Things To Do in Fengshan

Fengshan is bisected into an old and new town by the Qiaoyin River that flows north out of the city through the enormous Chuang Long Dong (cave). The town is tightly hemmed in on all sides by towering karst peaks. On earlier visits, the appearance was charming although this time, the main entrance had been blocked by a massive rock slide, in which boulders bigger than apartment blocks had crushed a row of buildings as though they were made of playing cards. Most worrying was the fact that this disaster took place in the middle of the day, without any warning or torrential rain beforehand. These days, as I look around at the steep cliff walls that surround the town, I see less of the spectacular karst, and more of where the next calamitous rockfall is likely to take place.

For those wishing to sample the local firewater, Long Feng Jiu (Dragon Phoenix alcohol) is made from a selection of local herbs and is popular for toasting.

Tip: Impress the locals with your minority language skills. Cheers in the Zhuang dialect is "gen lou" and in Yao "hap diu."