Fairy terraces

Local inhabitants call the mountain ranges south of the village "Threshold Mountains", because they stand south of the village like a folding screen, and present a panorama each time anyone opens their front door. Unlike other magnificent mountains, the 400-meter-high Threshold Mountains are resplendent in terraced fields and lush, jade-green orchards. Swirling mists at the mountain summit add mystery to this enchanting scenery.

The Threshold Mountains, in addition to providing a picturesque landscape, also have mystical origins. The high stone platform known as the Fairy Terrace is the backdrop to a legend.

As a little boy I first heard the story on a moonlit summer night, while lying on a bamboo bed as my grandmother fanned me with a palm-leaf fan. She said, “Long, long ago, an immortal living in seclusion was meditating and finally achieved enlightenment. She took three steps and rose up in the air, leaving the indent on the terrace of where she had been sitting and three footprints.”

Back in the age without the Internet, television or story books, we would happily elaborate on such a fairy tale. As I gradually grew and had the chance to see the terrace for myself, however, I gradually lost interest in the story and in adding mystery to it. But I did make some discoveries. To the east of Fairy Terrace was another small village and tea garden. When we finished picking tea leaves, I and friends would climb the mountain and eat lunch on the terrace. Those days stand out as the best time of my childhood.

The Fairy Terrace is in the shape of a three-tier, irregular circle. The first layer is wide, consisting of soil and stones overgrown with weeds and wild flowers. The second limestone layer is tall, forming a cliff difficult for children to climb. The top tier is a narrow platform, inclining from east to west. It bears hip-like indentations to the west and three foot-like imprints, which immediately brought to mind the legend.

Most such tales have temporal origins. Beneath the Fairy Terrace is a natural cave named "Immortal Grotto". Senior residents say that the cave was once dozens of meters deep, and that its walls were carved with Buddhist scriptures. Nowadays, the cave is frequently inundated with subsurface streams, so no-one dares to explore it. Its recesses are consequently clothed in mystery. Deep in the bamboo groves close to the cave are ancient temple ruins. This might explain the ethereal ethos of this peaceful mountain scenery.