"Back to the past" Pingyao by agaiax

Located in the centre plain of Shanxi province is Pingyao, a small walled ancient town within a modern city.
Pingyao is famous for its ancient city wall and its architecture which dates from the Ming Dynasty and remains almost untouched.
It offers a nice couple of days visit, during which you can enjoy the atmosphere of an old Ming town with it's courtyard houses, streets (pedestrian-friendly), shops and good food. It is also a good base for shorter trips to nearby Qiao's and Wang's courtyard mansions
During the summer it is crowded with tourists (especially Chinese), so if you want to enjoy it more quietly, I recommend a visit in late spring or autumn.
The town with it's wall is now listed by UNESCO as a world culture heritage.

Vegetable omelettes for breakfast

While staying in China, I usually had my breakfast on the street. Eating breakfast on the street, sitting on improvised chairs and tables, meeting locals who eat there... And it is also as cheap as it can get eating out in China.
You can find all sorts of breakfast sellers offering local jiaozi, baozi (dumplings), youtiao with sugar and soy milk, omelettes, eggs...

Transporting the coal

Shanxi province is one of the major coal producers in China – that's why the name "The Kingdom of Coal". You can see horse-carts or people with baskets on the streets of smaller towns loaded with black cylindrical bricks of coal.
The mining caused great water - problem in the province. Shanxi is a dry country deficient in surface water. Because of the mining, also the underground water was mostly drained and that effected local flora and agriculture badly. So while Beijing in April is flourishing in green – Shanxi province is dried out and mostly grey and brown...

• Pros:A nice trip back to the Ming and Qing dynasties.
• Cons:Sandstorms from Inner Mongolia in spring.
• In a nutshell:This is one of the best places in which to explore ancient Chinese culture.