Fenghuang County
Fenghuang is remotely located in the Western part of Hunan Province. The small town is surrounded by numerous mountains and girdled by the Tuojiang River. The remarkably beautiful landscape, splendid culture of Miao ethnic group, and the cultural value as birthplace of several outstanding figures facilitate the rapid development of tourism during the past few years.
Miao ethnic group and their stilted houses
Fenghuang City is renowned for its splendid Miao culture, especially the Miao-style stilted houses. These wooden houses present the knowlege of surrounding environment and unique climate gained by local Miao ethnic group. To avoid the bad influences of abundent rainfalls and heat, these houses are constructed as two or three-story structure supported by heavy columns standing stilted on the ground. The ground floor functions as the storage or depository house for equipments; while the upper floor is usually well-carved and beautifully decorated for family living.
The wooden stilted houses are built on mountain slopes or beside rivers. They are extremely stable and safe despite the fact that none of them have any nails or rivets, demonstrating the superb art of architecture of local Miao ethnic group. Apart from their practical functions, these stilted houses are gracefully built and in great harmony with the surrounding natural environment.
Shen Congwen and Huang Yongyu
Fenghuang is the birthplace of several celebrated figures in Chinese history, such as the revolutionary writer Shen Congwen and well-known painter Huang Yongyu. Chinese Ancient Costume Research written by Shen Congwen is considered as an authoritative work on ancient Chinese costume. In his short narrative entitled “Bordering Town”, Shen describe the natural beauty of his hometown in Western Hunan. Shen spent his first fifteen years here and left in his adolescent times. Nowadays, the former residence of Shen Congwen has been renovated and open to the public.
Another oustanding figure is the famous painter Huang Yongyu. As a pioneering artist, he reformed the school of traditional Chinese painting by combining the techniques of Western oil painting and creating new visual effects.
Historical relics
Fenghuang is rich in historical relics due to its long history of over a thousand years. The Miao people began to live there in the Qing Dynasty. Most of the wooden buildings in the old part of the city were constructed during that time period. The red sandstone walls standing on the riverbank of the Tuojiang River, and the city tower and iron gate were also built during the Qing Dynasty. The eastern and northern gates of the old city remained until today, but there are no traces now of the southern and western gates.
As one of the most famous tourist attractions, Huxiao Shoal is located outside the Northern Gate. Actually, it is a narrow 100-meter-long wooden bridge supported by 15 stone columns on the Tuojiang River. According to historians, the bridge used to be the city's only exit and was called "Jumping Rock" in ancient times. If two people cross the bridge from opposite directions at the same time, they must be careful.
Fenghuang enjoys high reputation among tourists and is considered "the most charming town in China". Please come here and free yourself from the fast-paced city life.