HUNAN, CHAIRMAN MAO'S HOME PROVINCE, AND XIAMEN AWAIT

I spent 9 days in Hunan and Xiamen, Fujian, from 11 to 19 Oct. Come travel Hunan's two national forest parks (Zhangjiajie National Forest Park and Tian Men Shan), Phoenix City (Feng Huang Chen), Changsha, its capital, and Xiamen with me. This relatively quiet street in Zhangjiajie belies the natural beauty and charm of Hunan which lie in its sandstone mountains, trees and iconic peaks. You can catch me in "Zhangjiajie - a sacred and smoky mountain in Hunan" in the Dec 2007 edition of Food & Travel - Kitchen Culture published by Key Editions Pte Ltd.

On our way from Zhangjiajie to Feng Huang Chen, I came across this market place which was set up by the side of a narrow road thus causing a traffic jam and enabling me to take some shots. We had to spend a night in Ji Shou before proceeding to Feng Huang Chen.

An assortment of fruits plus drinks and ice cream offered by this stall.

This vendor is selling fried yu tiao, amongst others.

Preparing to enter Feng Huang Chen for our walking tour.

Tujia architecture at its finest. It is rare to see such in the other areas I visited this trip!

Looking for the alley cat!

The foot bridge which links both sides of Tuo River. The river effectively divides the city into two distinct parts.

On both sides of the Tuo River are these buildings which feature Tujia architecture. Most of them are business entities catering to tourists and visitors. At night, when the red lanterns are lit on both sides, it is a sight to behold.

Tuo River is the lifeline of the city. Not only does this woman wash her chicken here, restaurant operators also wash their food similarly. Anyway, the water here is clean and appears crystal clear.

Red lanterns are synonymous with ancient Chinese towns.....

A boat shooting the rapids in the Tuo River.

Like in Dali and Lijiang in Yunnan, Phoenix City has its share of bars and pubs. This one adorns its frontage with empty beer bottles. If I had stayed the night, I would probably down a few Carlsberg, my favourite beer!

The house on top is owned by a famous artist here.

Great alleyway, a common feature of old towns in China.

Phoenix City fried delicacies.

Entrance to Bao Feng Hu (Lake). It is a beautiful scenic area with a lake that is 72 m deep. The ticket covers entrance plus a boat ride on the lake.

This waterfall comes into view after we entered the area.

This is our guide for the walk up the mountain and then down to the launching point for the boat ride. All guides here are issued with a set each of Tujia and Miao costumes and the one she adorns here is Miao, minus head gear. All guides here are very fit for they have to climb everyday to earn their keeps.

Taking a boat ride on the lake and not a slow boat to China........