Ancient village within easy reach

When speaking of autumn scenery and ancient villages, many people will think of Wuyuan in Jiangxi Province and Hongcun Village in Anhui Province. But here in the vicinity of Shenzhen there's also an 800-year-old ancient village huddling nearby, on a par with the above-mentioned sites in terms of autumnal beauty, unbeknownst to most people.

The 800-year-old ancient village, which just last month was named "the most beautiful village" at the national level by five State ministries including the Ministry of Housing and Urban-rural Development, is Caobian Village in Zhongshan. It is one of the six villages that have received such a distinguished title in Guangdong.

Upon entering the village, you will be instantaneously attracted to the quaint old-style Caobian School at the entrance of the village. The two-story bell tower is still intact after over 80 years. The bell tower, a blending of Chinese and Western architectural styles, is now a remnant of the old days to all Caobian's villagers.

If lucky, you may get a chance to glimpse the interior of the school. At present, a classroom in the right wing is used as a place for entertainment for the elderly while a classroom in the left wing is an exhibition room for historical objects brought back by returned overseas Chinese.

Every classroom is uniquely named to commemorate overseas Chinese who made contribution to the village.

Though the school has been closed down for nearly 20 years, trails of teaching still remain. The blackboard newspaper at the back wall of the classroom is still clear and legible as if students were in-attendance just yesterday.

Beside Caobian School stands a Temple of the Queen of Heaven (Tianhou Palace) and next to the temple is Yingyuanli Street, which is flanked by an over-century-old banyan tree.

Yingyuanli is a long granite-paved street with many narrow alleys lining it. Lingnan-style houses built with black brick and Western-styled watchtowers are distributed in an orderly way along the two sides of the alleys.

Upon exiting Yingyuanli Street, you will encounter Huali Street, which is named after an overseas Chinese local to the village. Here you can see the houses with black bricks and watchtowers standing erect.

The village was planted around a mountain, presenting a scene of idyllic beauty to people at all times. The mountain, on which grows many luxuriant trees, is deemed a geomantic forest by the villagers.

Going out of Huali Street, you will see a blockhouse standing high in the middle of a paddy field. At the beginning of last century, wealthy and influential families in Caobian Village preferred building blockhouses at the fringes of the village as well as watchtowers for the protection and safety of their family and the whole village.

Just a stone's throw away from the village lays an Anhui-style structure called Zhanyuan Garden, which is the largest private garden in the Lingnan area. The owner of the garden built it so that his mother could live a serene life in old age in Caobian, surrounded by natural beauty, but they later chose to settle down in Macao.

Add: Huali Street, Zhongshan, Guangdong (广东省中山市华立大街)

Tickets: Free to visit Caobian Village and 60 yuan for Zhanyuan Garden

Transport: Take a boat at Fuyong Wharf in Shenzhen to Zhongshan Port which takes around 45 minutes, and then take Bus No. 36 to Vanke City Views and then transfer to Bus No. 211 or Bus No. 14 to reach Beitai.