Shipi Alley is located on Lower West Street in Xitang Town. It is a narrow alley between the Wang family’s ‘Zhongfutang’ and ‘Zunwentang’. It is 68 meters in length and is paved with 216 slate slabs that are only three centimeters thick. According to research, under the slate road in the alley is a sewer that prevents water accumulation on rainy days. The thin slate slabs serve as the surface of the sewer, hence the name Shipi Alley. Shipi Alley is the deepest, narrowest and longest alley in the entire ancient town. The alley is only one meter wide, and the narrowest part of the entrance is only 0.8 meters. If two people meet in opposite directions, they must pass by sideways. If it were two fat people, it might not be possible to pass even if they squeeze their bellies. Looking up at the sky in Shipi Alley, the blue sky turns into a long and narrow strip. Therefore, this place is also known as Xitang’s ‘a slit of sky’. Although Shipi Alley is famous, because it is just a long and narrow alleyway, there are not too many tourists and it is quite quiet. Walking in the alley, stepping on the bluestone pavement, and stretching out your arms, you can touch the towering stone walls of the large houses on both sides. Imagining that on the other side of the wall in those years were large courtyard houses with several courtyards. It makes people feel as if they have returned to the distant nostalgia of ‘how deep are the courtyards’. When you reach the end, the sky brightens, and only see the bustling tourists on the commercial street. It is suddenly enlightened as if in a different world. Open all year round, open all day.
