April 23rd & 24th - Zhenyuan Ancient Town

Evening in Zhenyuan. 

A good way to spend the evening in Zhenyuan is to go on one of these boat rides.

The rather long local chillies, about a foot in length.

View of Zhenyuan from the top of a hill.  The Ming style architecture gives the town its character,  the Wuyang river adds to the romance and charm of a beautiful water town.

A few days just before we arrived, there was a tornado and hailstorm (size bigger than the fist) causing much damage to parts of the town.  One of them was the Qinglong Dong, which was built into the precipitous Zhonghe Mountain during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).  It's the temple structures on the left hand side of this picture.  We had to give it a miss.

The chili mix makes all the difference to the taste of the fried sea (or river) food.

Ah . . . air so fresh . . .

Rare moment of serenity and tranquility in life.

Dried shrimps, little fishes . . . from the river are sold along the road side.

Zhenyuan morning market

An interesting business signboard.

Our hotel room is on the second floor, first building on the left. 

Tourists pay to have their pictures taken in these costumes.

All sweets are made from molasses.  No added sugar.

I love all these Chinese biscuits !

It was tough when you are asked to choose one of the 8 types of noodle on offered at 7.30 in the morning!  Someone had a bright idea, let's have them all,  in one serving!  Brilliant.  All were good, especially the flat green bean noodles.  We found out great wontons too the next morning!

Zhenyuan on a cloudy spring morning.

On a clear day one can see the mountain range in the distant.  But I think most beautiful with the clouds hovering over it.

A lovely view of the Wuyang river from this little balcony of our room.  One can sit here for hours contemplating,  or  watching the activities on the bridge.  Occasionally a tourist boat passed by below.  In the evening, both banks of the river are scattered with beautifully lit lanterns.  It was the full moon one night, to see the moon and its reflection so near on the water was most unforgettable.