First Encounter with Fenghuang
I chose to set out before Golden Week to avoid the crowds. At noon on September 26, I boarded train K267 from Beijing, beginning my journey to the ancient town. My companion along the way was Mr. Shen's immortal work "Border Town." My heart raced with anticipation the whole way—even in my dreams I saw Cuicui's face and voice, the stilted houses she once sat in...
This article is compiled from the original travel notes on the "Zhangjiajie Tour Guide Network" (33519.com); it is a record of trips from earlier years. Time-sensitive information such as ticket prices, schedules, and accommodation prices is subject to the latest announcements from scenic areas and transportation authorities; the itinerary ideas and attraction introductions still have reference value.
I chose to set off before Golden Week in order to avoid the crowds. At noon on September 26, I boarded train K267 and set off from Beijing. Thus began my journey to visit the ancient town. Accompanying me all the way was Mr. Shen's immortal work Border Town. My heart was captivated all the way, and even in my dreams I thought of Cuicui's former voice and smile, the stilted house she once sat in, and Grandpa's old boat....
At noon on the 27th, the train arrived first in Jishou. Jishou City is the seat of the government of Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture. Just after leaving the station, I found armed police with loaded guns guarding both sides of the entrance, indicating that something bad had just happened in this city. Sure enough, after we left the station, we found wanted notices prominently posted on the public toilets. Later, chatting with locals, we learned that Jishou had recently had a riot because of illegal fundraising and speculation in real estate. It was said that the gold jewelry counter of a supermarket was smashed and looted. After hearing this, I was really somewhat worried. Fortunately, security was strengthened during the National Day period and everything was peaceful.
After leaving the railway station, there were quite a few minibuses going to Fenghuang, and they departed when full, which was very convenient. One more thing here. The buses to Fenghuang are all taken at the railway station, because Jishou also has a bus station, but buses to Zhangjiajie must be taken at the bus station, so do not confuse them. Ticket sellers were loudly soliciting business in the square. Although Golden Week had not yet arrived, business was already clearly booming. After getting on and sitting down, I bought a hand-drawn map of Fenghuang Ancient Town and began studying good places to eat, drink, and have fun. Actually, I had studied the pre-trip guide quite a lot, but I was moved by the simple hand-drawn quality of the map and just wanted to keep it as a souvenir.
The ride from Jishou to Fenghuang takes about 70 minutes. It is basically a winding mountain road in good condition. In fact, it is far less dangerous than what is said online. It is just that the whole way is bumpy and the mountain road curves, so quite a few people showed signs of carsickness. Friends with a 'history' of this should still prepare some dimenhydrinate to be safer.
Fenghuang is divided into the new town and the ancient town. Usually the terminal stop of the minibus is Nanhua Gate, at the junction of the ancient town and the new town. From the bridge at Nanhua Gate, you can take in the whole view of Fenghuang Ancient Town, and a warm feeling of being moved wells up in my heart - the master's Border Town is still here!
We booked the 'Jiangbei Inn,' which is highly recommended online. Previously I had originally planned to book 'Tuo River Family,' but no one answered the phone there, so I simply gave up; after all, there were still many choices. 'Tuo River Family' is right next to Xiong Xiling's Former Residence, and because of this it is highly praised by many backpackers. Actually, looking at it now, it does not have much practical significance. Instead, the friendliness of 'Jiangbei' made me once again feel the simplicity of the ancient town. 'Jiangbei Inn' is not exactly right by the river, nor is it a stilted house; locals call it 'River View Tower.' In fact, it is just a small building built by the family itself. Later I learned that because of commercialization in Fenghuang, many stilted houses are rented out to outsiders to operate, and few locals run their own inns anymore. 'Jiangbei Inn' has about 4 floors. We stayed on the top floor, which has a terrace and is a very good viewpoint. Although you cannot see Hong Bridge and Jumping Rock, there is more tranquility and leisure. Moreover, this inn is run by a local family themselves. Online it says the owner is a grassroots painter, and the corridors and rooms are full of his masterpieces, truly showing the style of a master! It is just that we never had the chance to meet him. The one who always received us was the family's grandmother. Grandma is very nice! You could say she responded to every request! If you are not seeking luxurious accommodation and only want warmth and to experience Fenghuang's human culture.
