Located on eastern part of Guizhou Province, Zhenyuan has long been an ancient town of the Miao people. Its long history endows the town with many rich and generous cultural relics, making it much like a historic garden. The town covers only an area of 3.1 square kilometers (about 1.2 square miles) but greets you with more than 160 scenic spots including caves, palaces, pavilions, temples and rivers with their unique architecture, exquisite engravings and marvelous natural landscape. Among them are the famous Wuyang River Scenic Area and elegant ancient complex in the the Black Dragon Cave (Qinglong Cave) - beckoning sights not to be missed by any visitor to eastern Guizhou.

Located at the edge of Yunnan-Guizhou plateau, Zhenyuan is sheltered by the mountains. It is a land-and-water transportation center since early times. In 202 BC, the town became a county instituted by Han Gaozu, Emperor Liu Bang, and then in 1956 - the capital of southeast Guizhou Autonomous Prefecture. Cut through by the Wuyang River, the town is  divided into two parts: south 'Wei City' and north 'Fu City', which forms a water town. Hence it is well-reputed as the 'Oriental Venice'.

As an historic cultural city, Zhenyuan is rich in tourist resources. With sub-tropical humid climate, annual temperature in Zhenyuan averages 16.4 degree with four distinct seasons. It is therefore an ideal tourist destination all year round.

The Black Dragon Cave is in fact an ancient temple complex located on Zhonghe Mountain to the east of Zhenyuan Ancient Town and covers an area of some 21,000 square meters (approximately 226,050 square feet), and is the centerpiece of the all ancient monuments in Zhenyuan. The the Black Dragon Cave Temple as it is also known includes single and multi-storied pavilions, temples, shrines, palaces and so on. Surviving a couple of wars, the Black Dragon Cave was built during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and its current shape is the result of several renovations.

With many separate buildings, the Black Dragon Cave encompasses Zhusheng Bridge, Zhongyuan Temple, Ziyang Shuyuan (academy of classical learning), Yuhuang Ge (Jade Emperor Pavilion), Longevity Palace, Xianglu Yan. Among the ancient complexes of Zhenyuan, the Black Dragon Cave though very close to the town has retained its natural flavor.

All of the buildings there were constructed in accordance with the natural features of Zhonghe Mountain which is precipitous. The architectural sculptures and adornments there are simple and unsophisticated and yet quietly elegant, and are quite unlike those of other temples which are ornately decorated. The way in which these Confucianist, Taoist and Buddhist temples are arranged together embodies the combination of Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism in a way. One renowned architect once remarked that the Black Dragon Cave won the upper hand over the famous Hanging Monastery in Shanxi Province in terms of architectural art.

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