Understand
Being on the main route from Chengdu to Jiuzhaigou National Park, Wenchuan has until recently been a âpassing throughâ place where tourist groups stop off for meals or visit the traditional Qiang village of Taoping æ¡åª in neighbouring Lixian county. However, this whole Qiang area is gradually becoming a destination in its own right, being much more accessible from Chengdu for a long week-end, and will become more so once the new road from Chengdu is completed. It is less crowded than the more well-known destinations in Ngawa Prefecture and has some good âoff-the-beaten-trackâ areas to explore.
History
The Qiang people have traditionally lived between the Tibetans to the north and the Han to the south and for centuries Wenchuan has been a place where ethnic groups overlap. The remains of defensive walls from the Three Kingdoms period 220-265 AD and from the Ming Dynasty 1368-1644 are still visible on the hills above the town. Further back in the mists of history, legend has it that Yu the Great, one of Chinaâs famous ancestors, was born in this area, and a temple in his honour is situated near the Three Kingdoms wall remains. Other evidence of inter-ethnic encounters are the striking watchtowers and fortress-like style of some of the local Qiang villages, built high up on the mountain tops, e.g. the three towers of Buwa village which can be seen high above Wenchuan.