Suzhou's No.1 Silk Factory

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Suzhou's No.1 Silk Factory

When I heard I was going to the No.1 Silk Factory I was not too thrilled. I've been to a lot of different "factories" and they usually are just places where they try to sell overpriced souvenirs to tourists. I was quite surprised and happy to be wrong. It was a real factory making very high quality silk items which were reasonably priced. I bought a lot there and if I had more money would have bought much more. When entering the factory you can see the process of silk manufacturing from silkworm to silk. They had live silkworms eating mulberry leaves on display YUCK! After I learned the process I was then shown how they sort the different silk cocoons by quality level. They then showed how they unwound the silk on giant machines. I was then shown how silk is woven into cloth on giant looms. It was quite an impressive process. They went into a lot of detail and it really made me appreciate silk more. We then headed to the selling area which was huge and extremely well lit and designed. They had everything from silk bedding and quilts, scarves and ties, to qipaos and pajamas. Everything was of very high quality and like I said I bought quite a bit there. They even had hand embroidered silk cloth, but it was extremely expensive. Gorgeous though.








Ticket Price:
Free
Time Needed:
.5-1 hour
Hours of Operation:
8:00-5:00
Location:
Located on Nanmen Road near central Suzhou

In September 2008 I was sent on an inspection tour with China Odyssey Tours. I am the Marketing Manager of China Odyssey Tours. No one is told that I work for the company, and since I am a foreigner I can experience a tour the way our customers do. That way I get the real experience without any VIP treatment. I check on the sites, hotels, restaurants, and guides to ensure that they all meet our rigid quality guidelines.

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