| Location: |
| Longsheng, Ping An and the rice terraces: The rice terraces are built into the hillsides. About 100 km north west from Guilin the little town of Longsheng is a center in the region. The Longji Terraces are located in Longsheng County about 2 hours from Guilin.The area has many minorities. The main majority groups here are the Miao and the Dong. About 25 km from Longsheng you will find quite a bit up in the hills the little village of Ping An. |
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| Rice Terraces: |
| The terraces look like great chains or ribbons as they wind from the foot to the top of the hill. This ingenious construction makes best use of the scare arable land and water resources in the mountainous area. There are about 66 square kilometers terraced fields in southeast of Longsheng, the terraces were first built in the Yuan dynasty and completed in the Qing dynasty by the Zhuang people. |
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| It is called "The champion of the terrace world". It is the Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces. The Dragon's Backbone Rice Terraces is 27 kilometres from Longsheng County. In this county there are numerous terraced fields, of which the terraced Fields in Longji village show a picture of great momentum and imposing beauty. It is 22.5 km from the county seat and 108 km. from the city of Guilin. The terraced fields are built along the slope winding from the riverside up to the mountain top, the highest part being 880 m in elevation while the lowest part 380 m in elevation. The coiling line that starts from the mountain foot to up to the mountain top divides the mountain into layers of water glittering in the sun in spring, layers of green rice shoots in summer, layers of golden rice in fall, and layers of silvery frost in winter. The terraced fields were mostly built during the Ming Dynasty about 500 years ago. |
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| Ping An village: |
| Ping An, near Longsheng, north of Guilin. Ping An is the main village here. The village is build on a hill slope. Nowadays there's an excellent asphalt road that connects the main ongoing road from Guilin to Longsheng. From the riverside to the village is a steep 5 km climb. |
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| At the time, the only way to reach the village was to climb up. Few people these days do that as it is a hard climb. Ping An is definitely worth a visit. If you come at the right time of the year, when the paddy fields are wet or filled with young rice, the views are absolute magic. |
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| Nowadays there are plenty of little guesthouses and restaurants. And although the road now goes all the way up. However, the road stops a few hundred meter from the village. The last part you have to walk yourself. First you cross an old wooden bridge and then the stairs lead you to the village. |
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| Longsheng rice terraces photos |
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Key words: Longji dragon's backbone rice terraces, Longsheng rice terraces |
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| Edited by Athena Lee |