After getting settled, I prepared to wander around the ancient town and feed my stomach along the way. The weather was not exactly clear and fine, and the peak crowd had not yet arrived, so instead it felt just right. Taking advantage of the small crowds, I simply began wildly killing flash memory. Leaving the house, I followed the old street, turned to the bank of the Tuo River, and strolled along the river. Not far away I found an open platform where I could change into Miao clothing for photos. For 10 yuan you could change into 2 sets and take photos freely. The price was easy on the wallet, so without another word I immediately changed clothes and transformed into a Miao girl, constantly striking poses, unable to hide my excitement.
Continuing forward, you arrive at the Jumping Rock. This Jumping Rock was originally a bridge made of stone blocks linked one by one. I had thought a jumping rock was a mountain, so it suddenly dawned on me. I couldn't help but laugh. The stone blocks are just the right size—you only need to step across them one by one, but when you're in a good mood, hopping across one by one is also perfectly fine. So that's how 'Jumping' Rock got its name. It shows the imagination of the Fenghuang people. However, timid friends may need to hold each other's hands to cross the river. But there's no need to worry—the Tuo River flows gently and is shallow, so even if you fall in, you won't be swept away. Haha!
Across the bridge is the 'Official Boat' ticket office. The distinction between official and private is easy to understand—official boats are the section of the river with the best scenery that the local government has contracted out to a tourism developer. So it's publicly recognized and protected, and individual boats are not allowed to enter this section to solicit business. But the developers have become increasingly shrewd—Fenghuang Ancient Town originally had a through ticket, which was 148 yuan per person, allowing you to visit Shen Congwen's Former Residence, Xiong Xiling's Former Residence, Huang Yongyu's Old Residence, and other attractions. If you wanted a boat tour, you could pay an additional 30 yuan per person to see the essence of the Tuo River in Fenghuang Ancient Town. However, as online guides recommended, these former residences were nothing special, and most tourists had already refused to pay for the through ticket, choosing only the boat ride. So the developers actually incorporated the official boat route into the through ticket. That is, if you want to ride the official boat, you have to pay 148 yuan for the through ticket, which of course also covers those attractions. The standalone official boat service no longer exists. Therefore, our original plan to first tour the Tuo River was disrupted. In Fenghuang, many local villagers will solicit you to ride private boats, 30 yuan per boat. Although the price is much cheaper, the river section they travel has basically no attractions to see, and the so-called 'Peach Blossom Island' has no special colors either. So if you want to experience the atmosphere of the Tuo River, you can take one. Moreover, the boat's endpoint is Shen Congwen's grave, so you can visit it along the way.
We didn't choose to ride that day. After learning at the official boat office that we couldn't ride the official boat separately, we continued our leisurely street wandering. Next to the official boat ticket office is the North Gate, a rather distinctive gate tower. Passing through it, you find a relatively prosperous and tidy street. Shops and restaurants line the street. We asked around with great interest, but the prices we usually got were at big-city consumption levels. We sighed at Fenghuang's commercialization.
Since we hadn't had a decent meal at noon, our stomachs began to protest. So BF and I decided on the spot to seek out Fenghuang's iconic 'Ambassador Restaurant.' This 'Ambassador Restaurant,' as the name suggests, was named because Huang Yongyu once hosted the German ambassador here. The Ambassador Restaurant requires following a quiet small path to reach the new town street. From the ancient town, it's about a 20-minute walk, and you can just ask anyone along the way. Fenghuang's signature dish, 'Blood Cake Duck,' was naturally our first choice. It's a delicious dish made by stir-frying duck with glutinous rice soaked in duck blood. The flavor is unique and worth trying. Later, on the waiter's recommendation, we tried the Double Flying Fish Slices, which is actually stir-fried catfish—it felt rather ordinary. The stir-fried pumpkin leaves, on the other hand, are especially recommended. As a northerner, I had never tried the taste of pumpkin leaves before. Fragrant and refreshing, it really opened up my appetite!
One special note: Fenghuang people cook with very heavy flavors. In the following days of dining, BF and I would tease each other, 'We can fly back to Beijing now' (an old Beijing saying—if you eat too much salt, you'll turn into a night owl—a bat.) Hahaha~
After the meal, we strolled back to the ancient town. As night fell, Fenghuang Ancient Town suddenly became extraordinarily lively. All kinds of bars turned on their neon lights, noisy pop music blared, and street vendors crowded the streets... In BF's words, 'It's just like Houhai.' The quiet, simple ancient town of the daytime had completely vanished, which left us both quite disappointed!
That night, we fell asleep accompanied by the noisy songs.