Luodai Ancient Town in Chengdu
By admin on 2014-12-26

Luodai Ancient Town, located in eastern Chengdu, is the largest  Hakka community  in southwest China.  Hakka is one  ethnic groups in China.  Most of them reside in Guangdong(Canton), Jiangxi and Hubei provinces. There are 20,000 Hakka people in Luodai, comprising about 90% of the town’s total population of 23,000.Luodai Ancient Town is close to modern city of Chengdu, which makes it unique among all the Hakka communities in China. The Hakka residential areas in Fujian, Guangxi, Guangdong, Jiangxi and Taiwan are mostly far away from metropolises.

Luodai was established in years of the Three Kingdoms and is a provincial level ancient town with profound culture It was named for the matter that Liu Shan (Last emperor of Shu Han), lost his jade belt in the octagonal well In this town, most of the existent architectures are in the style of the late Qing dynasty. Its Hakka culture is preserved well anywhere you may feel the strong Hakka culture.The reforeit enjoys a reputation of First Hakka Town in the West . In Luodai there there are many ancient architectu reclusters including Guangdong Guild hall, Jiangxi Guild hall, and Huguang Guildhall etc.

Chengdu belongs to subtropics monsoon climate. It has early spring, hot summer, cool autumn, and warm winter. The average temperature in Chengdu is 16℃. The best travel time is from March to June and from September to December.

Luodai is warm and humid all year round with distinct seasons. The best travel season is March and April when it is sunny and beautiful.

The history of Luodai Ancient Town can date back to Han Dynasty when it was called "Wanjing Street". Thousands of years' history and multicultural exchange have assimilated diverse culture, variious historical sites and Hakka architecture in this small town.

There is a interesting story related to the Name" Luodai' of the town.  A belt of Emperor Liu Chan, the last emperor of Shu Kingdom in the Three Kingdoms period, had o?nce fallen into a octagonal well here about 1,500 years ago. As “fell” in mandarin is "Luo", and  "belt"  is "Dai", the place was thus given the name "Luodai".

The houses, courtyards and streets in Luodai are all  in the ancient style of Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) or the Republic period (1912-1949). The Guangdong Guildhall is the landmark of Luodai Ancient Town. Originally named Nanhua Palace, it is the masterpiece among Hakka architecture as well as the best preserved and the biggest guildhalls in China. It was built during the reign of Emperor Qinglong in Qing Dynasty (1746) and consists of three halls, with a total are of 3044.75 square meters. It is the place where the Hakka people gather, meet relatives and friends, settle disputes and make sacrifices to ancestors and gods. Several other guildhalls, such as those of Huguang, Jiangxi and Chuanbei, also remain in good shape.

There are one 1,000-meter-long main street and seven alleys in the ancient town. The dwelling houses along the main street are all  enclosed courtyards with an open area in the middle and a main building decorated with carvings of turtle and flower. The roofs of the houses are all covered with cogon and small black tiles.

Festival Activity:
Hakka Water Dragon Festival (similar to Water Splashing Festival)
Time: The end of every July.
Content: Young male dragon dancers wear coifs, naked to the waist with dragon tattoo, shorts and straw. sandals. Female dragon dancers wear flower wreath, shorts and belly-band. When the order of dragon. Dancing is given, all dancers begin to dance, and people around splash water to them.
The annual Fire Dragon Festival is really grand in Luodai.  There is a great ceremony and many activities, including greeting the dragon, worshipping the ancestors, taking the dragon home and painting the dragon's eyes.

Travel Information
Traffic
Luodai Ancient Town is 20 kilometers away from Chengdu City Proper, the traffic is very convenient. The main transportation to enter Luodai is road traffic. People could take bus 81, 58 and get off at Wugui Bridge Bus Station, it leaves at every few moments. The fare is 5 RMB. After getting off the bus, take the medium bus to Luodai, the fare is 3 RMB. It takes only half an hour from Chengdu to Luodai.
Luodai ancient town fee and opening hour
Ticket :free
Opening hour: all day long

Tips
The climate in spring is constantly changing, sometimes it is rainy and sometimes it is windy. Pay attention to keep healthy, carry rain gears and enough clothings against catching cold.
Prepare some medicines in common use, such as berberine, Biwendan, antiphlogistic drug etc. one who has a medical history of anaphylaxi must prevent the pollen allergy.
Please avoid excessively tired, specially the old men who have chronic illness.