Tianlong Tunbao

If you see passers-by in Ming-era clothes walking through a town with Ming architecture, it is not a dream or illusion - nor have you accidentally happened onto a movie set. It is real life in Tianlong Tunbao town.

Before a military base in the Ming Dynasty, the town is tucked away into mountains, tenaciously keeping customs and culture from that long-ago dynasty.

On holidays, local artists wear face masks and colorful costumes and perform a primitive play called tanxi.

A temple where Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism are all practiced is seen as a distinctive cultural phenomenon.

In addition to its heritage, Fanjing Mountain also adds to the allure of the town.

The 567-sq-km State-level nature reserve, also one of the world's Human and Biosphere Reserves designated by the United Nations, is famed as a Buddhist shrine with a cluster of temples.

With meandering streams, roaring waterfalls and 80 percent covered by forest, the mountain is home to 1,955 kinds of plants and more than 800 species of animals.

(China Daily September 20, 2008)