James Baquet

    NEXT to Zhongshan Park in Nanshan lies one of Shenzhen’s greatest treasures, Xin’an Ancient City. It has been a government seat on and off since 331, with its heyday in the Ming Dynasty when it became Dongguan Castle.

    The castle’s gate still stands at the intersection with Nanxin Road, with a museum to the west (with, unfortunately, no English interpretation) and Guandi Temple to the east, dedicated to a hero of “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms.”

    Enter the South Gate (parts of which date back to 1394) and find a lively village of 30,000 souls in the space once occupied by about a thousand soldiers charged with protecting the areas now known as Dongguan, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong.

    Like many of China’s hutong (back alley) areas, it is a conglomeration of ancient buildings and modern tile-sided shops and apartments. Highlights include the Dongguan Meeting Hall (on the main street), and, after turning right on the main east-west street, the Baode Shrine and the Sir Xinguo Shrine.

    Out the East Gate (rebuilt in 1995), turn left and left again and you’ll see a Catholic church which was originally a foundling hospital. (The West Gate is now lost under Nantou Middle School, and the North Gate was demolished back in 1575 for feng shui purposes.) Finally, from the Zhongshan Park side, you can seek out remnants of the old north wall.

    Notice: James Baquet will be leading free “Culture and History Walks” in Shenzhen on Saturday mornings in October and November. Write to him for more information: jamesbaquet@gmail.com