8th Stop: Pingyao, Shanxi Province, China

Temperature: 7 degreesC

After the sights we’ve already seen, we didn’t expect to be this pleasantly surprised again!

Pingyao is a Chinese city in central Shanxi province, about 715 km from Beijing – a UNESCO World Heritage Site with a population of 450,000.It retains its city layout from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and more than 300 sites in or near the city have ancient ruins.
The whole of our stay is characterised by heavy mist over the town. The rising damp comes halfway up the buildings, and you can see the bricks decaying quickly. We’re glad to see this place now, because it will soon be ruined by tourism! We found some very local places to eat, but the Old Town seems to be heading towards being a museum rather than a living community.

amazing sculptures in the shuanglin temple

another beautiful hostel

locals playing badminton

outside the city wall

spot the kangaroo

traffic is chaos

typical street at night

we always eat local

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