China: Hongcun Ancient Village

The second UNESCO World Heritage village in Anhui Province, not far from Xidi, is Hongcun. This one is slightly larger and even more famous and touristy. Developed during the Southern Song Dynasty by the Wang clan, the village is famous worldwide as a pinnacle of traditional Chinese Huizhou-style architecture and is often described as a living traditional Chinese watercolor painting come to life. The village was engineered according to ancient feng shui principles to resemble a giant breathing ox. Leigang Hill functions as the ox’s head, two massive trees at the entrance form its horns, the complex web of clean water canals acts as its intestines, the historic residences make up the body, and four ancient bridges represent its legs. A network of narrow stone channels directs mountain water right to the doorstep of every single household, eventually pooling into the iconic crescent-shaped Moon Pond at the geometric center of the village and the sprawling South Lake at its front entrance. The village has exceptionally preserved Ming and Qing Dynasty merchant mansions. Interestingly, Ang Lee’s martial arts epic, “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon”, was filmed here.its very touristy but deservedly so.