I had just completed a five-day tour around the central part of the province and was stopping in Xiangfan to catch the train back to Beijing the next day.

Xiangfan is known as one of China's major car manufacturing bases, with the country's largest test run court. Usually I pay little attention to industrial cities.

However, when the car drove into the hotel I could see the silhouette of the high city walls and wide moat forming the backdrop of the hotel in the dim evening light.

My expectations started to rise.

Hotel staff told me that Xiangfan is a city comprising two towns -- Xiangyang and Fancheng. These are located on southern and northern banks of the Hanjiang River respectively.

The city's political and cultural centre, Xiangyang is one of the few towns in China where the old city walls are preserved.

And my hotel was located just outside the old Xiangyang city.

It was easy for me to get a glimpse of the ancient town and I walked along the historic streets after dinner.

Old Town

It was drizzling that night and there were not many people on the streets.

I walked out of the hotel on to a road on the southern bank of the moat, which looked more like a large river, because it was much wider than the moat around the Forbidden City in Beijing.

Green trees lined its southern bank while the old walls guard the north side. I crossed the moat through a bridge and found there was no gateway at the southern entrance of the town. Instead, the bridge and a street dissects the walls and there is no way for people to walk completely around Xiangyang on the city walls.

The street led me to a traditional gate with a two-story pavilion on the top. The structure is spectacular but close to it I could see the neon lamp of a McDonald's restaurant, which I found strange and funny.

Later I was told that the structure, Zhaoming Pavilion, or Drum Tower, is the center of the old town.

Through the gateway below the tower, I walked on to a road with traditional buildings on either side.

Even under the dim streetlamps, I could tell most of the houses were new; only a few buildings and stone archways looked really old.

I arrived at the northwestern section of the old walls, where not only the walls, but a watchtower remains.

I wanted to find a way to ascend the walls but the stairs were closed to visitors in the evening.

Through the gateway below the watchtower, I reached the southern bank of the Hanjiang River. One of the major tributaries of the Yangtze River, the Hanjiang River is much wider than the moat.

I could see Fancheng stretching along its northern bank. With more high-rises, it has a conspicuously modern skyline.

But walking on the empty road at the foot of the city walls of Xiangyang, I was enveloped by the sense of history.

At the hotel, I read some brochures about the city and learnt Xiangfan is not only an industrial city, but also a city with its own distinctive history and culture.

The city has a history of about 2,800 years and was one of the country's major gateways from the North to the South in ancient times.

In the Han Dynasty (206BC-AD220), the local government started building the city walls and the moat in Xiangyang. In the Song Dynasty (960-1279), the city walls with a circumference of 4.5 kilometers were expanded to 6 kilometers and upgraded from earthen walls to brick.

The present walls have a circumference of 7.6 kilometers. Most sections have been restored or rebuilt.

The walls have a height ranging between 7 meters and 11 meters, with a width ranging from 5 meters to 15 meters at the top.

The moat guards the old Xiangyang town on the eastern, southern and western sides. With an average width of 180 meters and the largest width of 320 meters, it is the widest such moat in the country and has been dubbed the "city lake" by local people.

Because of the walls and moat, Xiangyang was once believed to be the most difficult city in China to conquer. The Mongol hordes laid siege to it in 1267 but had to wait six years before finally capturing it.

The profound impression of Xiangfan that I had gained during my evening amble made me decide to visit the city's two other major places of historical interest: Longzhong and the Mi Fu Memorial Hall (Mi Fu Ci).

Longzhong

I arrived at Longzhong the next morning.

Located about 13 kilometers west of Xiangfan, it is a valley at the foot of Mount Longzhong and known as the place where Zhuge Liang, a respected military strategist living between the late Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220) and the Three Kingdoms period (220-265), lived in seclusion for 10 years.

The Chinese historical masterpiece "Romance of the Three Kingdoms" tells how Zhuge Liang moved from Shandong Province to Longzhong when he was 17 years old. Living in a hut, he farmed while studying classics there.

Hearing of his talent, Liu Bei, a general, visited Zhu's hut three times to ask him for assistance. Liu's ambition was to unify the country again.

Zhuge Liang finally accepted and left Longzhong. In later years, he helped Liu Bei establish the Kingdom of Shu (AD221-263).

Zhuge Liang's wisdom and dedication to duty are legendary and he has had numerous admirers in later dynasties. It is said that people began building various memorial buildings in Longzhong since the Jin Dynasty (AD265-420).

But most current structures were renovated or rebuilt in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), or in recent years.

I entered Longzhong under a stone archway.

The valley is full of historical interest and more like a tranquil resort.

Lush woods cover the slopes and shade the stone-paved roads, clear streams wind through the valley, meadows are embroidered by various flower and ponds are covered by leaves of lotus.

There is even an area with tulips in full bloom.

Along the road winding through the valley are scattered thatched pavilions, stone bridges, steles erected atop stone tortoises, and old houses.

On the slope overlooking the valley nestles the Zhuge Liang Memorial Hall (Wu Hou Ci).

Originally built in the Jin Dynasty, the compound with several halls and courtyards was renovated in the Qing Dynasty.

It was a complex of buildings featuring whitewashed walls, black roofs, flying eaves and lofty gables.

A clay statue of Zhuge Liang and various works of calligraphy written by his admirers in later dynasties are housed in the hall, where I also found exquisite brick carvings on the walls.

There is a garden at the end of the valley. Standing in a pavilion by a large pond, I could see a lofty pagoda at the top of Mount Longzhong and the reflections of flowering peach trees and groves of bamboo in the water. It was so tranquil and peaceful that visitors could easily forget the hustle and bustle of daily life at that moment.

Mi Fu Memorial Hall

I visited the Mi Fu Memorial Hall in the afternoon.

Facing the old city of Xiangyang across the Hanjiang River, the complex of traditional buildings is situated in Fancheng.

It was originally built in the Qing Dynasty in memory of Mi Fu (1051-1107), one of the most celebrated figures in the history of Chinese art.

He was a prominent calligrapher and painter and was honored as one of the Four Great Masters in the Song Dynasty together with Su Shi, Huang Tingjian and Cai Xiang.

A native of Shanxi Province, Mi Fu spent most of his adult years in Fancheng. The shrine is built on the site of his former residence.

Stepping into the compound, I found it to be a calligraphy museum.

Everywhere are horizontal inscribed boards and couplets carrying words of praise for Mi Fu written by famous calligraphers living in later dynasties. Stone steles with Mi Fu's works of calligraphy are scattered in the courtyards and gardens.

There are also replicas of his works of calligraphy and painting on display. His authentic works can only be found in several leading museums of the world.

The memorial hall is also a garden with the classical elegance. It features two clean ponds, rockeries in various shapes, beautiful works of bonsai, old trees and flowering plants.

Watching those masterpieces of art while enjoying the birdsongs and fragrance of flowers, I understood how much I had enjoyed my short sojourn in Xiangfan.

(China Daily April 24, 2003)