Moxi Ancient/Old Town was turning out to be a lot more interesting than anticipated thanks to unexpected encounters that gave an in-depth look into Chinese local life in western Sichuan and its humble, but enjoyable sights. Try and visit Moxi along with other small towns in China in the next year or so before the remaining two blocks with its old houses is razed. The old way is disappearing rapidly like everywhere in the world. Thank goodness some old towns, especially the walled city of Pingyao, have been preserved.

There is one local Buddhist/Taoist temple…View image… done up in the usual, colorful style with incense burning in the courtyard and big “guardian” statues…View image. We walked around the completely deserted temple grounds, up and down more narrow streets and alleys of Moxi Ancient/Old Town. Corn growing behind the remaining barn-like houses, a barber cutting hair…View image, men and women playing their daily mah jong games…View image.

old Moxi barn-like house, China 

a narrow Moxi street in China
Moxi even has a hostel with very reasonable rates…View image. For 50 Yuan, you can get a double room with hot water, private toilet and television or spend 40 Yuan and sleep in a common room. With lefts and rights, ups and down, past elderly women who could barely put one foot in front of the other…View image…whole sunflower heads…View image… and live chickens for sale, a Moxi man carrying his grandchild in a basket on his back…View image, restaurants…View image, bars, souvenir shops with even more decorated head heads, and huge vats of homemade barley wine for sale…View image.

decorated yak head for sale in Moxi, China 

big drums of homemade barley wine for sale in Moxi, China
Moxi was completely engrossing and it was a pleasure to spend time just soaking up the atmosphere. Don’t you agree?

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