First stop: Changsha

As usually we went back to my hometown, Changsha (this time we did not even stop in Beijing).

(Click on each image to see the high-resolution version)

We climbed the little hill of Yuelu (岳麓山) on the western bank of the Xiang River (湘江). The most famous artifact on this hill is the Pavilion for the Enjoyment of Evening (, or Ai Wan Ting, in Chinese: 爱晚亭)


Pavilion for the Enjoyment of Evening (爱晚亭)

In the city of Changsha, they had designated a stretch of street the "Walking Street" or pedestrian street, where people and walk, shop and relax in leisure. There are some statues depicting daily lives of the common folks of a bygone era; they are generally of good taste.


Walking Street Statue


Walking Street Statue


Walking Street Statue

The city had changed a lot since I lived there, and it is still rapidly changing. But in some places, such as this cobblestone street (but not the shops!), there still remains some resemblance of the old days.


Cobblestone Street

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