Sights in Héběi
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Bìshǔ Shānzhuāng
The imperial summer resort is composed of a main palace complex and vast parklike gardens, all enclosed by a good-looking 10km-long wall. The peak season entrance price is steep, considering the Forbidden City is half the price.
A huge spirit wall shields the resort entrance from the bad spirits and traffic fumes of Lizhengmen Dajie. Through Lìzhèng Gate (丽正门; Lìzhèng Mén), the Main Palace (正宫; Zhèng Gōng) is a ser- ies of nine courtyards and five elegant, unpainted halls, with a rusticity complemented by towering pine trees. The wings in each courtyard have various exhibitions (porcelain, clothing, weaponry), and most of the halls are decked out in period…
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Pǔníng Temple
With its squeaking prayer wheels and devotional intonations of its monks, Chéngdé's only active temple was built in 1755 in anticipation of Qianlong's victory over the western Mongol tribes in Xīnjiāng. Supposedly modelled on the earliest Tibetan Buddhist monastery (Samye), the first half of the temple is distinctly Chinese (with Tibetan buildings at the rear).
Enter the temple grounds to a stele pavilion with inscriptions by the Qianlong emperor in Chinese, Manchu, Mongol and Tibetan. The halls behind are arranged in typical Buddhist fashion, with the Hall of Heavenly Kings (天王殿; Tiānwáng Diàn) and beyond, the Mahavira Hall (大雄宝殿; Dàxióng Bǎodiàn), where…
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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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Pǔtuózōngchéng Temple
Chéngdé's largest temple is a minifacsimile of Lhasa's Potala Palace and houses the nebulous presence of Avalokiteshvara (Guanyin). A marvellous sight on a clear day, the temple's red walls stand out against its mountain backdrop. Enter to a huge stele pavilion, followed by a large triple archway topped with five small stupas in red, green, yellow, white and black. In between the two gates are two large stone elephants whose knees bend impossibly.
Fronted by a collection of prayer wheels and flags, the Red Palace (also called the Great Red Platform) contains most of the main shrines and halls. Continue up past an exhibition of thangka (sacred Tibetan paintings) in a…
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Old Dragon Head
The mythic origin/conclusion of the Great Wall at the sea's edge, Old Dragon Head is 4km south of Shānhǎiguān. What you see now was reconstructed in the late 1980s – the original wall crumbled away long ago. The name derives from the le- gendary carved dragon head that once faced the waves; as attractions go, it's essentially a lot more hype than history. Buses 25 and 21 (Y1) go to Old Dragon Head from Shānhǎiguān's South Gate.
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First Pass Under Heaven
A restored section of wall studded with watchtowers and tourist paraphernalia, the First Pass Under Heaven is also called East Gate (东门; Dōng Mén). The 12m-high wall's principal watchtower – two storeys with double eaves and 68 arrow-slit windows – is a towering 13.7m high.
The calligraphy at the top (attributed to the scholar Xiao Xian) reads 'First Pass Under Heaven'. Several other watchtowers can also be seen and a wèngchéng (enceinte) extends out east from the wall. To the north, decayed sections of battlements trail off into the hills; to the south you can walk to the ramp just east of the South Gate.
The ticket also includes admission to the vaguely…
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Kāiyuán Temple
South on Yanzhao Nandajie this temple originally dates from AD 540 but was destroyed in 1966, the first year of the Cultural Revolution. Little remains apart from some leftover good vibes (it's a popular spot for qì gōng and taichi practitioners), the Bell Tower and the drawcard dirt-brown Xumi Pagoda, a well-preserved and unfussy early-Tang-dynasty brickwork, nine-eaved structure, topped with a spire. Its round arched doors and carved stone doorway are particularly attractive, as are the carved figures on the base.
Also displayed is a colossal stone bìxì statue – China's largest – near the entrance, with a vast chunk of its left flank missing and its head propped up…
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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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Guāndì Temple
The restored Taoist Guāndì Temple was first built during the reign of Yongzheng, in 1732. For years the temple housed residents but is again home to a band of Taoist monks, garbed in distinctive jackets and trousers, their long hair twisted into topknots.
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Dafo Temple
Zhèngdìng’s most famous monastery is Longxing Temple ( 隆兴寺; Lóngxìng Sì), more popularly known as Dafo Temple or Big Buddha Temple, which is located in the east of town. The standout hall is the vast Pavilion of Great Mercy ( 大悲阁; Dàbēi Gé), where a bronze 21.3m colossus of Guanyin rises, cast in AD 971 and sporting a third eye.
