My Hometown

What does “hometown” mean to you? For many people, it is just a place where you were born. But for me, it is a holy place that will influence my whole life. It is my hometown and the people there that feed me and affect the shape of my mind and behavior.

My hometown, Yuncheng is a medium-sized city in Southern Shanxi province. It lies in a stretched basin where tens of thousands of people live. It is the origin of the Chinese Nation. Six thousand years ago, people inhabited the land here and produced the striking and glorious Chinese Civilization. The most respectable ancestor of the Chinese, Huang Di, who was born here, made a big impact on China. (He defeated Chi You, a tyrant occupying Southern China.) His tribe formed the earliest Chinese nation. Another famous man from my hometown was Guan Gong, an ancient warrior gifted with the qualities of courtesy, bravery and loyalty. He was a Chinese knight, like King Arthur in Middle Ages. Even now, many Chinese people all over the world still worship him as a god. Maybe you never knew this place was pregnant with so many poets, scientists and playwrights. The temple of Pujiu, worthwhile to mention here, is the "Holy Land of Love" for Chinese people, because it was the setting of the famous love story "The tale of Xi Xiang" (a love story between a poor handsome young man with great knowledge and the daughter of an aristocrat). Besides, everybody knows of the salty lake, which is called "the Dead Sea of China." Nowadays, it is a desirable place for tourism. You can swim there but you will not sink; in the meantime, you can read a book while floating. Therefore, it is these charms that attract people from all over the world to come here to appreciate my hometown.

Attractive as it is, it still has a pollution problem, and some social problems (including a big gap between the rich and the poor). However, it is making progress every day. I am sure that one day it will be the most fascinating land in China and your coming will make this crude place graced.

-Fred