Monday, March 18, 2013

Hong Village - A Village like a Chinese Painting

Hong Village (hóng cūn 宏村) is located on the southwest of the foot of Huangshan Mountain which is one of destination of Yangtze River tour, 11 miles from Yi County in Anhui Province. The name of the village which is a bull-shaped antique one belonging to the Land of Peach Blossom of old Yi County symbolizes expansion and prosperity. It has a long history of more than 900 years featuring green hills and limpid river. Therefore, people always call it “A Village In Chinese Painting.
Overview

With the boundless mountain and crystal like water harmoniously matching each other, the ancestors of the village made the greatest bull-shaped artificial water system in China. The crescent-moon-shaped pool beside the mouth of a spring is cattle’s stomach. Chinese people are used to thinking that flowers are doomed to wither and full moon is doomed to wane which is not a favorable scene, hence the shape of the pool. The South Lake is its tripe. The winding river is cattle’s intestine. The residences on the two sides of the river are the body. The Thunder Mound is cattle’s head and the two antique trees are its horns. Last, the four bridges over the river represent the four legs of a cattle. As is unique, it is one of the World Historic and Cultural Heritage. Since the village is located on the hills where the cloud is sometimes splashing while sometimes transparent, the village is just looks like a Chinese painting characterized by rich culture and beautiful scenery. The main buildings in the village are residences and private gardens while the remains are private schools, ancestral halls and public facilities. Nearly all of the architectures are decorated by various delicate carvings. What’s more, it has always been appealing to the visitors all over the world including many film directors. Many well known swordsmen films such as “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ” and “Beggar, Su Qier” and TV plays are just shot there. In Anhui Province, Hong Village is a must-see for your private China tour.

Transportation: take shuttle at the south gate of Huangshan Mountain at 9:40 or 3:40 to Yi County and then take a bus which will cost CNY 2/person and 15 minutes to the village.
Admission Fee: CNY 104; CNY 52 for students
Attractions Inside:
Zilu Temple
Zilu TempleZilu Temple is located in a corner of Zi Ridge , 3 miles from the southwest of Hong Village. Built in AD 843, it has been always attracting by a great number of visitors and pilgrims. It is said that, it is also the sample of another more famous temple in China named Lingyin Temple where Ji Gong, the mad monk, used to live. The left mountain of the temple is like a dragon while the right one is like a white tiger. In front of the temple there are 6 hills all together, 2 of which are just like two lying Buddas. Characterized by spacious area and magnificent scenery, this temple is really an ideal place for those pilgrims.
South Lake
South LakeSouth Lake is located at the southern end of the village. It was a bow-shaped lake dug on the basis of West Lake in Hangzhou which make great contribution to China tourism . On the secondary lake bank, an antique tree is sticking highly in the sky with its deep green leaves keeping out the sun. The willows are dropping their oisers down on the lake like a beautiful girl brushing her hair. All in all, the water is a white stretch, joining the sky at the horizon.
Jingde Hall
Jingde HallJingde Hall is a quite simple native house in the village which is still in good condition. It is located at the lower reaches of the river. It is a H-type residence. In China, especially in Anhui Province, the gate of a house is the most important thing in the house. It is said that people would spend a lot of money on decorating the gate while a little on building a house. The gate of Jingde Hall is so exquisite and meaningful, for example, the carvings of plum blossoms, orchids, bamboo, and chrysanthemum symbolize indomitable will and sacred quality.

Shuren Hall
Shuren Hall used to be a private residence of an officer in Qing Dynasty. Today, it is a private Folk Art Collection. In order to carry forward the fine tradition of Huizhou Culture, the owner has collected many old machines from antique mills, stone utensils, Huizhou Wood Blocks, traditional Chinese stationeries and pedigrees of clans in Hong County. The hexagon architecture is for the purpose of a promising future. In the attic on the hall, there is an out of date line map of businessmen of the village.
Peach Residence
Peach Residence, built in 1860, is celebrated for the rare kind of peach trees in the garden. Although the residence is not a large one, the tile carvings and wood carvings are so fine. The carvings on the arc over the gateway and in the room is so delicate and complex each with its own symbolic meaning. The four decorative patterns are “Tattoos on the Back of Yue Fei”, “Wang Xiang Requiring Carp”, “Ji Zi Hanging A Sword” and “Kong Rong Giving The Biggest Pear to Others” which mean honest, piety, faithfulness and righteousness respectively.
Antique Trees
Antique Trees at The Gate of Hong VillageAt the gate of the village there are two antique trees of more than 500 years. One is pterocarya tree which is called red maple tree locally, the other is maidenhair tree called white fruit tree. Pterocarya tree is 19 meters high. Its diameter is about 2 meters. The top of the tree is like an enormous umbrella covering most of the village. On its north lies the maidenhair tree which is 20 meters high, like a sword sticking highly into the sky. As an antique and rare species, the maidenhair tree is regarded as the gem of the village. This village has a very strange custom that the bridal sedan chair circles around the pterocarya tree for greet fortune and the coffin with an old died senior in circles around the white fruit tree for his healthy children and grandchildren.
If you want to know more info about Hong Village, you can contact with China travel agency.

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