Xiangyang Ancient City·Lady City

🚶‍♂️During my trip to Xiangyang, I stayed near the West Gate Bridge. In the morning, I got up and walked along the moat towards the Han River, preparing to climb Lady City and overlook the beautiful scenery of the Han River. Walking outside the west moat of the city wall, it was winter, with fresh snow and clear skies. Although the weather was cold, the air was exceptionally clean, without moisture or smog. The willows on the bank were already nurturing tender buds, and I estimated that in another month, they would turn into a lush green. There is a path in the middle of the moat that leads directly to a small gate in the middle of the west city wall, from which you enter the ancient city. 🚶‍♂️I continued north along the base of the city wall towards Lady City. When I reached the northwest corner under Lady City, I saw steps on the slope that could be used to climb the city wall, which was very exciting. However, after climbing up, I realized that although the west city wall and Lady City were connected, there was no passageway on the wall, making Lady City visible but unreachable. 🚶‍♂️I had no choice but to go back down and continue east along the base of the city wall to the Little North Gate, which is also the end of North Street. The entrance to both the Little North Gate tower and Lady City are located here. The Little North Gate is a colloquial name, officially called Linhan Gate because it faces north towards the Han River. There is a plaque on the gate that reads 'North Gate Lock and Key'. The Little North Gate tower was originally built during the Tang Dynasty, and the existing structure was built in the sixth year of the Daoguang Emperor of the Qing Dynasty. It is an important landmark of Xiangyang Ancient City. There are stairs next to the city gate that lead directly to the tower, from which you can overlook the entire North Street, and outside is the rolling Han River and the Fan City across the river. 🚶‍♂️Walking along the wide city wall to the west, I finally arrived at Lady City. Lady City was originally a sub-city, and now only a four-cornered pavilion is built on this section of the northwest corner of the city wall, under which stands a statue of Lady Han, commemorating her achievements. Lady Han was the mother of Zhu Xu, the governor of Liangzhou during the Eastern Jin Dynasty. She spent many years with her husband in the military and was quite knowledgeable about military affairs. Governor Zhu was negligent in his defense due to underestimating the enemy, but after Lady Han personally inspected the city defenses, she believed that the defensive capabilities needed to be strengthened. She led the women in the city to build an inner city wall, which effectively resisted the enemy's attack. In honor of her contributions, this section of the city wall was named Lady City. 🏞️Leaving Lady City and coming down from the Little North Gate, I walked into Guanjia Alley in North Street. I had strolled here the night before and tasted a variety of delicious foods. Guanjia Alley during the day presents a different charm, especially the poetry wall deep in the alley, which left a deep impression. For example, the well-known verses 'In spring one sleeps, unaware of dawn; everywhere one hears the birds sing', 'The rivers and mountains have left their glorious traces; we of this generation again ascend', 'Xiangyang has fine breezy days, I stay drunk with the mountain elder', and so on, all these popular verses originally come from Xiangyang. 📍Address: North Street, Xiangcheng District, Xiangyang Ancient City 💰Cost: Free admission