Picturesque Hunan
Famed for its beautiful mountainous landscapes and the background for the film Avatar, Zhangzhajie is in the northwestern part of Hunan province. The ride from Changsha was a lengthy six and a half hours before we reached the ancient town of Fenghuang. With wooden houses standing on the banks of the Tuo Jiang River that flows through the town, this beautiful water town is still inhabited by villagers that still sustain themselves by fishing on the river and taking tourists on boat rides. The town is predominantly inhabited by the Miao people who specialize in batik art and making silverware. With the help of contemporary writer Shen Congwan’s novels, the beauty of this ancient town has spread far and wide. From Fenghuang, it was only a few hours before we got to Zhangzhajie. We first went on a boat ride on traditional Chinese boats on Baofeng Lake before heading up to the mountains. From the lake, there’s a good perspective of the mountains with misty tops. The eye opener at Zhangzhajie is Yuanzhajie. We zipped up the surrounding mountain on a 342 metre elevator which only took a few minutes before we found ourselves around mountain peaks of various levels. These natural and irregularly shaped columns rise from deep valleys and are covered with pine trees that disappear in and out of view in the cloud mist. It’s never enough to look at the mountains from one perspective in Zhangzhajie since there’s always something different depending on the flow of the clouds and the foliage cover. This ever changing beauty of Zhangzhajie makes it one of the most picturesque spots for nature lovers to enjoy.
