Lijiang, in the northwest of Yunnan Province, was made a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1997 for its historic town site, architecture and the ancient water-supply system. With a history of more than 800 years, the private houses of Lijiang represent its splendor in detail.

The old town of Lijiang leans against two big mountains to its north and west escaping chilly wind from northwest, and faces spacious ground to the east and south receiving enough sunshine, which creates a mild climate all year round. A river runs down from the mountain and flows into the town in numerous offshoots. Cobblestone streets crisscross the canals, and along the streets as well as the canals there are houses which show distinct characteristics, bearing the features of the Han, Bai, and Naxi minorities.

The two-storey houses are always made of timber and earth. They are generally constructed around a courtyard following the layout of 'three rooms with one screen wall' much like the quadrangle in Beijing. This is the typical and most common floor plan. The main room facing the screen wall and the left and right wing rooms form a courtyard with a great skylight in the middle. By changing the screen wall into an extra room, another layout, 'four rooms with five skylights' can be achieved. The four corners of the rooms are connected, with skylights helping to bring in more light. Beside these two styles there are many other layouts, but this layout is the root of all the others.

The houses are rich in ornamentation, which is mainly focused on the exterior corridor, the screen wall, the windows, and the dooryard. The corridor and the screen wall are usually decorated with marbles, while the wooden doors and windows are carved with various patterns such as flowers, birds, fish etc. and even the end of the girder is carved with animals' heads. The dooryard is paved with pebbles in different patterns representing plants, flowers, or the Eight Diagrams to name just a few. People here are so fond of gardening that every family keeps a garden in their courtyard where you can find orchids, cuckoos, peony, bamboo, etc. granting great charms to these old fashioned houses.

Water flowing in front of every house amid the flourishing trees gives you tranquil scenery far from the hustle and bustle world.

Here you can feel the perfect integration between human beings and nature.