Taierzhuang is a canal town that was destroyed and rebuilt. In the spring of 1938 it was the scene of one of the first major Chinese victories over the invading Japanese army, a battle fought house by house through the streets for weeks, and the town was reduced to rubble. The victory was a great morale booster at a dark time. Decades later, the town was reconstructed in the style of the old canal towns, with grey brick houses, stone bridges and tiled roofs, and today it is a popular heritage destination, with a long lantern-lit waterfront.
The canal that runs through it is the Zhong Canal, the middle section of the Grand Canal, which was dug and improved between the Yuan and Ming dynasties to carry grain from the south to Beijing. The Grand Canal is almost eighteen hundred kilometres long and is considered the longest man-made waterway on earth, and UNESCO listed it in 2014. Taierzhuang was a stopping place where boats waited for a favourable wind or paid dues, and in its heyday it was a lively market town of inns, warehouses and shops. A visitor today walks along restored lanes, looks at boats on the water and eats local snacks.
The countryside around is part of the flat plain between Shandong and Jiangsu, with fields of wheat, maize and sweet potato and small ponds. Roads are straight and the traffic is a mix of lorries and farm vehicles. Late summer thunderstorms can bring flooding, and winter is cold with bitter north winds. Spring blossoms and autumn colours, with clear light and mild air, are the best times.
The nearest town with services is Pizhou, about thirty-four kilometres away with eighty thousand people, and the larger city of Zaozhuang lies just over the border in Shandong. Fuel and food are easy to find along the main roads. Regional food includes spicy chicken soup, flatbread with scallions and Shandong's famous steamed buns. Foreign riders in China face strict rules about licences, plates and guides, so check ahead and prepare the paperwork. It is also wise to bring cash and a translation app, because English is rarely spoken outside the big cities.