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Hidden treasures away from the tourist trail
By Xu Wenwen |
November 5, 2012, Monday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
EVEN though it features many fascinating places, Fenghuangshan Road in the southwest of uptown Hangzhou does not attract many visitors, compared to the city's more famous areas.
It's situated on a long road winding through mountainous country, connecting the West Lake and the ruins of Southern Song Dynasty Royal Palace. The palace ruins site is still being renovated, but visitors can appreciate other sites along the road, especially in the hiking season.
Shanghai Daily has drawn its own hiking map that includes an eco park, two museums and an octagonal field representing traditional cosmology.The
Eight Trigram Field
In traditional Chinese culture a group of eight symbols - known as bagua - is seen a fundamental element of everything.
Often this takes the form of an octagon divided into eight segments, each containing one trigram symbol, representing concepts such as fate.
The trigrams are related to tai chi philosophy, used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality. These have applications in areas including astronomy, astrology, geography, geomancy, anatomy and the family.
The octagonal field containing eight trigrams at Fenghuangshan Road, planted with vivid, different-colored crops and surrounded by a moat, was created in a bid to establish harmony in society.
In the early 12th century, when China's royal court retreated to south China following to Jurchen conquest of northern China, the emperor and his followers built a new dynasty, the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) with the capital as Lin'an - present-day Hangzhou.
The emperor and his army settled down, enjoying a lavish lifestyle and showing little inclination to get their northern lands back. This led to tensions with local people who were enduring hardship, so the court came up with the idea of having the emperor farm land, showing that he was sharing ordinary people's toil and hardships.
So the Eight Trigram Field was laid out at the foot of Fenghung Mountain, with a shape exactly according to eight trigrams, and in each trigram one kind of crops was cultivated. When the emperor worked on his land, drapes were hung around perimeter and soldiers dispatched to protect him.
However, locals learned that the emperor was merely showing up at the field and that it was his servants doing all the hard work. On discovering this, locals stopped trusting the emperor, and his farming performances ended.
But the field was retained, even after nearly 1,000 of years, and used by local farmers. Also it's a scenic site that was lately renovated, featuring sculptures and greenery.
For a good view, go to Zilai Cave at nearby Yuhuang Mountain nearby.
Address: 41 Huyu Road
Jiang Yang Fan Eco Park
No park existed here just 12 years ago. It was formed when a small lake between two mountains was filled with sludge from West Lake during large-scale dredging there in 1999.
As time passed, the lake dried and seeds in the West Lake sludge began to sprout. Soon, a park of marshland and greenery took shape, boasting some 200 species of plants and 90 kinds of birds.
Aquatic plants provide color all year round, with numerous types of reed and waterweed.
Decorating the path, cosmos - a symbol of happiness in China - provide splashes of pink, purple and white. Look closely among the blooms and you will find bees, butterflies and even hummingbirds, fluttering, dancing and gathering honey.
Address: Climb to Huyu Road
China Hangzhou Cuisine Museum
"This place makes us starving!" This comment in the visitors' book left by an American speaks for many visitors of China Hangzhou Cuisine Museum.
Covering 12,470 square meters, the museum specializes in the culture of Hangzhou cuisine so visitors can learn its history, features and cooking techniques.
Hangzhou is representative of the cuisine in Zhejiang Province. It is light, crisp and elegant, characterized by elaborate preparation and techniques of cooking, such as sauteing, stewing, stir frying and deep frying.
The museum features silica gel replicas of 400 Hangzhou dishes for visitors to drool over, pots, pans and bowls unearthed in Hangzhou over the years and artwork on the theme of Hangzhou culinary culture.
And if all that whets your appetite, the museum also features a restaurant where visitors can order authentic Hangzhou dishes.
Address: 9 Fenghuangshan Rd
Southern Song Guan Kiln Museum
Hangzhou was home to Guan Kiln (a kiln that produced ceramics for the royal court) in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the Southern Song Guan Kiln Museum is the place to learn more about its history and stories.
As the Song court retreated to south China, many famous kilns in the central China were destroyed. A new Guan Kiln was built in the then capital Hangzhou, at the foot of Fenghuang Mountain, to make chinaware for the court.
The kiln manufactured fine and glossy porcelain featuring light bluish green glaze, crab claw patterns, purple rims and iron-brown bases, due to the high iron content. These exquisite pieces became much-coveted.
The museum also exhibits ordinary ceramics used by people during the Southern Song Dynasty. Exhibits include functional items, such as ceramic pillows which people used so their hair buns wouldn't be messed up, and a jar-shaped money-box with a coin slot on the top.
