After staying in Lijiang and its surrounding areas for eight nights, we departed for Shaxi today.

The ancient town of Shaxi under the jurisdiction of Dali Prefecture seems to be closer to Lijiang. From Lijiang to Jianchuan County, and then to Shaxi, the shuttle bus connection is quite convenient.

After settling in the hotel, it was cloudy and rainy, so I took an umbrella, stepped on the wet stone path, and started my walk through the streets and alleys.


It is also an important town on the Ancient Tea Horse Road with a history of more than 2,400 years. It is said that now it has "the only surviving ancient market" on the Ancient Tea Horse Road.

Because it is far away from the national highway, it escaped the first wave of ancient town tourism development.

In 2002, Shaxi was listed as one of the "Endangered Sites Worthy of Attention" in the world. In 2003, Huang Yinwu, an architect who had just completed his studies in Switzerland, came to Shaxi with 14 million charitable funds raised internationally, and started a heritage protection project that has lasted until now.

The first impression, simple and quiet, very comfortable.

There are no noisy tourists, no overdressed inns and B&Bs, no tourist goods stores, and there are more aborigines than tourists and foreign businessmen.




The second impression, theater buildings and old temples, add radiance to each other.

Like many ancient tea-horse towns in the area, there is also Sifang Street here.

This Sifang Street Square, where tea, salt and various goods were traded in the past, stands tall with a three-story pavilion or stage.

This is a building built during the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty, located on Sifang Street in the center of the ancient town. The bottom floor is shops, the second floor is a stage, and the third is Kuixing Pavilion (Wenquxing). The stage can be seen outside the stockade, and it must be the landmark building of the ancient town back then.

The square is the mutual center of caravan merchants and townspeople, opposite to Xingjiao Temple.

Day after day, stage performances are offered to gods and people for caravans who have traveled long distances to drink tea, trade, rest, entertain, and taste.


The impression of the third eye, ancient roads and bridges, full of ancient interest.

Ancient roads, stone bridges, old trees, grazing horses, and a slightly bleak environment are undoubtedly a picture of pure sky, sand and autumn thoughts in Ma Zhiyuan's pen.

"Withered vines, old trees and dark crows, small bridges and flowing water, people, ancient roads, westerly winds and thin horses. The sun sets, and heartbroken people are at the end of the world."

You might as well change the word "broken heart" to "player" to make the poetry closer to my state of mind.





There are so many willows and poplars on the Ancient Tea Horse Road!

There is this poetic meaning: I am going in the past, and Yangliu Yiyi. Today I come to think, is it raining and snowing?

And this: Don't catch the whip when you get on the horse, but fold the willow branches instead. Sitting playing the flute, worried about killing travelers?

...

It's so beautiful, it's a perfect match!


Renovating the old as before, the "Shaxi Revival Project" is really extraordinary. This small town can undoubtedly rank among the most beautiful small towns in China today.