I am Kevin Costner

So, our trip to Huang Shan was less than exciting...why? Because we didn't actually get up the mountain at all. Waking up in the morning to a torrential downpour wasn't really that encouraging, but then walking out in the rain was even less so. The first day there we went to visit two 400-year-old villages, Xidi and Hongcun. Both were pretty similar, but the style in which the villages were built were fascinating. Both had pretty interesting drainage systems that may have worked 400 years ago, but now were pretty obsolete. In fact, the downpour became so horrendous that the streets of Xidi became a fast-flowing river. A few of us gave up on the stupid plastic shoe covers, and waded forward barefoot. The water was actually really cool, and while I enjoyed wading through the water, I'm not sure the same could be said for everyone else.

The villages are both UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites, and both display excellent examples of very sophisticated (for the time) architecture and design. The drainage systems were basically aqueducts that flowed throughout the whole village, and carried water in a constant, rapid flow downwards. These also served a dual purpose, used for fire prevention. The villages had been built following a number of other villages that had tragically burned to the ground due to fires and lack of efficient fire prevention techniques. These aqueducts were especially placed within both Xidi and Hongcun in order to prevent similar disasters. Also in the villages were wood, brick, and stone carvings that were incredibly intricate, though much of it had been defaced during the Cultural Revolution. Hongcun in particular was unique, as it was supposedly modeled in the shape of a water buffalo. The drainage system that ran throughout was the buffalo's intestines, a large lake in the middle of hte village was the buffalo's stomach, and two vast, ancient trees marked the buffalo's horns. In front of the village was a huge man-made lake with a beautiful bridge leading to the village (Nanhu Lake). This lake is a miniature replica of Hangzhou's famous Xihu Lake, which we regrettably will not be seeing.

Unfortunately much of the village experience was dampened as within the ancient houses people had set up tourist traps and small shops peddling useless trinkets, which felt like somewhat of a bastardization of the whole UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site essence. But still, they were a unique experience, and the rain and street river was enough to make it something out of the ordinary. For now, I will have to cut this post short, but blogger now officially works in China, meaning later I will be able to put up pictures directly.

Time to go meet Nina Zhang at the subway. Peace!