About Taiyuan
What to see and do in Taiyuan
Weather in Taiyuan
Airport in Taiyuan
Visa

Taiyuan

Taiyuan is a prefecture-level city and the capital of Shanxi province, China. In 2004, the city had a population of 3.4 million.

Taiyuan is located in the middle reaches of the Yellow River in North China and is surrounded by hills in its west, north and east. It covers an area of 6998 square kilometers. The Fenhe River , a key tributary of the Yellow River, runs through the territory of Taiyuan City with a long distance of 100 kilometers. Taiyuan lies in the valley basin of both mountains of the Taihang Mountain Ranges in east and the Luliang Mountain in west. It has continental climate in north temperate zone, no bitterly cold days in winter and no broiling hot days in summer, with a quite temperature difference between day and night and a long frost-free period and plenty of sunshine hours in a year.

Taiyuan is one of the super cities in China . At the end of 2004, the city had a population of 3.4138 million. Now it governs one city, six districts and three counties, with 51 subdistrict offices, 488 urban community resident comnfissions, 54 town- ships, 1030 rural resident commissions and 1794 villages.

In the early founding of the People' s Republic of China , Taiyuan was an industrial base. After more than 50 years, it has been built to possess a complete industrial system with various of industries as the pillars of energy, metallurgy, machinery and chemical, and other industries as textile, light industry, medicine, electronics, food, building materials, precise instruments, etc. The national economy in Taiyuan City are developing rapidly, coordinately and healthfully. In 2004, The gross domestic product of the City totaled RMB 64.309 billion, up 15.7 per cent over the last year. The added value of the secondary and the tertiary industries increased by 19.8 per cent and 12.4 per cent over the last year, respectively, higher than the average figures in the Province or in the whole country. The proportions of the three industries were 3 per cent, 55 per cent and 42 per cent, respectively. Per capita GDP in the city was RMB 18881.

What to see and do in Taiyuan

Several tourist attractions in and around Taiyuan include the Liu Xiang Lane, which contains ancient Chinese houses of important heritage, and several temples, such as the Chongshan Monastery, the Jinci Temple, the Twin Pagoda Temple, and the Shaunglin Monastery Longtan Park and Yinze Park are also popular tourist destinations.

Chongshan Temple - main hall has statue of Guanyin, Goddess of Mercy, with 1000 hands and eyes.

Twin Pagoda Temple - brick pagodas carved in the imitation of wooden pagodas.

Jinci Temple - Jinci Temple has a long history, which can be traced back to the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC to 711 BC), when King Cheng made his younger brother Yu a leader of one of his states. Yu was an intelligent leader who devoted all his energies to making the state prosperous, so his descendants built a temple for him after his death, in order to honor his achievement.

The Iron Statues Terrace Saint Mother Hall, the oldest building in the temple, is one of the main reasons that so many visitors come to the temple. Together with the Flying Bridge across the Fish Pond, and the Offerings Hall, these exquisite buildings provide evidence of a new era in Chinese architecture. For example, the Flying Bridge across the Fish Pond is the only one of its kind that exists now; accordingly, it plays an important role in an investigation of the ancient bridges of China.

Taiyuan is also known for its Liuxiang shopping district and the construction of parks and recreational areas that are praised by the UN Environmental Programme for their role in the improvement of the environmental condition of Taiyuan. Taiyuan's environmental improvement project is being copied in many other Chinese cities and urban areas around the world.

Shanxi Provincial Museum - two separate sections housed in different temples.

Taiyuan is in the middle belt of tourist routes and is rich in ecological tourist resources, special humanity landscapes and lots of historic and cultural relics. There are 5 key rotective sites of the nation- al-grade historic relics, 17 key protective sites of the provincial- grade historic relics, 67 key sites of the municipal- grade historic relics in the city. The beautiful Fenhe Park extends through the city. Jinci Temple, dated from "Jian Tong Feng Di" (The Title of Tang was Conferred on His Younger Brother by Cheng King), was the largest mperial garden in China, and was also named as a splendid pearl of ancient Chinese culture. In the Holy Mother Hall in Jinci Temple, Song dynasty maiden servant statues with different manners, as vivid as life, enjoy high reputation at home and abroad. The lofty Twin Pagodas of Yongzuo Temple, built in Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), become the models in China s twin- pagodas architecture and also the sign of Taiyuan. Dragon Mountain Grottoes are the largest Taoist grottoes in China.