This is the city's largest museum, covering 3,300 square meters.
Address: 60 Nanfu Rd
It's situated on a long road winding through mountainous country, connecting the West Lake and the ruins of Southern Song Dynasty Royal Palace. The palace ruins site is still being renovated, but visitors can appreciate other sites along the road, especially in the hiking season.
Shanghai Daily has drawn its own hiking map that includes an eco park, two museums and an octagonal field representing traditional cosmology.The
Eight Trigram Field
In traditional Chinese culture a group of eight symbols - known as bagua - is seen a fundamental element of everything.
Often this takes the form of an octagon divided into eight segments, each containing one trigram symbol, representing concepts such as fate.
The trigrams are related to tai chi philosophy, used in Taoist cosmology to represent the fundamental principles of reality. These have applications in areas including astronomy, astrology, geography, geomancy, anatomy and the family.
The octagonal field containing eight trigrams at Fenghuangshan Road, planted with vivid, different-colored crops and surrounded by a moat, was created in a bid to establish harmony in society.
In the early 12th century, when China's royal court retreated to south China following to Jurchen conquest of northern China, the emperor and his followers built a new dynasty, the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) with the capital as Lin'an - present-day Hangzhou.
The emperor and his army settled down, enjoying a lavish lifestyle and showing little inclination to get their northern lands back. This led to tensions with local people who were enduring hardship, so the court came up with the idea of having the emperor farm land, showing that he was sharing ordinary people's toil and hardships.
So the Eight Trigram Field was laid out at the foot of Fenghung Mountain, with a shape exactly according to eight trigrams, and in each trigram one kind of crops was cultivated. When the emperor worked on his land, drapes were hung around perimeter and soldiers dispatched to protect him.
However, locals learned that the emperor was merely showing up at the field and that it was his servants doing all the hard work. On discovering this, locals stopped trusting the emperor, and his farming performances ended.
But the field was retained, even after nearly 1,000 of years, and used by local farmers. Also it's a scenic site that was lately renovated, featuring sculptures and greenery.
For a good view, go to Zilai Cave at nearby Yuhuang Mountain nearby.
Address: 41 Huyu Road
Jiang Yang Fan Eco Park
No park existed here just 12 years ago. It was formed when a small lake between two mountains was filled with sludge from West Lake during large-scale dredging there in 1999.
As time passed, the lake dried and seeds in the West Lake sludge began to sprout. Soon, a park of marshland and greenery took shape, boasting some 200 species of plants and 90 kinds of birds.
Aquatic plants provide color all year round, with numerous types of reed and waterweed.
Decorating the path, cosmos - a symbol of happiness in China - provide splashes of pink, purple and white. Look closely among the blooms and you will find bees, butterflies and even hummingbirds, fluttering, dancing and gathering honey.
Address: Climb to Huyu Road
China Hangzhou Cuisine Museum
"This place makes us starving!" This comment in the visitors' book left by an American speaks for many visitors of China Hangzhou Cuisine Museum.
Covering 12,470 square meters, the museum specializes in the culture of Hangzhou cuisine so visitors can learn its history, features and cooking techniques.
Hangzhou is representative of the cuisine in Zhejiang Province. It is light, crisp and elegant, characterized by elaborate preparation and techniques of cooking, such as sauteing, stewing, stir frying and deep frying.
The museum features silica gel replicas of 400 Hangzhou dishes for visitors to drool over, pots, pans and bowls unearthed in Hangzhou over the years and artwork on the theme of Hangzhou culinary culture.
And if all that whets your appetite, the museum also features a restaurant where visitors can order authentic Hangzhou dishes.
Address: 9 Fenghuangshan Rd
Southern Song Guan Kiln Museum
Hangzhou was home to Guan Kiln (a kiln that produced ceramics for the royal court) in the Southern Song Dynasty, and the Southern Song Guan Kiln Museum is the place to learn more about its history and stories.
As the Song court retreated to south China, many famous kilns in the central China were destroyed. A new Guan Kiln was built in the then capital Hangzhou, at the foot of Fenghuang Mountain, to make chinaware for the court.
The kiln manufactured fine and glossy porcelain featuring light bluish green glaze, crab claw patterns, purple rims and iron-brown bases, due to the high iron content. These exquisite pieces became much-coveted.
The museum also exhibits ordinary ceramics used by people during the Southern Song Dynasty. Exhibits include functional items, such as ceramic pillows which people used so their hair buns wouldn't be messed up, and a jar-shaped money-box with a coin slot on the top.
This is the city's largest museum, covering 3,300 square meters.
Address: 60 Nanfu Rd
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