Chuzhou

Home to Langya Mountain, made famous by Ouyang Xiu's 'The Old Drunkard's Pavilion', plus the Ming Middle Capital and Ming Imperial Tomb at Fengyang and Xiaogang Village, birthplace of China's rural household contract reform.

Chuzhou lies in eastern Anhui right next to Nanjing and is the gateway to the east of the province, long known as 'the lock and key of Jinling, the shield of the Jianghuai region'. While serving as prefect here in the Northern Song dynasty, Ouyang Xiu wrote 'The Old Drunkard's Pavilion', whose opening line 'Chu is surrounded by mountains' made Langya Mountain famous across China. Fengyang County, under the city's administration, is the hometown of the Ming founder Zhu Yuanzhang and preserves early Ming sites such as the Ming Middle Capital and the Ming Imperial Tomb, while Xiaogang Village is where China's rural reforms began. The climate is a monsoon climate transitioning from northern subtropical to warm temperate, with four distinct seasons. Mar–May brings mountain blossoms, Sep–Nov is crisp and clear, and Langya Mountain's autumn foliage peaks in mid-to-late November; summers are hot and winters damp and cold. Sightseeing falls into two areas: first, Chuzhou city and its surroundings, centred on Langya Mountain (the Old Drunkard's Pavilion, Langya Temple and Fengle Pavilion), plus the Chuzhou Museum, Huangfu Mountain National Forest Park and the Wu Jingzi Memorial Hall in Quanjiao; second, Fengyang, about 100 km to the northwest, where the Ming Middle Capital imperial city, Fengyang Drum Tower, Longxing Temple, the Ming Imperial Tomb, Jiushan Cave and Xiaogang Village fill a full day. Getting there: Chuzhou Station on the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed line is only about 20 minutes from Nanjing South, making it an easy day trip from Nanjing; Fengyang is about 1.5 hours' drive from Chuzhou, or take the high-speed train to Bengbu South and transfer. Allow 2–3 days: one for Langya Mountain and the city, one for Fengyang. Local dishes to try include Chuzhou pot-roasted chicken, Fengyang stuffed tofu and Quanjiao juanqie rolls. Note: the old trails on Langya Mountain have many steps and are slippery in the rain; Fengyang's sights are spread out, so hire a car with driver or drive yourself.

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