My rail life #7: Badou, heaven on the earth! 八斗，此景只应梦中有! ︳月旦评

Sanjiang County in particular is well-known for the stockade villages by the Dong ethnic. Badou village is one. I heard of that Badou railway station was very beautiful and harmonious with the houses nearby from the newspaper. So I started a trip to Sanjiang to visit.

Badou station is located in Badou village, Sanjiang County, Guangxi. It's a fourth-rank railway station on the Jiaozuo-Liuzhou railway. Almost all the trains have to stop there to add up assiting locomotives for pushing engine.

广西三江侗族自治县有很多著名的侗族风情小村庄，八斗村就是其中之一。我曾在报纸上看到，附近的八斗站和周围的干栏侗屋在一起尤其美，我就想过去看看。

八斗站位于三江县八江镇的八斗村旁，是焦柳铁路上的四等站。由于坡度很高，几乎所有火车都要在八斗站加挂补机。

railroad in harmony with Dong stilt houses

location of Badou railway station

I ought not to get off at Sanjiang south station, but there's no passenger train stop at Badou station. So I had to take a bus from Sanjiang to Badou.

But this bus trip is very very worth!

我本应该直接乘坐火车到八斗站下车，但是现在没有火车在八斗站办客，所以我只能在三江南站下车，然后乘坐汽车到八斗村去。

但是令我意外的是，这一段路的确很值得。周围都是充满侗族风情的建筑，楼房和桥都特别漂亮，我一路上饱览风景，真是一种享受。

Sanjiang South Railway Station

CRH Train

I took a bus at the station square to Badou. The square was very great!

Sanjiang Station Square

The bridge was built as a corridor bridge.

When I got off the bus I saw a speical bridge over the river. It's called Badou Bridge. It's a wind and rain bridge which is a kind of covered bridge in Guangxi, China.

The Dong people erect covered bridges with porches and pavilions. When it rains and blows, these bridges could provide shelter. The local people call them Wind and Rain bridges. Among them, Chengyang Wind and Rain Bridge is the most famous. Though not famous like Chengyang bridge, Badou bridge has its own characteristics.

To my surprise, the Dong people built this bridge without any nails or rivets. The bridge is made up of many pieces of wood! Several decades years past, it's still very sturdy!

我一下车就看到了小河上面的桥。走上前面一看，这座桥叫做八斗桥。看上去也是这边常见的侗族风雨桥。风雨桥是廊桥的一种，一般在广西、贵州的侗族苗族地区容易见到。

侗族喜欢把桥上面装饰上连廊和凉亭，刮风下雨的时候能给行人一个遮风挡雨的地方，这也是风雨桥得名的原因。在中国的风雨桥中，往东二十多公里的程阳桥是最著名的。虽然没有程阳桥那么著名，八斗桥也有自己的独特之处。

最令我感到惊讶的是，这座桥竟然没用用到一颗铆钉！整个桥全都是用木头榫卯连接的，多年过去了，还是那么的结实坚固！不得不佩服工匠们的心灵手巧！