5. Pingyao
The old city of Pingyao in Shanxi province is a living museum, with its intact city wall, its residences and shops and even its government office all preserved in the style of China’s Ming and Qing Dynasties. Certainly more on the quaint side (it’s China we’re talking about, so you should take that seriously), it’s easy to imagine what life was like in those times gone by, when Pingyao was the financial center of China, simply by walking through its charming alleys and thoroughfares.
A UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site since 1997, Pingyao’s old city hides many gems: the Rishengchang Exchange Shop, known as the “father of banking in China,” the Temple of the City God and the Temple of Literature, the City Tower and the line of old buildings and courtyard residences on either side of the Ming and Qing Street and many more.
