While it's still pretty chilly up here in the north, the south is already enjoying a warm spring that makes the natural landscape a soul-stirring prospect.

Nanxi River Scenic Spot, a 625-square-kilometre area famous for beautiful waters, exotic rocks, waterfalls, intriguing old villages, forests and stunning rural scenes, is now in its prime for visitors.

Located 23 kilometers from Wenzhou City in East China's Zhejiang Province, Nanxi River is good to visit almost any time of the year. The groups of small villages along the bank of Nanxi River have reserved the graceful bearing of historic civilization.

The houses and the courts, which all lie against hills and are brimming with ancient farming and "reading" culture left by former generations.

The village gate, stone wall, old house, ancestral hall and the pavilion are all from the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911), they are elegant and simple. Many ancient Chinese poets and writers enjoyed visiting the river and contributed lots of poems, paintings and calligraphic works on what they saw and thought here.

Xie Lingyun (385-433), considered the originator of China's landscape poems, visited all the landscapes in the county and composed many fantastic poems to eulogize its beauty during his tenure of office in Yongjia, the county where Nanxi is located.

Cangpo Village and Furong Village are the two most popular spots for visitors.

Cangpo Village dates back to the Song Dynasty (960-1279). And although hundreds of years have passed, the walls, houses, paths, pavilions, temples and pools in the village still retain their ancient style.

Furong Village is a scenic spot also well worth visiting.

These old villages hidden in a green forest offer great picture possibilities for photographers.

Drifting along the river by bamboo raft is a favourite here.

From the raft, you can have a view of the ancient village, remote foggy mountains and locals washing along the river.

The locals transport wood from the forest through the river. They float wood from the upper reach and their colleagues get them in the lower reach of the river.

The scenic area is so large that it is impossible for you to enjoy all of the best spots in two or three days. Choose a route along the river to watch the water, villages and local customs.

2. Transportation

A. Take a train or airplane from Beijing and Shanghai to the city of Wenzhou.

B. Take No. 33 bus from the Wenzhou Railway Station to the Anlanting Ferry. Then take a boat across the river to Oubei Town, where there are minibuses to every scenic spot in the Nanxi River Scenic Zone. The minibus ticket costs about 8 yuan.

C. Pedicabs and motorized tricycles are available for visitors to get to the scattered spots in the scenic zone, and the fares are reasonable.

3. Lodging

There are inns in major scenic areas. The price of one bed per night is about 25 yuan. There are also many camping sites along the banks of the Nanxi River. At nightfall, visitors can enjoy a delicious barbecue, including roast Nanxi River fish.

(china.org.cn)