The Ancient City of Danzhou

　　   In ancient times, Zhonghe Ancient Town was the seat of Danzhou’s prefectural government. The great Song Dynasty literary master Su Dongpo was exiled here for three years. Due to Su Dongpo’s influence on the local culture, for hundreds of years the people here have loved composing poetry and couplets, earning Zhonghe Town the reputation as the “Hometown of Poetry and Couplets.”

　　   The main attractions in the town are its historical sites. In addition to the famous Dongpo Academy, there are also sites such as the Gonglang Hermitage, Dongpo Well, and Kuixing Pagoda. Moreover, the ancient city built during the Song Dynasty still retains its west and north gates, showcasing its former grandeur. Additionally, strolling along the main streets of Zhonghe Town (which takes about 30 minutes for a round trip) allows you to soak in its quaint atmosphere.

　　   Located six kilometers southwest of Danzhou City, Hainan Province, it is one of the older towns in Hainan. The great Song Dynasty literary master Su Dongpo was exiled here for three years. Due to Su Dongpo’s influence on the local culture, for hundreds of years, the people here have loved composing poetry and couplets, and Zhonghe Ancient Town has earned the title of the Hometown of Poetry and Couplets. There are many historical sites here, including the Dongpo Academy, Gonglang Hermitage, and Dongpo Well to the east of the town. The ancient city built during the Song Dynasty still retains its west and north gates, showcasing its former grandeur.

　　   Zhonghe Ancient Town has a long history. Around 100 BC, General Lu Bode crossed the sea on a southern campaign and established Dan’er Commandery, with its seat at Nantanpu, now known as Jiuzhoupo in Danzhou. During the Liang Dynasty’s Datong era, or 546 AD, the legendary female general of the Lingnan region, Lady Xian, crossed the sea to reclaim Hainan and stationed her troops at Nantanpu. That year, Nantanpu suffered from famine, so Lady Xian decided to move the commandery seat from Nantanpu to the beautiful and fertile banks of the Yilun River, thus beginning Zhonghe Ancient Town’s over 1,300-year history as a prefectural city.

　　   Zhonghe Ancient Town boasts numerous cultural relics. In the 1960s, Mr. Guo Moruo, during his inspection of Zhonghe Ancient Town, wrote a poem praising the abundance of historical sites in the ancient Dan’er town. Today, there are thirteen preserved relics, including city walls, the prefectural seat, academies, temples, nunneries, wells, streets, and stone pagodas. Among them, there is one national key cultural relic protection unit, two provincial-level key cultural relic protection units, and ten municipal-level key cultural relic protection units.

　　   The most unforgettable relics are the towering ancient city walls. It is said that the gate towers were built to defend against pirate invasions and prevent warfare. In the sixth year of the Hongwu reign of the Ming Dynasty, Magistrate Tian Zhang expanded and fortified the city. The city walls stretch 1,573 meters in length, are 6 meters wide, and 8.3 meters high. Four gate towers were built on the east, south, west, and north sides: the east gate is called Dehua Gate, the south gate is Ruyuan Gate, the west gate is Zhenhai Gate, and the north gate is Wuding Gate. Outside each gate, a barbican was constructed, and along the walls, a moat was dug, stretching 1,590 meters in length, 16.7 meters in width, and 2.7 meters in depth. Later, due to years of neglect, parts of the walls collapsed. In the 1950s, some gate towers were demolished to widen the streets, and today only the Zhenhai and Wuding gates remain.

　　   Sipailou is an old bluestone-paved street in the ancient prefectural city of Zhonghe. It is about 100 meters long and is home to fifty to sixty households, divided into Upper Street and Lower Street. It takes no more than the time it takes to yawn to walk from Upper Street to Lower Street.

　　   Zhonghe Ancient Town is surrounded by misty seas and clouded skies, with emerald mountains and serene moonlight reflecting on tranquil waters. The mirror-like lake is filled with vibrant greenery. Spanning hundreds of square miles, it is encircled by verdant hills, lush forests, undulating mountain ranges, and steep foothills that form two low-lying valleys and basins. The basins ripple with glistening lake water, calm and undisturbed, with green mountains floating on the lake’s surface. Around the lake are vast rubber plantations and casuarina forests. The green of the mountains and water together create a watercolor painting dominated by green hues.