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Línjì Temple
Normally Y5 to access but free at the time of writing (and attracting scads of beggars in various stages of disfiguration), this active monastery, around 700m southeast of Kāiyuán Temple, is notable for its tall, elegant, carved brick Chénglíng Pagoda (澄灵塔; also called the Green Pagoda), topped with an elaborate lotus plinth plus ball and spire. The main hall behind has a large gilt effigy of Sakyamuni and 18 golden luóhàn. At the rear of the hall is Puxian astride an elephant, Wenshu on a lion and a figure of Guanyin. In the Tang dynasty, the temple was home to one of Chan (Zen) Buddhism's most eccentric and important teachers, Linji Yixuan, who penned the…
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Temple of Sumeru, Happiness & Longevity
East of the Pǔtuózōngchéng Temple, this huge temple was built in honour of the sixth Panchen Lama, who stayed here in 1781. Incorporating Tibetan and Chinese architectural elements, it's an imitation of a temple in Shigatse, Tibet. Note the eight huge, glinting dragons (each said to weigh over 1000kg) that adorn the roof of the main hall. Bus 118 (Y1) runs along Huancheng Beilu past the temple.
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Jiǎo Shān
An excellent hike up the Great Wall's first high peak, Jiǎo Shān affords a telling vantage point over the narrow tongue of land below and one-time invasion route for northern armies. For something more adventurous, follow the wall's unrestored section indef- initely past the watchtowers or hike over to the secluded Qīxián Monastery
Jiǎo Shān is a 3km bike ride north of town or a half-hour walk from the north gate; otherwise take a sānlúnchē (Y10). It's a steep 20-minute clamber from the base, or a cable car can yank you up for Y20.
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Tiānníng Temple
About five minutes west (right as you exit) of Dàfó Temple are the remains of this temple, whose 41m-high Tang-dynasty Lofty Pagoda (凌霄塔; Língxiāo Tǎ) – also called Mùtǎ or Wooden Pagoda – originally dates from AD 779; it was later restored in 1045. The octagonal, nine-eaved and spire-topped pagoda is in fine condition and typical of Tang brickwork pagodas. Shut at the time of writing, you can usually clamber up inside and torches are provided (deposit Y10), but mind your head and the steep stairs. The views from the top are not great, as the windows are small.
Further west on Zhongshan Xilu from Tiānníng Temple, past the intersection with Yanzhao…
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Puyou Temple
East of Pǔníng Temple, this temple is dilapidated and missing its main hall, but it has a plentiful contingent of merry gilded luóhàn in the side wings, although a fire in 1964 incinerated many of their confrères.
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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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Changle Gate
At the southern end of the Yanzhao Dajie is Changle Gate, also known as Nanchengmen or South Gate. You can climb the gate, where there is a small exhibition. Extending away from the gate to the east and west are the dilapidated remains of the city wall, stripped of its trees and sprouting grass.
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Shūxiàng Temple
Surrounded by a low red wall, with its large halls rising on the hill behind and huge stone lions parked outside, this temple is often closed. Just to the west of Shūxiàng Temple is a military-sensitive zone where foreigners are not allowed access, so don't go wandering around.
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Pǔlè Temple
This peaceful 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 Běijīng's Temple of Heaven. Inside is an enormous wooden mandala (a geometric representation of the universe).
It's a 30-minute walk to Hammer Rock from Pǔlè Temple – the rock is said to resemble a kind of musical hammer. There is pleasant hiking and commanding views of the area. Bus 10 will take you to the cable car (return Y45) for Hammer Rock.
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Ānyuǎn Temple
A copy of the Gurza Temple in Xīnjiāng, only the main hall remains, which contains deteriorating Buddhist frescoes. Take bus 10.
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Guǎnghuì Temple
Nothing remains of this temple further south, except its unusual Indian-style pagoda decorated with lions, elephants, sea creatures, púsà (Bodhisattvas; those worthy of nirvana who remain on earth to help others attain enlightenment) and other figures (some missing). With a brick base and four doors, the pagoda has stone-carved upper storeys and a brickwork cap. You can climb to the top.
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Great Wall Museum
Recently rebuilt and expanded into a geometric block of grey stone, this museum provides a resourceful introduction to the Great Wall.
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Mèngjiāngnǚ Temple
A well-known Song-Ming reconstruction, Mèngjiāngnǚ Temple is 6km east of Shānhǎiguān. A taxi here should cost around Y12.
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Wang Family Courtyard House
Wang Family Courtyard House is a large, historic hútòng -style residence faced by a spirit wall.
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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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