When it comes to Tao Yuanming, the first things that come to mind are his “Peach Blossom Spring” and his famous verses “Plucking chrysanthemums by the eastern fence, I leisurely gaze at the southern mountains.” Tao Yuanming longed for a paradise away from the mortal world, and isn’t that exactly what those of us living in the midst of chaos also long for! Although it is merely a beautiful imagination, there are still some places in the real world that are like paradises away from the world—beautiful and peaceful places where people can temporarily forget worldly troubles. Today, the editor will introduce these places to you; if you ever want to take a spontaneous trip, they might be your destinations.

Heshun

Located in Yunnan Province, about 3 kilometers southwest of Tengchong County, is an ancient town. Because there is a small river winding around the village, it was renamed Heshun, taking its meaning from “harmony and people following the way.” The ancient town is built along the mountain terrain and the small river, and from a distance, it presents a well-arranged layout. In the evening, with the afterglow of the setting sun, walk through the alleys to the river—on the bluestone slabs, women are washing clothes and vegetables, children are playing and having fun, and white geese and ducks are freely swimming in the water. After the hustle and bustle of the day fades away, everything becomes peaceful and tranquil. Strolling leisurely through it, one can feel the town’s calm and steady atmosphere.

Baoshan Stone City

Located in Yunnan Province, about 110 kilometers from Lijiang, this is a place where the Naxi people live, with unique scenery. Three sides of Stone City are sheer cliffs, with only one side facing the rushing Jinsha River. It has only two stone gates for entry and exit, making it almost a truly impregnable city. The houses here are carved into the rock, and all items such as stone beds, stone pillows, stone tables, stone benches, stone stoves, and stone vats are also made of stone, displaying the original appearance of the Naxi people with a classical charm—a truly pristine ecology. What’s more wonderful is that there are terraced fields here, layered in beauty and magnificence.

Shaqiong Village

Located in Xiazayu Town, Zayu County, Tibet, this is a village inhabited by the Deng people. Although the Deng people are an unrecognized ethnic group by the state, they are still warm and hospitable. If guests come from afar, they will prepare a special food made from chicken claw millet, chicken, or pork, adding locally grown plants as seasoning, and processing it through manual and necessary procedures to entertain guests. Shaqiong Village has spring-like weather all year round; there are clusters of banana trees, forestation everywhere, and wooden fences and stone walls are faintly visible, just like a “paradise” hidden in the shade of green.

Bing’an Ancient Town

Located in Chishui City, Guizhou Province, 25 kilometers from the city center, transportation by water and land is now quite convenient, and the forest is lush with relatively intact primitive ecology. The ancient town is built on steep cliffs along the banks of the Chishui River, leaning against green mountains with water surrounding it, stones as gates and rocks as walls, resembling an ancient city fortress. The standing wooden stilted buildings suspended in the air, though already a thousand years old, remain as stable as a rock. Seeing these ancient buildings, you may better comprehend the leisurely ambiance of the ancient Yelang Kingdom.

Yaoli

Located in Fuliang County, Jingdezhen City, Jiangxi Province, 50 kilometers from the Jingdezhen city center. Just as the lyrics in Jay Chou’s “Blue and White Porcelain” go—”The sky is blue waiting for the misty rain, and I am waiting for you; cooking smoke rises, separated by the river by thousands of miles”—the misty Jiangnan is reappeared in Yaoli. The Yao River flows through the town, and ancient villages are built by the water, all in the Huizhou architectural style of the Ming and Qing dynasties, with flying eaves and curved corners, white walls and black tiles, hidden among green mountains and clear waters.

Bamei Village