More sightseeing in Guizhou Province – Qingyan Ancient Town, Tianxingqiao Scenic Area and Huangguoshu Waterfall
We visited Qingyan Ancient Town in Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou one afternoon and whilst it didn’t really take us that long to stroll through, it is really a lovely old town which is said to be one of the most famous historical and cultural towns in Guizhou. Lots of lanterns everywhere which I absolutely love.
The town was originally built in 1378 but now has many shops selling knick knacks, souvenirs and lots of shops selling silver jewellery. We went into several silver shops (guided by our friend Jo who has a great passion for all types of jewellery) and ended up buying ourselves some bracelets and necklaces. We also passed benches selling food and spices outside; with such vibrant colours.
Dating back to the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, Qingyan was built for military reasons. The first emperor established it as a station for transferring military messages and also to house an army. It was a nice visit at the end of the day especially walking through the brick walled corridors.
Our next stop in Guizhou was to Tianxingqiao Scenic Area which consists of limestone formations, caves, a stone garden, small waterfalls, lakes and a gorge.
We walked along the river on a winding stone path which zigzags through the rock formations and waterfalls. It was lovely to see 365 brass plates containing the day and month of every day in the year. So of course we were looking for our birthdays on the stone paths so we all could take photos; as you can see mine is 24 August.
Whilst walking along we walked past many of the locals selling their local wares including fruit, snacks and shoes. Another great sight in China!
We then visited Huangguoshu Waterfall which is located six kilometres upstream of Tianxingqiao. To reach the waterfall we had to walk through a garden of hundreds of Bonsai trees; truly beautiful.
We even saw the local gardeners moving one of the old trees; with great care of course.
Huangguoshu Waterfall is said to be the the largest waterfall in Asia as told by our guide, but I have been told by so many Chinese guides that a Chinese structure/building/park etc is the largest in Asia or the world so I don’t really know if this is true. Anyway, it is seventy-four meters high and eighty-one meters wide, so it is really beautiful but again not sure if it really is the largest in Asia.
To reach the waterfall we walked down many steps which were quite steep but clearly our Chinese female friends didn’t have any difficulty as we wore sensible shoes and our friends wore very different walking shoes.
I must say when we reached the waterfall it was absolutely beautiful and also the surrounding scenery. And..my two friends walked back up the hundreds of steps; I with the tour guide took the escalator (love China what a great idea – perhaps even our friends with the high shoes did the same!!).
Amy said:
Beautiful photos, Sue! Great captures of the waterfalls. I wish I had visited there…
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JohnRH said:
Beautiful waterfall. You are having truly fabulous travels. Lest I forget, happy birthday 24 August. 🙂 🙂
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Sophie said:
Wonderful pictures, Sue! I love this Guizhou province so much, and you’re honoring it with a wonderful travel report !! Have a great weekend, dear!
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Bulldog Travels said:
Beautiful and interesting photos for sure.
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Little Miss Traveller said:
Stunning scenery, just love those red lanterns and the bonsai trees, too!
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you so much Amy.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Ha ha thank you John. Yes I have been very fortunate to have wonderful travels.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you very much.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you. You like exactly what I like.
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badfish said:
Wow…that place has EVERYTHING!! Such a great post. Makes me want to visit China. Hey, maybe I’ll go there this summer. And visit the Rosewood, too! And the Great Wall. And those terra cotta guys buried in the sand. Where are you now?
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feralc4t said:
It looks like things have been that way for a very long time, except for the odd things like milk crates for market tables.. An interesting mix
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Dearest Sophie. Thank you very much – very nice comment. Hope you are having a lovely weekend. It’s so nice not to be at work isn’t it.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Hello my friend. Thank you firstly for such a lovely comment. I do hope you get there this summer. I am now back in Canberra which is my home. I have lived in Australia since we emigrated from Wales some forty years ago. I hope you are having a lovely weekend.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Yes it is an interesting mix. Thanks again as always for stopping by.
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Dalo 2013 said:
What a slice of heaven you’ve found here 🙂 The waterfall pictures are amazing, but my favorite shot is the 4th one of the market ~ it gives me a feeling of small town and smiling people. With your words and photos you show a great side of Guizhou. The shoe photos I have to smile at, thankful there is an escalator… 🙂 Cheers to a great day.
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
How genuinely lovely are you to write such lovely comments. I really appreciate them and am so grateful you took the time to write them. Thank you!! Yep who wears those shoes to do a walk ‘anywhere’. Ha ha
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Sophie said:
Yes it is, Sue! And here, Summer is coming, so I really start to enjoy the weekends more than during Winter!
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Vicky T. said:
It looks like you had a visit into the past. It always look like it came straight out of a drama haha.
Vicky
http://vickysscrapbook.com/
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Ha ha. Thanks Vicky.
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twobrownfeet said:
The waterfall looks gorgeous! Love the narrow streets and grey tiled rooftops. Beautiful. Thanks for taking me back to China. 🙂
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you so much. It’s a lovely comment and its so nice to take a trip down memory lane and glad I was able to do that for you.
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badfish said:
Thanks Sue. Ah Canberra…cool. The weekend was cool. Now I’m grading final exam papers…ugh, not cool.
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sileas said:
The waterfall is really cool, but I think it’s really funny how guides tend to exaggerate 😀 Anyway great post as always!
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Yep they certainly do exaggerate – thank you as always Julia.
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JoHanna Massey said:
This piece is so interesting and well balanced visually….just an excellent post. There is very much a sense of strolling along with you. Thank you so much for sharing. 📮
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sidran said:
Gorgeous waterfall.Are you having post holiday blues?
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you. I am just having them some month or so since returning. Looking forward to next trip to Morocco in Oct.
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sidran said:
Well,something to look forward to. Cheers.
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LeckerFoodie said:
the food looks soooo great!! I am hungry now…
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thank you. It was delicious.
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Joyce Belfort said:
I am always amazed how so many locals can endure hikes with high heels. That is a challenge all on its own. Fabulously captured by your camera haha
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SueT唐 梦 琇 said:
Thanks so much Joyce. I always smile when I see the high heels. Ha ha.
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