5 Days in Ezhou

The Guanyin Pavilion of 1345 on its reef, flood marks on the walls, then the Nine-Bend Pavilion on Xishan and the river view.

1. ezhou binjiang park
2. ezhou guanyin pavilion
3. ezhou xishan

Hundreds of Han-to-Six-Dynasties mirrors inside, the Wu-King city ruins of 221 AD outside, and an evening lap of Yanglan Lake.

1. ezhou museum
2. ezhou wuwang city ruins
3. ezhou yanglan lake

A 30-minute ferry to Liangzi Island in Hubei's second-largest freshwater lake, home waters of the Wuchang bream — fish lunch, lake walks and slow light.

1. ezhou liangzi lake
2. ezhou liangzi island

An honest neighbouring-city day to the east, about half an hour by rail: the open-pit iron mine turned national mine park, with terraced walls dropping some 440 metres, then an evening circuit of Cihu Lake.

1. ezhou huangshi mine park
2. ezhou cihu lake

At Tonglvshan near Daye, mining shafts and timber supports from copper working begun some three millennia ago are on display — the site entered China's very first national heritage list in 1982 — before the train or flight home via Wuhan or Ezhou's own Huahu airport.

1. ezhou tonglvshan copper mine