No.3 Mt. HuangShan

No.4 The Terra Cotta Warriors

The Mt.HuangShan

Huangshan is located south of the Yangtze River in Anhui province. The mountain is magnificent with many peaks. Its natural landscape has remained largely untouched except for the construction of some roads and houses.

Huangshan is memorable for its clouds and changes in weather. Sometimes seas of clouds enshroud the peaks, leaving only the tops peeping out like islands. Its pine trees grow in rock crevices in grotesque forms. The steep peaks are comprised of piles of strangely shaped rocks, split by deep secluded ravines. The static pines and rocks against the restless, moving clouds create changing scenes of great natural beauty.

Water from the hot spring is odorless and good to drink. It contains minerals beneficial in the treatment of gastric ailments, skin afflictions, and rheumatism. Hot Springs forth from the foot of Purple Cloud Peak, the springs never run dry even during the most severs droughts, nor overflow their channels during excessive rains. All the year the temperature of the water remains at 104F (40C). Pools have been built for drinking, swimming, and medicinal baths.

Lianhua Feng (Lotus Flower Peak) : the highest peak with an elevation of 6,138 ft in Mt.huangshan, Famous pines such as the "Flying Dragon" and the "Twin Dragons" are found there. From the summit the neighboring peaks look dwarfed and in the distance the whole scene gradually merges into one shade of color.

Shixin Feng (Beginning to Believe Peak): unlike some of the others, this peak is small and dainty but it has a charm of its own. It is noted for its gorgeous greenery and quaint rock shapes. The beauty of Huangshan is so captivating that one can't help feeling as if one has stepped into a Chinese landscape paining, exclaiming: "Now I believe it". Hence the name, "Beginning to Believe".

The Terra Cotta Warriors

Xi'an was one of the most important cradles of Chinese civilization. It marked the start of the famous "Silk Road" that linked China with central Asia and the Roman Empire. And it served as the first capital of a unified China and capital of 11 dynasties periodically from the 11th century B.C. to the early 10th century A.D. Xi'an, or Changan as it was called in ancient times, is known as the city of "Everlasting Peace", which should definitely not be missed on your journey through China.

The Shaanxi Provincial Museum is an enlargement of the Forest of Stele, which is located on the site of the ancestral temple of the Tang Dynasty. The garden-type museum of ancient architecture is mainly for the protection of cultural relics and the display and study of antiquities. The Forest of Stele was first founded in 1090 A.D. during the Song Dynasty. It is the oldest and richest collection of stele in China. The stele are numerous enough to be likened to a forest, hence the name. This forest consists of six large exhibition halls, seven corridors and a stele pavilion. There are more than 1,000 stele of eight dynasties from the Han down to the Qing. They are of great value to historians and for the study of calligraphic development.

Qin Shi Huang (159-310 B.C.), was the founding emperor of the Qin Dynasty. His tomb is on the south bank of the Wei River, about three miles east of the country town of Lintong. It is one of China's most important historical sites.

Built in 347 B.C., when Qin Shi Huang was enthroned at the age of 13, the mausoleum is in fact a deep and magnificent underground palace. According to records, more than 700,000 people were employed to construct it, and the work took 36 years. The inner conditions of the mausoleum remain unknown because it has not yet been excavated.

In 1974 and 1976, three massive army vaults were discovered. In Vault No. 1, the largest, 6,000 life-size terra-cotta figures of armed warriors and horses were buried. An underground feat of civil engineering, Vault No. 1 is 351 yards long from east to west, 68 yards wide from north to south, and 5.47 yards deep, covering an area of 15,601 sq. yd. The three army vaults were ascertained by archaeologists to be pits for burial objects accompanying the tomb of Qin Shi Huang. In October, 1979, an on-site museum was built above Vault No.1.

Renging from 5.8 to 6 ft. in height, the vivid life-size warrior figures are clad in armor or short gowns belted at the waist, with leggings and tightly-lashed boots, and holding real weapons---bows and arrows, swords and spears.

This natural hot spring is located at the foot of Mt. Lishan, a scenic spot 18 miles east of Xi'an.

According to historical records, hot springs were found here 3,800 years ago. A palace called "Li Gong" was built here during the Western Zhou Dynasty. A hot spring bath was constructed for the royal family during the Qin was built on the mountain side in 747 A.D. The hot spring bath can hold 400 people at one time. Flowing at a rate of 110 tons per hour from four different sources, the water, with a temperature of 109 degrees Fahrenheit, contains nine minerals, such as lime and manganese carbonate, which are said to be efficacious in soothing skin and rheumatoid ailments.

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