Introducing Zhāngyè
Zhāngyè is a pleasant, if slightly bland, town. The main reason to stop here is to visit China’s largest sleeping Buddha and do some hiking in the Qílián Shān range around Mǎtí Sì.
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The Great Buddha Temple (Dàfó Sì;;821 9671; adult/student Y41/21; 7.30am-6.30pm) originally dates to 1098 (Western Xia dynasty) and contains a 35m-long sleeping Buddha surrounded by deteriorating clay arhats and Qing-dynasty murals. Take a good look at the main hall – it’s one of the few wooden structures from this era still standing in China. Out the back is an impressive white stupa (tǔ tǎ).
One block north, in the main square, you’ll find the mù tǎ (wooden pagoda;; admission Y5; 7.30am-6.30pm), a brick and wooden structure that was first built in AD 528.
For orientation, the drum tower (; gǔlóu) stands in the centre of town; the Great Buddha Temple complex is on a Qing-style pedestrian street two blocks south and one block west of here.
The Bank of China (; Zhōngguó Yínháng; Dong Jie) by the Liángmào Bīnguǎn has an ATM and changes travellers cheques.
Last updated: Feb 17, 2009
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