"Anchang – Hometown of Shiye" is located in the northern part of Keqiao District, Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province. Adjacent to the Hangzhou-Ningbo Expressway and located 10 kilometers away from Xiaoshan International Airport, Anchang is famous for its economic and cultural prosperity. Today, visitors can still walk along the ancient street which was constructed in the second year of Hongzhi during the Ming Dynasty (1489). With 1.2 square kilometers of well-preserved heritage, Anchang is a renowned cultural heritage town in China and had been featured by CCTV. It is also a celebrated water town in eastern Zhejiang, the hometown of Chinese Shiye culture and an intangible cultural asset of Zhejiang Province. The history of Anchang dates back to as early as 4,000 years ago, when the Yue ancestors inhabited the area. Records showed the touching story of “Dayu passing by his home thrice but not once stepping foot inside” and that early settlers had already arrived during the Zhou Dynasty. During the Tang Dynasty (896 AD), the King of Yue, Qian Liu (AD 852-932) was instructed to restore order to the chaos created by Dong Chang. Hence giving the township the name, Anchang. Historically, Anchang was once a major city in northern Yue with a well-developed economy and an outstanding trade status. For centuries, merchants have gathered and businesses have thrived. A saying in Shaoxing goes, “Golden Keqiao, Silver Anchang”. During the relatively prosperous period of the water transport industry, Anchang Town was the main commercial port on the eastern Zhejiang shipping line. On the eve of the Sino-Japanese War, there were 933 business in Anchang, the most amongst cities outside of Shaoxing. Since the economic reform, Anchang Town has witnessed rapid growth in its socio-economy and its comprehensive strength is in a leading position among the top 100 towns in the province. At the same time, Anchang is actively promoting its conservation, development and construction plans and its efforts are showing results. Together with Keqiao and Dongpu, it is one of the three ancient towns in Shaoxing City to be included in the list of historic and cultural towns at the provincial level. Among them, only the ancient town of Anchang was included in the list of renowned national cultural heritage towns. At the same time, Anchang is actively promoting its conservation, development and construction plans and its efforts are showing results. Together with Keqiao and Dongpu, it is one of the three ancient towns in Shaoxing City to be included in the list of historic and cultural towns at the provincial level. Among them, only the ancient town of Anchang was included in the list of renowned national cultural heritage towns. The local residents have maintained their traditional customs over thousands of years. One is able to experience the local time-honored customs throughout the township, as described by the renowned writer Lu Xun. The annual "Festival of the Twelfth Day of the Twelve Moons" (La-Yue Festival) allows visitors to appreciate the festive yet peaceful ancient local customs of the water town. Shaoxing's folk customs which dates back more than 1000 years, are vividly demonstrated here, with crafts such as barrel making, bamboo weaving, iron forging, shoe making, decorative lace producing and cotton spinning, as well as scrumptious snacks such as glutinous rice cake, wrapped dumplings, sausage and pulled sugar etc. Visitors are bound to have an unforgettable time while welcoming the New Year. In addition, rural folk culture can be experienced throughout the town, with village theatres, popular folk melodies (lianhualuo), waist drums, riddles, water town weddings and water town birthday celebrations etc. The La-Yue Festival has therefore become the perfect opportunity for tourists to experience the folk customs of Shaoxing, immerse in Shaoxing’s rich cultural heritage and participate in the grand celebrations of the ancient township. Since the beginning of its development in 1999, the ancient town of Anchang has renovated seven large-scale attractions including the Town God’s Temple, Private Consultant (Shiye) Museum, Folk Custom Museum, Suikang Bank, former site of the China Bank, Stone Sculpture Museum and the Ankang Temple. The Shiye Museum is the only venue in China with the theme of “Shaoxing Shiye”. Here, visitors can view an exhibition on this special group of people during the late Chinese feudal society, as well as the unique political and cultural roots of Anchang. Such profound foundation gives the ancient town a strong cultural identity, making Anchang a distinctive and beautiful location in eastern Zhejiang. The success of Anchang Ancient Town in its conservation and development efforts has also attracted plenty of media attention. At the beginning of the century, CCTV's “Live in China” program had broadcasted the second anniversary of the La-Yue Festival in Anchang with the theme of “Blessing”. In recent years, CCTV’s “Away From Home” program had filmed the “Ancient Charm of Shaoxing”, showcasing Anchang as a “museum without walls”. The second episode of “China on the tip of the tongue” included scenes of Anchang, sharing the Shaoxing sauce culture and the charm of the ancient town. The film series "Around China – Chinese Ancient Towns" filmed a documentary titled "Anchang – A thousand-year-old water town". CCTV-2 came to the ancient town to film "Taste of Our New Year" which was broadcasted on "First Time" and "Economic Information”. Shanghai Oriental TV filmed "A leisurely tour of Shaoxing" for the program "Star Journey". Japanese television stations, Shanghai Weekly and other media had also visited Anchang to feature its traditional folk performances. In addition, the movie "Lan Ting", Lunar New Year film "Family Blessing" and the micro-movie "Soul of Painting" were among the numerous projects which have filmed in Anchang. The Party Committee Government of the township had decided to focus on cultural protection as its core objective and commercial development as its secondary goal. High standards have been implemented for the development of Anchang, with a focus on its rich Shiye culture and folk customs. The objective was to establish the ancient town as a recreational area for cultural tourism based on its renowned Shiye culture, attracting visitors with folk customs, ancient attractions, delicious and healthy food, as well as opportunities to explore culture, cultivate industries and enjoy vacations. With the development concept of “using history as the axis, customs as the veins and humanities as the point”, the township has created a unique attraction that showcases the culture of water towns, ancient marketplaces, traditional customs and craftwork. Like an ancient book which has immortalized the past on its pages, Anchang has witnessed more than a thousand years of history. With its uncomplicated charm, rich cultural heritage and diverse local customs, Anchang welcomes friends from all over the world to visit this thousand-year-old album...