Sights in Chéngdé
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Bìshǔ Shānzhuāng
Bìshǔ Shānzhuāng The Qing emperors lived, worked and played in this summer resort, composed of a main palace complex and enormous park-like gardens, all of which is enclosed by a 10km-long wall.
Entering through Lizheng Gate (Lìzhèng Mén), you arrive at the Main Palace (Zhèng Gōng), a series of nine courtyards containing five elegant, unpainted halls whose rusticity is complimented by the towering pine trees growing throughout the complex. Note that the wings in each courtyard have various exhibitions (porcelain, clothing, weaponry) on display, and most of the halls have period furnishings.
The first hall is the refreshingly cool Hall of Simplicity and Sincerity, …
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Puning Temple
A jaw-dropping spectacle, PuningTemple – the Temple of Universal Tranquillity – is a Chinese-style temple with more Tibetan-style features at the rear. Enter the temple grounds to a stele pavilion with inscriptions by Emperor Qianlong in Chinese, Manchu, Mongol and Tibetan. Behind are halls arranged in the typical Buddhist-temple layout, featuring the Hall of Heavenly Kings (Tiānwáng Diàn) and the Mahavira Hall (Dàxióng Bǎodiàn) beyond. Steep steps then rise (the temple is arranged on a mountainside) to a gate tower, a terrace and the breathtaking Mahayana Hall. The highlight of the temple is the heart-arresting gilded statue of the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy (G…
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Imperial Summer Villa
Sprawling over 590 hectares, the Imperial Summer Villa is a colossal park bounded by a splendid 10km wall. Only a small portion of the grounds contain architecture: around 90% is taken up by lakes, hills, mini-forests, plains and hunting grounds. Passing through the Main Gate (Lìzhèng Mén) you reach the FrontPalace (Zhèng Gōng), containing the main throne hall. Inside, the refreshingly cool Hall of Simplicity & Sincerity is fashioned from an aromatic hardwood called nánmù; there is a carved throne on display. There are also the emperor’s fully furnished bedrooms, as well as displays of ceramics, drum stones and calligraphy. The double-storey Misty Rain Tower (…
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Putuozongcheng Temple
If it looks familiar, it’s because the largest of Chéngdé’s temples, Putuozongcheng Temple, is based upon Lhasa’s Potala Palace. Also called the Little Potala Palace ( 小布达 À 宫; Xiǎo Bùdálā Gōng), the temple is a striking sight on a clear day, its vast red walls standing out against the mountain backdrop. Preceded by squeaking prayer wheels and flapping flags, the RedPalace (also called the Great Red Terrace) encloses the majority of main shrines and halls. Press on past an exhibition of thangkas (Tibetan sacred art) in a restored courtyard and look out for the marvellous sandalwood pagodas further up. Both are 19m tall and contain 2160 effigies of th…
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Club Rock & Toad Rock
It's a 30-minute walk to Club Rock (棒槌峰; Bàngchuí Fēng) from Pule Temple - the rock is said to resemble a club used for beating laundry dry. Nearby is Toad Rock (蛤蟆峰; Hámá Shí). There is pleasant hiking, good scenery and commanding views of the area. You can save yourself a steep climb to the base of Club Rock and Toad Rock by taking the chairlift, but it's more fun to walk if you're reasonably fit. Take us 10 to Pule Temple.
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Guandi Temple
Also called the Wumiao, the Guandi Temple is a Taoist temple first built in 1732 and home to a band of Taoist monks, garbed in distinctive jackets and trousers, their long hair twisted into topknots. In the courtyard at the rear are two steles, supported on the backs of a pair of disintegrating and distressed-looking bìxì (mythical tortoise-like dragon creatures). The Hall of the Three Clear Ones stands at the rear to the left.
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Temple of Sumeru, Happiness & Longevity
The monumental Temple of Sumeru, Happiness & Longevity is around 1km to the southeast of the Putuozongcheng Temple. In honour of the sixth Panchen Lama (who stayed here in 1781) the temple was built in imitation of a temple in Shigatse, Tibet, and incorporates Tibetan and Han architectural elements. Note the eight, huge glinting dragons (each said to weigh over 1000kg) that adorn the roof of the main hall.
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Puyou Temple
East of Puning Temple is Puyou Temple. While dilapidated and devoid of its main hall, a contingent of merry gilded luóhàn (Buddhists, especially monks, who achieved enlightenment and passed to nirvana at death) wait in the side wings, although a fire in 1964 incinerated many of them. Note that the temple to the east (Guangyuan Temple) is unrestored and inaccessible.
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Wenjin Pavilion
The Wenjin Pavilion was built in 1773 to house a copy of the Siku Quanshu, a major anthology of classics, history, philosophy and literature commissioned by Qianlong. The anthology took 10 years to put together, and totalled an astounding 36,500 chapters. Four copies were made, only one of which has survived (now in Běijīng).
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Shuxiang Temple
Surrounded by a low red wall, Shuxiang Temple appears closed. You can try your luck, or at least look at the pair of huge stone lions sitting outside. Just to the west of Shuxiang Temple is a military-sensitive zone where foreigners are not allowed access, so don't go wandering around.
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Pule Temple
Pule Temple was built in 1776 for the visits of minority envoys (Kazakhs among them). At the rear of the temple is the unusual round pavilion, reminiscent of the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests at the Temple of Heaven Park in Běijīng. Bus 10 can get you to the temple.
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Anyuan Temple
Anyuan Temple is a copy of the Gurza Temple in Xīnjiāng. Only the main hall remains and it contains deteriorating Buddhist frescoes. Note that the temple further south (Puren Temple) is not open to the public.
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Misty Rain Tower
The double-storey Misty Rain Tower is on the northwestern side of the main lake and was an imperial study.
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Puren Temple
Puren Temple, built in 1713, is the earliest temple in Chéngdé, but is not open to the public.
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