The former residence of Zhou Enlai:

Premier Zhou Enlai occupies a high place in Chinese people’s affections, and his former residence has been lovingly restored to its original splendor. The house of black brick and heavy roof tiles is located at Fuma Alley, Huai’an city. It was bought by the ancestors of Zhou Enlai’s family, who had immigrated from Shaoxing, Zhejiang to Huai’an.
The house contains a small photo exhibition documenting Zhou’s life,and there were several courtyards within the walls: In the east there was the residence of Zhou Enlai’s grandfather Zhou Panlong. Another was the former residence of Zhou Enlai. On March 5 th , 1898, Zhou Enlai was born here. He left Huai’an at an early age and he seldom went back.

Zhou’s childhood was full of hardships and imaginations. As a young boy he was educated in the private school of the family. His desk is still on display. Passing a narrow corridor, there are two delicate pavilion rooms. These were the separate rooms for Zhou’s stepmother and nanny, who taught him to read, write and recite poems. Perhaps you would also see an old well and a vegetable garden in the yard. As a young boy Zhou En’lai used to plant vegetables with his nanny. This is only a sketch of Zhou Enlai’s residence. If you come here, you can be sure to know more of his life stories.

The former residence of Wu cheng’En

Wu Cheng ‘ en was the sixteenth-century author of the famous classic Journey to the West. His former residence is a charming house of black brick, with colonnaded walkways and clumps of bamboo in the courtyards.

Someone said Wu Cheng’en decided to write the book in his seventies. He traveled to Lianyungang, observed the monkeys in the mountains and sailed on the misty seas. When he went back to Huai’an, he recorded all of his inspirations.

In his former residence, there were his study and his writing desk. Maybe you can also capture some inspirations when you enter his study. And in the backyard, there are ancient style pavilions and small gardens where white butterflies keep fluttering.