The ruins at Stone Village
A few days ago I saw a post from NatureScanner on Facebook of an abandoned village in China where nature is taking over the now empty buildings. A very cool and beautiful sight. Around Yangshuo we also have such a place. Not as densely overgrown as that other village, but still a very mystical feel. It's a part of the Stone Village near the town of Putao, about 30 km north of Yangshuo Outside Inn.
Actually there are several stone villages in the area. The one most often referred to is an old garrison town in a valley locked between some karst peaks. There were 4 stone gates at the corners of the valley. Until 10 years ago the only way to the village was by hiking about an hour up the hill and through one of the gates. The gates are still there, but a road has been build and most of the old stone buildings are gone and replaced by new concrete blocks. The pictures of the ruins you see here are at the "outer" stone village at the foot of the hill. This village is having the same faith as the one in the valley, so most stone houses are now gone and with it the charm of the village. If you walk about 15 minutes up an old trail though, you will come to these ruins. For some reason the villagers didn't continue the road up here, but left the houses. So now it is a very cool place without any new constructions, but just the old stone houses left to the nature.
