Explore China - Top 5 China's Ancient Towns
Wuzhen Town, China's Zhejiang[Photo/China.org.cn]
During
the Spring Festival, the streets in Wuzhen are illuminated for the
celebration.People putup posters on their doors and walls. Many customs
of the Lunar New Year holidays are inherited in the town. The most
distinctive one is the "long street banquet".
In
the past, wealthy families would hold banquets for guests in the Spring
Festival. The neighbors set out tables and chairs along the street. The
connected tables formed the lively and colorful "long street banquet".
Today,
the "long street banquet" is still held in Wuzhen town with more
splendid dishes.The most indispensable one is the well-known braised
sheep. It is a usual practice to put up a pot and boil sheep meat. The
scent penetrates the whole street. Visitors are strongly advised to
taste this gourmet.
Other activities in the
town: worshiping the kitchen god (Dec.23 on the Lunar New Year);pasting
spring couplets, setting off fireworks and holding the reunion dinner
(on the eve of the Lunar New Year); burning the first incense, watching
traditional Chinese opera,enjoying festive lanterns, attending the
temple fair and the lantern festival in January.
Fenghuang Town, China's Hunan [Photo/China.org.cn]
With
a name that means "phoenix",you can be assured of a remarkable Spring
Festival celebration inthis ancient small town in western Hunan
province.
The locals keep to the
traditional way of celebrating the Lunar New Year. Before reunion
dinner, they will have a ceremony to worship their ancestors and after
dinner,the older generations in the family will distribute hongbao or
red envelops with money to children.And everyone stays up until the wee
hours of the morning to usher in the New Year.
Zhoucun Old town, China's Shandong [Source: China.org.cn]
Zhoucun
Old Town, under the administration of Zibo City of Shandong Province,
holds there putation as the "birthplace of Shandong commerce."
Known
as the "dry port" for its strategic location along many overland
trading routes,trade in Zhoucun flourished in the early 20th century,
and it became an important center for bankers and well as silk and
tobacco merchants.
The Zhoucun Old Town became a national AAAA
tourist site in 2008, featuring museums, shops, restaurants and cultural
performances. As a commercial town with a thousand-year history, it has
hosted various kinds of excellent scenic spots.
Xitang ancient Town, China's Zhejiang [Photo / China.org.cn]
While
some of the traditions and customs for the Spring Festival have been
fading away among urban citizens, in Xitang, a water town renowned for
its wandering rivers and time-honored architecture, people still perform
grand traditional ceremonies to celebrate this most important festival.
Sandwiched
between Shanghai and Hangzhou,the two most bustling modern cities in
China's east coast, Xitang has succeeded in preserving all the old
regimens needed for an ancient style Spring Festival celebration, which
has helped to usher in a tourist boom in this tiny town.
Hongjiang Ancient Commercial Town, China's Hunan (Photo/ China.org.cn)
The Hongjiang Ancient Commercial Town
is a characteristic scenic spot in Hunan. The town boasts more than 380
intact ancient structures erected during the Ming and Qing Dynasties,
covering an area of 100,000 square meters. The buildings endured the
ages with some wear, but they remain vivid reminders of the luxurious
lifestyle of wealthy merchants.
