Indulging in the Splendid Landscapes and Sweet Life of Chongzuo

Speech by Mr. Liu Youming， Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee of Chongzuo， Guangxi， P.R.C. on the Second Season of Charming China on CCTV-2

Hello， everyone！ Im Liu Youming， Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee of Chongzuo， Guangxi， China. At this very moment， the first question lingering on your mind maybe is： Where is Chongzuo？ Chongzuo is located on the southern border of China， with the Friendship Pass as her important landmark. Chongzuo， one of the youngest cities of Guangxi， is only 15 years old， and I have been working here for 8 years. Being familiar with and passionate about the mountains and rivers here， I am very pleased and full of confidence to show the charm of Chongzuo to all of you.

Chongzuo， a city with the longest land borderline bordering Vietnam， “faces Vietnam by opening the gate and would reach the ASEAN after a short distance”. Nowadays， booming border trade and prosperous border life are in full swing here， and many of the commodities we imported and exported are closely related to the lives of the common people. For instance， last year， half of the whole countrys imported tropical fruit was imported through Chongzuo， and one out of every two tropical fruits such as durian， mangosteen and wax apple was imported through Chongzuo.

In addition， Chongzuo is home to the Zhuang nationality. Among the ethnic minorities in China， Zhuang nationality has the largest population， while Chongzuos Zhuang nationality accounts for 90% of the total. There is a saying： “We can sing when we can babble， and we can dance when we can toddle，” which vividly describes that the Zhuang is an ethnic group skilled at singing and dancing. The Huashan Rock Painting， created more than 2，000 years ago， is exactly an art work left by the ancestors of Zhuang people. Tianqin， a unique ancient instrument， is the music unique to the Zhuang. And now Huashan Rock Painting has become the first rock painting world cultural heritage in China.

Besides， Chongzuo is an ecological city. Chongzuo is the habitat of the unique first class national protected animal — white-headed langur. As its name implies， white-headed langur is a kind of monkey whose main food is leaves， and they eat more than 30 kinds of leaves everyday. Now only 1，128 white-headed langurs remain in the world and they all are found in Chongzuo， which is the gift of nature. Chongzuo also boasts the most beautiful transnational waterfall in China and the first waterfall in Asia — Detian Waterfall. And Chinas first cross-border tourism cooperation zone was built here， so that you can not only appreciate the unique charm of transnational tourism， but also enjoy duty-free shopping.

Whats more， Chongzuo is a sweet city. It produces one-fifth of the countrys sugar within one year， which means that one out of every five scoops of sugar eaten by you is contributed by Chongzuo. Therefore， Chongzuo is the sweetest city in China， and people here also live a sweet and happy life.

Chongzuo， as I said， is a border city， a city home to the Zhuang nationality， an ecological city and a sweet city. So dear friends， would you like to go to such a charming city with me to take a look？ Hereby I sincerely extend an invitation to all of you. Lets start a go-with-feel travel， get close to the splendid landscapes， and indulge yourself in the sweet border life in Chongzuo！

Welcome to Chongzuo！ Thank you！

If you have entered this land， let me remind you that you should keep in mind every record of impression wherever you may reach. Please try not to label it as a paradise because paradise is so void and lack of living warmness. Please try not to mistake it as a mysterious dream because it is real and reachable. Its name is Chongzuo. After 2，000 years， there are magnificent pass， surprising creatures， idyllic scenery and hospitable people. Also， there are lots of tourism resources which are of unique characteristics， including some of them are majestic and grand， some are fresh and pleasant， and some are flexible and livery， and they jointly constitute a different landscape in Chongzuo. The further you travel， the more amazing beauty you may discover.

The nirvana of white-headed langur

With unique enchanting scenery， White-headed Langur Ecological Park， like a magnet， attracts hordes of tourists and scientists who are fascinated with its treasure trove. What has really brought fame to this reserve is the discovery of white-headed langur which can be treated with the same level of care as panda， the national treasure. The White-headed Langur Ecological Park is located in Luobai Township， Chongzuo City， and it is 35 km away from Chongzuo County and only 130 km away from Nanning City.

