Travel Notes of Lishui (I): Ancient Weir Painting Country

There is a beautiful city hidden in the mountainous area of southwest Zhejiang. Her name is Lishui.

When I first heard the word "Lishui", I almost took it as Lijiang, Yunnan, and I believe most people will feel a sense of strangeness. Even living in Jiangnan, many people are not familiar with it, which is caused by Lishui's special geographical environment.

Lishui is adjacent to Wenzhou in the east and Jinhua in the west. Although they live next to each other, the mountains are like a natural barrier, separating them from the outside world. Lishui, like a noble lady raised in a boudoir, is also like a hermit. She is quiet and detached, and never stands out. When you really approach her, you will suddenly find the beauty and magic of this land.

Starting from Jinhua, we drove along the winding mountain road, and the green hills on both sides passed by. We will arrive in Lishui city in about 2 hours.

The first stop to visit Lishui is the ancient weir painting town. The ancient weir painting township is located in Dagangtou Town, Lishui City. It is divided into two parts: the ancient weir and the painting township, which are connected by the Oujiang River and can be ferried back and forth. The ancient weir is more a fusion of natural scenery and history and culture, while the paintings in my hometown are a little more humanistic and artistic.

In recent years, I have been to many places, and everywhere I go, I always feel deja vu. Many scenic spots have the same problem. There are too many traces of artificial repair and too strong commercial atmosphere, while the ancient weir painting town has maintained more natural forms, which are both heavy and historical, fashionable, civilized, elegant and refined, which is extremely rare.

Two things impressed me the most: a large number of ancient camphor trees and the remains of ancient buildings.

The ancient weir painting township has beautiful scenery and the most magnificent section of the 800-mile Oujiang River flows through it. At the same time, on the alluvial plains on both sides of the valley, Pterocarya stenoptera and ancient camphor trees are towering into the sky, where there are the oldest thousand-year-old camphor trees. Some of these ancient camphor tree songs are old and powerful, so strong that five or six people can hug each other; Some are in groups of three or five, packed with nodules, and snuggle up to each other like lovers. Among them, the most peculiar ancient camphor tree, with hollow trunk and cracked belly, is called "pine tree" by local people. It is said that people often come here to bow down and pray for their children. As for whether it is effective, there is no way to know.

Located in the beautiful Yantou Village, the ancient weir has a profound historical and cultural heritage, and its history can be traced back to Liang Xiao Tian Jian's period in the Southern Dynasties. There is a state-level cultural relics protection unit here, which was built in Tongji Weir, an ancient water conservancy project in 505 AD (1500 years ago). There is also the world's earliest over-water overpass-Han Shi, which was built in the Song Dynasty. These are historical testimony of the wisdom of the ancients.

Yantou village, with a total area of 5.37 square kilometers, retains a large number of Ming and Qing buildings and old buildings. Although it has been eroded by wind and rain for hundreds of years, it is still full of ancient charm and charm, attracting many tourists to stop and watch.

There is only a water barrier from Guyan to Hu Axiang, so you need to go there by ferry. Boarding the ferry, the green hills on both sides are opposite, and the water on the boat is rippling like a fairyland in Taoyuan. The beauty of Lishui lies in the mountains and rivers. On both sides of the 800-mile Oujiang River, the magical power of nature endows it with extraordinary spirituality.

When you reach the shore, you will draw your hometown. A small street with a width of about 3 meters runs through the core area, with old houses bearing long years on both sides. Most of the studio owners are young people born in the 1980s. Since the 1950s, painters, photographers and tourists from all over the country have come here to sketch, collect scenery and visit, and gradually formed the well-known "Lishui barbizon" painting school in China. Gangtou Ancient Town has also become the hometown of photography art in China. This is also the origin of "painting hometown".

Go south along the side street and you will come to the riverside ferry. A tall ancient camphor tree stands out. It is the largest camphor tree in the local area, and it is known as the "king of trees". Surrounded by tourists from all over the world, taking pictures here has become an indispensable sight.

Tired of walking, I took a nap in the pavilion by the river, with my back to the hometown of painting and my face to the river, listening to the birds chirping in the trees and watching the ferry on the water return. The breeze in Xu Lai, the water waves overflow slightly, is fascinating. I don't know where I am. ...