Tianlong Mountain Grottoes, the Buddhist grottoes since the Eastern Wei (534- 550) and the Five Dynasties (907-960), was praised the best in the world by experts. The historic and cultural relics here are too numerous to enumerate, such as the famous buddhist monastery-Chongshan Monastery, early built in the later Sui Dynasty (581 -618) and the early Tang Dynasty (618-907), the Chunyang Taoist Palace of Lu Dongbin, the Juewei Hill and Duo Fuci Temple, etc. Outside Taiyuan City, in its north there are the world cultural relics of Yungang Grottoes and famous Buddhis Mountain - Wutai Mountain, known to all the world. In its south, there are such world cultural heritages as Pingyao Ancient City and Guashan Mountain and Hukou Waterfall on the Yellow River. In its west,' there are the national- grade natural protection areas of Pangquan Gou and Northern Wudang Mountains. In its east, there are scenic spots of Changshan Mountain and Niangziguan Pass.

Mt. Wutaishan lies in Wutai County in Xinzhou Region, Shanxi Province. It is rated on both the list of the first group of national scenic spots designated by the State Council, and the list of the Top 10 scenic spots in Shanxi Province. It is as famous as Mt.Emeishan in Sichuan Province, Mt.Putuoshan in Zhejiang Province, and Mt.Jiuhuashan in Anhui Province, all of which are renowned as the four sacred Buddhist Mountains. Mt. Wutaishan covers an area of 2,837 square kilometers (1,095.4 square miles), and its five main peaks, positioned east, south, west, north, and in the middle, embrace one another with broad and plain terraces rather than forests on their tops. That is why it bears the name "Wutaishan" (Mountain of Five Terraces). With the average altitude over 1,000 meters (over 3,281 feet), its apex, the summit of the northern peak which is famed as being the "Roof of Northern China", reaches 3061.1 meters (10,043 feet). Besides the religious aspect, the beauty of rising and falling ridges of mountains, exotic rocks, crisscrossed gullies, crystalline waters and towering green forests also gives Mt. Wutaishan its reputation as a colorful and notable tourist resort.

Mt. Wutaishan Scenery
The beautiful scenery of Mt. Wutaishan is a masterpiece of exquisite acts of nature, predominantly visible over the five main peaks: Wanghai Peak in the east, Guayue Peak in the west, Jinxiu Peak in the south, Yedou Peak in the north, and the central Cuiyan Peak.

Wanghai Peak (Peak Overlooking the Sea) in the east
1 kilometer (0.6 mile) east of Taihuai Town in Wutai County, there is Wanghai Peak. Visitors standing on the top of the peak, east of Mt. Wutaishan, can appreciate the height of 2,795 meters (9,169.9 feet). It is wonderful to see the sunrise in the morning from this location. Out of a sea of floating clouds and writhing mist, the sun rises with thousands of golden rays. It fills visitors with amazement, as they can believe it is the sun rising above the real sea.

Guayue Peak (Hanging Moon Peak) in the west
Guayue Peak reaches an altitude of 2,773 meters (9,097.8 feet) and is 13 kilometers (8.1 miles) west of Taihuai Town. This peak provides unique imagery in the evening when visitors can see the elegant and serene sight of the graceful but hazy moon hanging above dense pine trees.

Jinxiu Peak (Splendor Peak) in the south
Jinxiu Peak is 2,485 meters high (8,152.9 feet), and 12 kilometers (7.5 miles) south of Taihuai Town. This peak's beauty is in the colorful flowers that grow all over it, and emit scents and perfumes from early May until late August. They decorate the peak by making it look as if it is wearing a floral silk coat.

Yedou Peak (Peak of Flourishing Leaves) in the north
This peak, 5 kilometers (3.1 miles) north of Taihuai Town, is the highest point of Mt. Wutaishan, as well being the highest in Northern China, at 3,058 meters (10,032.8 feet). On the terrace of the peak, there is a natural pool that is over 300 square meters (358.8 square yards) From the terrace looking towards the north, Mt. Hengshan looms blanketed in endless greenery.

Cuiyan Peak (Peak of Green Rocks) in the middle
According to its name, one can guess the scenery of this peak. The rocks are green not because of their own color, but because of the moss on their surface. The huge rocks resemble moving dragons when seen in sunlight, from which the name "dragon-writhing rocks" has been derived.

Buddhist Temples in Mt. Wutaishan
It is said that this mountain, one of the four holy Buddhist Mountains, is the dwelling place of Manjusri Bodhisattva. 360 temples were built here dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907) but now only 47 of them exist. Over the years, incalculable numbers of pilgrims and visitors have come here. Among these magnificent temples, five are the mostfamous: Xiantong Temple, TayuanTemple, Manjusri Temple (Summit Bodhisattva), Shuxiang Temple, and Luohou Temple.

