June 9-13 in very scenic Fenghuang, Hunan
I purposely arranged for some "alone time" on this trip, and picked Fenghuang by hunting for a "water town." I'd seen photos. but the place was even more spectacular than I'd expected.
One thing I hadn't expected, though, because I just didn't think about it, was that Fenghaung is located quite high in a fairly hilly region, sitting 449 meters (about 1500 ft) above sea level. I expected green and lush, though--and it was.
Evidently I'd missed the peaks of the various tourist seasons, so the town wasn't crowded. I was in Fenghuang Ancient Town for 5 peaceful days, of which 3 1/2 were overcast with occasional rain, on top of the usual season's humidity--which is why the water is so high and flowing so strongly in some of the photos. It was warm, though, and quite comfortable the whole time.
My hotel cost $50CDN a night, overlooking the Tuojing He, the river that flows through the 300 year old town. Some details on Fenghuang here. Because it's a tourist town, there was plenty of choice when it came to cheap food, and no shortage of local spirits. Lights, music and night life started at about 9PM and went to midnight, every night but Sunday night, with the various musicians in the local eateries competing for attention till closing. Everything rolls at an easy pace, here, and the locals are friendly and understanding. I took about 1200 photos over the 5 days, and probably 30 videos of varying length, not counting 360s, a few of which I posted on the Watchuseek and Watchlords forum when I was travelling, and that I've added below in case anyone missed 'em.
One thing I hadn't expected, though, because I just didn't think about it, was that Fenghaung is located quite high in a fairly hilly region, sitting 449 meters (about 1500 ft) above sea level. I expected green and lush, though--and it was.
Evidently I'd missed the peaks of the various tourist seasons, so the town wasn't crowded. I was in Fenghuang Ancient Town for 5 peaceful days, of which 3 1/2 were overcast with occasional rain, on top of the usual season's humidity--which is why the water is so high and flowing so strongly in some of the photos. It was warm, though, and quite comfortable the whole time.
My hotel cost $50CDN a night, overlooking the Tuojing He, the river that flows through the 300 year old town. Some details on Fenghuang here. Because it's a tourist town, there was plenty of choice when it came to cheap food, and no shortage of local spirits. Lights, music and night life started at about 9PM and went to midnight, every night but Sunday night, with the various musicians in the local eateries competing for attention till closing. Everything rolls at an easy pace, here, and the locals are friendly and understanding. I took about 1200 photos over the 5 days, and probably 30 videos of varying length, not counting 360s, a few of which I posted on the Watchuseek and Watchlords forum when I was travelling, and that I've added below in case anyone missed 'em.
Taken from my hotel room balcony.
And most of the rest are just walking around.
Although taken on different days, I roughly arranged the shots from daytime to night.
These food and sundries ads were posted in the window of a grocery store quite close to the river. For calculation, 100RMB/Yuan is roughly $20 CDN. This will provide an idea of prices, keeping in mind this was a smaller store near a tourist area.
This next shot was the night time view from my hotel balcony. You'll see a red arrow...
...and this next shot--of what the red arrow points to--shows you what the Huawei P30Pro can do from across the river, at night. Not bad for a phone camera ;-)
360 Shots in a gallery.
Here's a few 360s I took over my time in Fenghuang.
Arrows or dots at the bottom to change pix, and mouse or finger to move around.
Arrows or dots at the bottom to change pix, and mouse or finger to move around.
And a few video walkabouts...
And that's it for Fenghuang...I'd love to return some day.