The whole ecological park occupies an area of about 30 km2， and has more than 100 kinds of animals， including the worldly-unique animal — white-headed langur， and it has been ascertained that there are 18 groups of around 250 white-headed langurs， and it is a place where the white-headed langurs are in the most concentrated distribution and in the greatest density all over the globe. Since white-headed langur was re-discovered in this reserve in 2004， the critically endangered monkey was under strict protection. Also， other wildlife such as Asiatic black bear， dhole， puff-throated bulbul and crested serpent eagle also appear in the reserve. Most remarkably， Guangxis lizard， a unique cat snake species， was discovered here and has not been found elsewhere. They are so named since there are a handful of erect white hairs towering on their head in the shape of a pointed white skullcap， and they feed on leaves. They have petite body and are clever and lovely. They like climbing to the cliffs， and are full of extremely high viewing value and scientific research value. In the entire world， these long-tailed monkeys are found only in southwest Guangxi.

However， White-headed Langur Ecological Park is never shortage of other scientific discoveries， which is partly because its gullies are so hard to reach， and its trails are difficult to follow. Through a zigzagging trail， you can easily see wild undergrowth and tall trees with their roots sprawling over or biting into limestone outcrops. Located in the subtropical humid monsoon region， the climate here is very conducive to the development of subtropical plants， nurturing a unique ecosystem with rich biodiversity.

The flow of the Guichun River， a border river between Vietnam and China， is running slowly as many years ago， creating a variety of fantastic landscapes. On the way to Detian Waterfall， the view is pleasant， enjoying the fame of “art gallery for hundreds of kilometers”.

Detian Waterfall is located in Detian Village， Shuolong Town， Daxin County， Chongzuo， and connects with the adjacent Ban Gioc Falls， and it is a cross-border fall ranking the 1st in Asia and ranking the 4th in the world. In the upstream of Guichun River which is on the border between China and Vietnam， Detian Waterfall surges from verdant dense forests， and has an annual water-carrying capacity at three times of that of the Huangguoshu Waterfall in Guizhou， it has rising water vapors all year round and is grand and magnificent， and it can be said that “it seems to travel in pictures of another era， without knowing that the waterfall around is like flower”. At present， it is not only a national AAAA-level tourist attraction in China， but also the shooting place of outdoor scenes of movies and TV dramas such as Liquor is home Alcohol， The Journey of Flower， etc.， and has attracted lots of tourists.

Beauty unveils wherever you rest your soul and toe. In spring time， the flame-red kapok flowers scatter around the silver waterfall; in summer time， the waterfall is even more magnificent as the river lever is higher due to plenty of rainfall. Its water rushes down a three-tiered cliff with tremendous force. In fall， a vast expanse of golden trees around the waterfall stands before you. During winter， the waterfall has shrunk but still formed a graceful shape. At noon， when the sunlight shines on the pool， the waterfall is just like a silver glistening on the mountain， forming a dreamlike view. As night falls， the waterfall looks as a large water curtain. What a romantic world it is！

Below the waterfall， there is a large number of big fish in the pool. And the villagers living around often catch fish here. Their glorious songs are echoing far across the hills as they cast the nets， creating a joyful， lively and carefree atmosphere on these occasions. The beauty of the Detian Waterfall is too numerous to mention one by one. Let us put aside all the noisy and annoying， and just get into the arms of the nature！

A village situated in the Daxin County is becoming active as the dawn comes， and the fog is becoming thinner and thinner. The Mingshi River full of twists and turns is charming， with green bamboo shore dotting here and there. Along the river， you can enjoy green bamboos， blue sky， clouds and hills. Birds are flying in the bamboo forest， the cocks are crowing and the dogs are barking from the farmhouses. It is really a picture- postcard scene.

