and post coup. All-in-all it was a great night and I met some nice expats. Exhaustion settling in, I decided not to go for a 2nd round elsewhere and called it a night.
Longzi Lake
The next day, after an interrupted sleep and a very noisy crowded buffet breakfast, I decided to go back to the area of last night’s dinner and explore. It was basically a pedestrian alley filled with restaurants and cafes surrounded by tall office buildings and hotels. On the immediate main roads soared gleaming office buildings. The whole area was very similar to Central Park in Beijing but without the park. From there I went and took the subway three stations north to Longzihu. Longzi Lake is the university town area. More of a circular river with a very large island than a lake, Longzi University Town features 15 universities all occupying a different slice of the outer section. ‘Wisdom island’ in the center, is a tech and start-up hub featuring shiny office buildings. The whole area is home to 240,000 staff and students, and it’s left me wondering what kind of innovation would be developed here? With such a concentration of universities all next to each other, the area could easily rival Zhongguancun, Beijing’s tech capital.
Not being able to find the first two fields of flowers according to one internet site, I hopped on a bicycle and slowly rode around the lake. Along the outer and inner embankments was greenery, small hills, paddocks and forests, willow trees, large patches of iris, and clusters of magnolias. The greenery was spectacular with vivid spring colours and blossom trees with red-leafed hedges lined the main road circling the lake. Everywhere locals were having picnics and bbqs and sitting in little tents and at picnic tables and erecting tents and lazing around in hammocks. I even saw one lady getting food delivered. It was perfect weather, clear blue sky, a cool breeze, and warm sun.
All natured out and needing to kill a few hours before taking the train back to Xuzhou, I went back to the bbq restaurant and ordered some delicious baja fish tacos and watched the world go by. It was surprisingly quiet but I guess most people were out and about enjoying their picnics and doing the odd bit of tomb sweeping. I did notice that there were hedges everywhere - in the middle of the roads, in front of all the buildings, on every corner. It really has become a green city. I was not expecting Zhengzhou to be so nice and I imagine it will be one of the main cities powering China in years to come.
