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Fenghuang Town, Hunan

Phoenix Town(Feng Huang Cheng) is situated on the western part of central China's Hunan Province in an area of outstanding natural beauty. It is a very noted Chinese historical and cultural town which has a history spanning 1300 years. Entering the town, tourists will be impressed by its mystique, elegance and primitive simplicity. Therefore, it was considered by a famous author from New Zealand called Rewi Alley as 'the most beautiful town in China'.

Legend
"Phoenix" in Chinese is "Feng Huang", the mythical bird of good omen and longevity that is consumed by fire to be re-born again from the flames. So the Phoenix Town is an ancient city filled with many legends. The most common one is said that two of these fabulous birds flew over it and found the town so beautiful and peaceful that they hovered there, unwilling to leave.

Features
Phoenix Town belongs to monsoon climate, warm and humid, with typical seasonal changes. The annual average temperature is around 15 centigrade degree. In the early morning or after rain, the whole town was full of rainy mist, liked a dream. At this moment, tourists will forget everything and stop thinking, just stay and enjoy the wondeful scene.

Suspended Houses which are built on halfway up the mountain and supported by many stilts. There are many such suspended houses with strong Tujia ethnical feature in the Phoenix Town.

Walking along the ancient town, flagstone streets can be found everywhere. What's more, ancient and dignified buildings stand along these streets.

Former Residential House of Shencongwen is seat at the heart of the town. This courtyard got its fame mainly from its owner, Shencongwen, a notable scholar. 11 small and elegant chambers are in thier original style.

Edited by Elena, Photograph taken by Mr. Lin Wenhong