Reviving Shaxi town on ancient Tea Horse Road

重慶 黃忠雪

海詞積累

1.caravan n.商隊

2.arterial adj.干線的

The ancient temples,old alleys of the ancient town of Shaxi are not just reminders of past glories,but also attract tourists from around the world.A remote township in Jianchuan County,southwest China's Yunnan Province,Shaxi was once an important trading center for tea,silk and salt on the ancient Tea Horse Road that linked Yunnan to neighboring Tibet Autonomous Region.

Dong Zengxu,director of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of Jianchuan,said that in ancient times,commercial exchanges not only brought Shaxi economic prosperity,but also made it a place of blended cultures and religions.

“In the old days,it was a dangerous business to travel along the Tea Horse Road because trade caravans had to face harsh conditions on snowy mountains and fastmoving waters,” Dong said.When they made it to Shaxi,they felt the place just like a paradise,and then a marketplace was formed here.

However,the late 19th century saw the decline of the once-busy trading hub（中心）because it was far away from rising modern arterial roads,and other means of transport replaced the traveling caravans.

In 2002,a restoration project was started to preserve the cultural heritage and landscape,improve infrastructure and promote e-conomic growth in Shaxi.But the preser-vation work was challenging.The theater and guest houses were overgrown with grass and weeds.

Restoration workers carefully marked all parts of the ancient buildings.They took down some parts and fixed them back to their initial places after cleaning and repairing.Years of efforts are paying off.The project saw old buildings restored and sceneries beautified,thus,turning the town into a desirable destination for tourists at home and abroad.

Booming tourism hasbenefited local residents.During the past Spring Festival holiday,over 114,000 tourists visited Shaxi and tourism revenues rose 11 percent year-onyear to 134 million yuan,according to data from the Tourism Resources Protection,Construction and ManagementCommittee of Jianchuan.

Reading Check

If you are a tour guide,how would you introduce the ancient town of Shaxi to tourists?

Cultural Background

沙溪古鎮

沙溪位于中國云南大理劍川東南部，地處金沙江、瀾滄江、怒江三江并流自然保護區域東南部，位于大理風景名勝區與麗江古城之間。沙溪古鎮是一座真正的古鎮，古色古香，至今仍然保持著最古老的建筑特色——古寺廟、古戲臺、古商鋪、馬店、古老的紅砂石板街道、百年古樹、古巷道、古寨門。

沙溪古鎮上可追溯到2，400多年前的春秋戰國時期。唐宋時期，沙溪作為南詔國和大理國當時古道上的一個古鎮，發揮著積極的作用。眾所周知，佛教對古代的南詔國和大理國影響很深，使南詔國和大理國文化帶上了濃厚的宗教色彩，而沙溪是當時佛教文化傳播的見證之一。