Seven Turns Alley

Text. Photography/Zheng Yi?

The lane culture is the most charming part of Fuzhou, a thousand-year-old city. The streets and alleys have both the atmosphere of the city and the uniqueness of the city. The most familiar thing about humanistic sentiments is "Three Lanes and Seven Alleys". So, do you know "Seven Turns Alley"?

Never heard of it! In fact, even if you are a native of Fuzhou, probably not many people know about Qiturn Alley. Therefore, when I stood at the door of Dajue Zen Temple and asked several shop owners around me where the "Seven Turns Alley" was, it took some trouble. They all said they didn't know, because they knew about the Seven Turns Alley. It turned out to be in a place called Dingwu Mountain. I asked where Dingwu Mountain was. An enthusiastic elder sister pointed to the introductory text in the Zen temple and said that this is Dingwu Mountain. This made me and the person who asked for directions even more excited. I was confused. Finally, my eldest sister asked a 70- or 80-year-old grandma who was dozing in a Zen temple. The eldest sister acted as the translator for the grandma who couldn’t speak Mandarin and me who couldn’t speak Fuzhou dialect. Finally, I got it. The old lady who understood what I meant took me two steps - really only two steps - and pointed to the alley outside the gate of the Zen Temple, "Is this right here?" My eldest sister and I both felt that we had been doing this for a long time, how could we be right in front of us? Woolen cloth!

Actually, I later discovered that it was not that difficult to find, mainly because I asked for directions at the end of the alley, and there were clear road signs at the entrance of the alley.

Qizhuan Lane is located in the downtown area of ??Gulou District, Fuzhou. It is a horizontal alley connecting Xianta Street and Dongtai Road. It is only two to three hundred meters long. It is said that in the past, the terrain of the Dongtai Road area was very high and belonged to a branch of the mountain, called Dingwu Mountain. At that time, the Qizhuan Lane was a mountain road in Dingwu Mountain. Because the road was narrow and difficult to navigate, there were seven large corners close to 90 degrees. Named after the turn. Previously, the alley was about 3 meters wide. At its narrowest point, only three people could pass sideways. It was winding and long. People described walking into the alley as like being in a maze. Of course, that was all in the past. With the reconstruction and construction of small streets and alleys in Fuzhou in 2009, the seven-turn alley was reconstructed and widened, and now only three turns remain.

When you walk into Qibuan Alley, the cement road is smooth and clean. On both sides of the narrow alley, there are white saddle walls with green tiles and black ridges, which are the characteristics of traditional ancient houses in Fuzhou. There is only one community and one residential house in the alley. The community is called Zhulinjing Community. It has a hollow glass square wooden door. It is not like an ordinary community facade, but more like a quiet teahouse. The residential house is No. 3, Qizhuan Lane, and has the same hollow square wooden door. , there is also a beautiful antique eaves, with two lanterns hanging high, giving it a Chinese New Year feel. Outside the wall, there are residential buildings on both sides, with a row of dark gray exterior walls. The alleys and communities look particularly quiet against the backdrop of shady bamboo trees. Occasionally, students in twos and threes pass by here, and they don't fight like children of that age. They pass by quietly. "No wonder this place is called Bamboo Forest Community. It has the charm of bamboo." I thought to myself.

Seven Turns Lane not only has the elegance brought by the bamboo forest, but also the tranquility bestowed by the gods. In this short alley, there are still two ancient monuments, the Dajue Temple of the Ming Dynasty and the Guanghua Hall of the Qing Dynasty. I just visited the Dajue Temple and it was full of incense, but I couldn’t find the Guanghua Hall. It is said that Historically, Guanghua Hall ranked first among the thirty-six halls in Fuzhou.

Exiting the alley is Xianta Street. There are many shops and there is the East Street Police Station at the entrance of the alley. Stepping from the ancient alley into the busy street seems to have experienced a time travel.

The bells in the ancient temple are still ringing in my ears, and construction sites for subway construction have appeared around me. The pace of urban construction is accelerating, and more and more small streets and alleys have begun to disappear. Maybe one day, those twists and turns will The alley only remains in the memory of the old "Hujiu" people...

2016.3.7