Youve probably not heard of the Mingshi Scenic Area before， but it has a lot to offer. In the Mingshi Scenic Area， the mountains are always by the waters， while the waters always surround the mountains， the waters are always dotted with mountains， while the mountains are always reflected in the waters， thus having formed a Chinese landscape having peculiar mountains everywhere and having mountains and rivers set each other off. Someone once made the saying that “there is no real photographer in Mingshi Scenic Area”， since there are always scenic landscapes even at a casual shot.

Crowned as the “Small Guilin” for its green mountains and blue waters， Mingshi Scenic Area fascinates many cineastes. Legend has it that there was an evil dragon that was attracted by the landscapes of Guilin. After a short journey， he narrowed a part of Guilins landscapes by magic and wanted to take it back. However， the God of Heaven was angry and sent the Thunder God to kill the dragon. Afterwards， the scenery hidden in the dragons bag was falling down to Mingshi. Thus the natural scenery in Mingshi is as enchanting as Guilin. Grand film-shooting bases for the movie The Legend Love Story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl and the television drama The Journey of Flower were once set up here.

Not far away from the Mingshi Scenic Area， Dukang Township is located in the area of Yonglong Village and Zhulong Village， Tiandeng County， and it is always known as “Hometown of Rice” and “Granary of Tiandeng”. Plantation of rice in large quantity has created a perfect integration of natural landscape and human farmland villages in Dukang. In the season of spring ploughing， looking far into the distance from observation platform， you could see the crisp rice seedlings in the farmlands mix together with the winding clouds and mists; while in the season of autumn harvest， you could see the numerous golden rice and the green river water set each other off， as if a beautiful scenery of the golden autumn blended by palette.

Now let us free our boat along the Zuojiang River， speed up camera shots， listen to mysterious historic legend， and enjoy stunning natural beauty near the southern border.

■ International Ruyi Island Ecological Scenic Spot： It is located in Xinhe Town which is 30 km away from the northwest of Jiangzhou District， and it is constituted by 6 km natural water lake， and it looks like the traditional Chinese Jade. Ruyi lying in a bay of river water if overlooking the whole scenic spot， thus it has gotten its name. The typical karst inland mountains are stretching and undulating， and the stone forest within the lake area is in thousands of postures， and there are winding paths leading to secluded spot， and every place is a totally natural landscape.

■ Zuojiang Leaning Tower： Also known as Guilong Tower， it is one of the eight big leaning towers in the world. The tower itself is originally skewed as if it tends to fall down， and together with the torrential water in the surrounding Zuojiang River， which makes the tower seem to be more likely to be in a dangerous trend of falling down， however， through years of invasion by winds and rains， the brick face has been corroded into spots and dents， and the mosses and ferns under-grow on it， the tower remains absolutely still and towers on the Aotou Peak， which is really amazing.

■ Daxin Dragon Palace Fairyland： It was originally known as Dragon Palace Cave， and it is located in Naling Township， Daxin County， is 18 km away from Daxin County， belongs to natural karst cave of karst landform. Dragon Palace Fairyland is a peculiar landscape on the border of China and Vietnam， as well as a peculiar landscape equipped with“three most” of world karst caves： the highest and grandest stalactite column in the world， the largest-area stone forest in caves in the world， and the most delicate and most dense treasure-hiding hall of karst caves. Set off by lights of different colors， the karst cave is as if a splendid treasure hall of the big nature， and can be said to be the first “karst museum” in the long gallery on the border of China and Vietnam.

Ningming Laijiang Village： It is known to the people due to its location at the foot of Huashan Mountain， and in the future， Laijiang Village will become a museum of Huashan Rock Painting in Ningming County. The villagers architectures in Laijiang Village are mostly constructed following the ancient folk-house style， with the front and the rear of the houses surrounded by green trees， and each household equipped with high fences. Within the fences， there are various kinds of vegetables and fruit trees planted by the villagers themselves， as well as various green vines climbing onto the fences， and they decorate the tranquil village in a vigorous way.