China in Ink and Wash: A Guide to Three Stunning Ancient Towns!

## China in Ink and Wash: A Guide to Three Stunning Ancient Towns Stroll along the bluestone paths and open the door to a thousand years of time. The misty rain of Xitang, the mountains and waters of Zhenyuan, and the rice waves of Xizhou softly chant three distinctly different Chinese aesthetics. This guide takes you on an immersive encounter with three "living" ancient towns. --- ### 🌧️ **1. Xitang: A Living Fossil in the Misty Rain of Jiangnan** **📍Location**: Jiashan County, Jiaxing, Zhejiang **✨Soul Tags**: Covered corridors listening to rain, oar sounds and lantern shadows, the warmth of everyday life - **Must-See Scenery** - **Misty Rain Corridor**: A kilometer-long riverside covered corridor, a water-ink scroll on rainy days, a corridor of light and shadow on sunny days. Lean on the railing and rest, watching black-awning boats ripple a river of lantern reflections. - **Xitang Nightscape**: At night, red lanterns light up one after another, reflecting in the water like a flowing galaxy. The soft singing on the bar street blends with the sound of traditional storytelling in old teahouses, half poetic, half lively. - **Songzi Laifeng Bridge**: Climb this century-old stone arch bridge to overlook the continuous black-tiled roofs and crisscrossing water alleys, capturing a classic Jiangnan scene. - **Culinary Delights** - **Guan Laotai Stinky Tofu**: Crispy outside, tender inside, served with garlic sauce, the most authentic at the steamy alley entrance. - **Lotus Leaf Steamed Pork**: Glutinous and fragrant with the fresh scent of lotus leaves, the old brand "Qiantang Renjia" is a must-try. - **Jiashan Yellow Wine**: Warm a pot and pair with snails to feel like a true "Xitang local." - **Recommended Stays** - **Sleep by the Water**: Choose an inn by the Misty Rain Corridor (such as "Xitang Wanghe"), where you can see oars passing by as soon as you open the window. - **Escape Choice**: The outer "Xitang Banyan Tree" offers five-star facilities and a tranquil garden. - **Itinerary Highlights** **One-day condensed**: Misty Rain Corridor → Songzi Laifeng Bridge → Ni Residence → Lunch boat feast → Root carving art museum → Night tour of bar street. **Two-day deep tour**: Day 2 Walk through Shipi Alley before the morning mist clears, visit a teahouse to listen to storytelling, and try making a round fan. --- ### 🏞️ **2. Zhenyuan: The Border Town Legend in the Taiji of Mountains and Waters** **📍Location**: Qiandongnan Miao and Dong Autonomous Prefecture, Guizhou **✨Soul Tags**: Wuyang Jade Belt, Miao and Dong ethnic customs, free-entry hidden gem - **Must-See Scenery** - **Wuyang River S-Bend**: Crystal-clear water flows through the town; take a boat to see the reflections of stilted buildings on both banks like a painting. At night, thousands of lights fall into the starry river. - **Qinglong Cave Hanging Temple**: A Ming and Qing dynasty architectural complex built against the cliff, where Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism coexist. Climb to the top for a panoramic view of the ancient town. - **Shipingshan Morning Mist**: Climb before dawn (free entry!) to see clouds and mist rolling over layered green tiles, like a fairyland come to life. - **Culinary Delights** - **Sour Soup Fish**: The sour and spicy flavor fermented with litsea cubeba and tomatoes, paired with fresh river fish, best at "Miao Family Local Cuisine." - **Aged Dao Vegetable**: Century-old intangible cultural heritage pickled vegetables, stir-fried with cured meat filling half the street with aroma. - **Fried Baba**: Golden street snack, glutinous rice wrapped with red bean paste and fried to fragrance, best eaten while walking. - **Recommended Stays** - **Riverside View Room**: Homestay by Zhusheng Bridge (such as "Shuimo Yunju"), fall asleep to the sound of water. - **Light Luxury Choice**: Xunmei Riverside Inn, enjoy tea on the terrace with a night view of Qinglong Cave. - **Itinerary Highlights** **Ancient town core**: Qinglong Cave → Hike the Miao Great Wall → Boat at Tangjia Wharf → Night tour of Sifangjing Alley. **Wild fun nearby**: Day 2 Cycle to explore the Blue Tears pond at Tiexi, or go rafting on the Gaoguo River rapids (summer only). --- ### 🌾 **3. Xizhou: A Pastoral Poem Between Cangshan and Erhai** **📍Location**: Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan **✨Soul Tags**: Wind-blown rice waves, Bai ethnic craftsmanship, healing slow life - **Must-See Scenery** - **Four Seasons Rice Fields**: Thousand acres of farmland east of the ancient town, green in summer and golden in autumn. Sit in the rice field café ("Pessoa") holding a cup watching the clouds roll by. - **Bai Ethnic Residences**: The Yan Family Courtyard’s "Three Lanes and One Screen Wall" is as exquisite as a 3D picture book, with wooden carvings on the gate telling a century of stories. - **Craftsman Experience**: Make your own square scarf at the tie-dye workshop on the corner (recommended "Lanxu"), take home the Cangshan cloud pattern. - **Culinary Delights** - **Xizhou Baba**: Charcoal-grilled crispy flatbread, choose between savory scallion and minced meat or sweet rose sugar flavors. - **Bai Three-Course Tea**: At "Yan Family Residence," taste "one bitter, two sweet, three aftertaste," and contemplate life philosophy. - **Milk Fan Popsicle**: Milk made into thin baked slices, wrapped in rose sauce and frozen into popsicles, a perfect summer treat. - **Recommended Stays** - **Rice Field View Room**: "Jiyisi" countryside home, open the window to see waves of rice fields. - **Design Boutique Stay**: "Xilinyuan," renovated from an old house, offers terrace views of sunset and starry sky. - **Itinerary Highlights** **Ancient town stroll**: Yan Family Courtyard → Craftsmen’s Folk Art Center → Photo at the corner tower → Cycling through rice fields. **Erhai Extension**: Day 2 Rent a car along the ecological corridor to Haituo Park, watch dead trees dance with the blue waves. --- > **Ancient Town Travel Notes** > **Xitang** suits those obsessed with Jiangnan imagery—choose spring or autumn rainy seasons and wait for an unexpected encounter under the Misty Rain Corridor. > **Zhenyuan** favors mountains, waters, and ethnic customs—cool rafting in midsummer, livelier Miao New Year celebrations in October. > **Xizhou** is the haven for healing travelers—green rice seas in July, golden fields in October, always ready to restart the poetic life. > Three ancient towns, three kinds of China. Bring a pair of cloth shoes and a slow heart, and step into this flowing millennium-long scroll.