Xiantong Temple
Xiantong Temple has the longest history and is the most prestigious. Occupying an area of 80,000 square meters (95,682 square yards), it was built initially in 68, during the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220), with the additions built by succeeding dynasties. Now it plays the most important role among the temples, therefore, the Buddhist Association of Mt. Wutaishan is situated there. The court-styled construction of it includes seven palaces, in one of which Wenshu (Manjusri) Bodhisattva's statue was engraved and worshiped. The copper bell in front of the gate is the biggest bell on the mountain, with a weight of 9,999.5 jin (22,045.9 pounds). Its toll can be heard around the entire mountain.

Tayuan Temple
The 75.3-meter-high (247-feet-high) Tayuan Temple is the symbol of Mt. Wutaishan, so it becomes a "must-see". Principally it possesses the white Tibetan-style dagoba also called Dabai Pagoda (Big White Pagoda). Since it stands in front of the other temples in Taihuai, it is even more eye-catching. Accompanying the graceful temple, there is also Wenshufa Pagoda where it is said that Manjusri Bodhisattva's hair is preserved, and theDacangjing Pavilion (Collecting-Lections Pavilion) where volumes of lections were collected.

Manjusri Temple
Legend has it that Wenshu Bodhisattva dwelt in the temple, so it is also called "ZhenrongYuan" (real appearance) or "Bodhisattva Summit". It was built originally in Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534). In the time of Emperor Yongle of Ming Dynasty (1368 -1644), Lamaists began to be stationed in Mt. Wutaishan, and the great Lama resided there. From then on, it became the principal temple of Lamaism. Emperors Kangxi and Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) both went there and left ever-lasting epigraphs.

Shuxiang Temple
Shuxiang Temple is the southwest neighbor of Tayuan Temple. Built in Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), it covers 6,400 square meters (7,654.6 square yards), and encompasses over 50 palaces and halls. Among them Manjusri Pavilion is the largest one in the center of the Taihuai County, with Manjusri Bodhisattva's statue in it. A clear spring flows out of the temple named "Banruo" or "Prajna", meaning "adding wisdom", whose water was used in the courts.

Luohou Temple
To the east of the Xiantong Temple, Luohou Temple was set up as a Lamaist temple in the Tang Dynasty. One of its wonders is a wooden lotus-shaped flower. Machinery turns it and the wooden petals open and close. Inside are carved Buddhist figures on a square platform.

For tourists who want to visit all Manjusri Bodhisattva's statues in the five temples but cannot for time constraints or other reasons, Dailuo Peak (Dark Green Snail Peak) is a wonderful place to visit, because Wufang Manjusri Palace (Palace of Manjusri Bodhisattvas from five directions) houses statues resembling the five Manjusri Bodhisattvas ofeach terrace. It is located to the east of the temple group in the center of Taihuai Town. 1,080 steps lead to the top of the snail-shaped peak and a cable car is also available for convenience.

Besides these temples, there are other exquisitely constructed ones, such as Jinge Temple (golden temple), Nanchan Temple, Dailuoding, Shifangtang, Wangfo Temple, and so on.

Other Resources on Mt. Wutaishan
Mt. Wutaishan is resplendent in many resources owing to its natural conditions and important role in Buddhism.

Over 600 species of plants can be found on the Mountain, of which more than 150 species of grass can be used as rare herbs. Special local produce, Taimo, (mushrooms grown on the tops of peaks of Mt. Wutaishan) is of quite high nutritional value and with a delicate taste.

Since many temples are interspersed in the mountain, numerous art works were cared for and have been preserved as relics-sculptures, murals, calligraphy, as well as architecture. Pagodas built in the style of those in ancient India added new types to traditional ones. Nanchan Temple and Foguang Temple, built in the Tang Dynasty, are representatives of the ancient wooden style of construction, and have the longest history amongst the temples in the mountain.

Admission Fee:    RMB 168

Weather in Taiyuan

Spring here often comes with strong sunlight and heavy wind. Since Taiyuan is the City of Coal, there is always black coal dust carried on the wind. If you come to Taiyuan in spring or summer, sunglasses, sun block and a sunhat are necessities. Those who wear contact lens should be more careful about the wind. Generally, the best time to visit Taiyuan is during the period from May to October.

January                   2 C to -12 C

February                 5 C to -9 C

March                     11 C to -3 C

April                        19 C to 5 C

May                         25 C to 10 C

June                        29 C to 15 C

July                          29 C to 18 C

August                    28 C to 17 C

September             23 C to 11 C

October                   18 C to 4 C

November               9 C to -3 C

December              3 C to -10 C

Airport in Taiyuan

Visa

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