Nanjing is a good place to see a bit of
Chinese history and culture away from the tourist route; the city is
littered with cultural relics, museums and nice scenery and is small
enough to get around in a short period of time. For those living or
staying in Shanghai, Nanjing makes a nice alternative destination for
a weekend vacation.
Nanjing is ranked as one of the six
ancient metropolises of China, the 2000 year old city enjoying the
reputation as the "capital of ten dynasties". Among all the
dynasties that had their capital in Nanjing, the Ming left the city
with the most cultural relics, including the Nanjing City Wall,
Zhuyuanzhang's Mausoleum and the Drum
Tower. The city was also the birth place of China's first
democratic revolutionary, Dr.Sun Yat Sen (Sun zhongshan),and
his Mausoleum
is situated majestically upon the slopes of the nearby Purple
Mountain. There are also many other cultural sites relating to him in
Nanjing.
Thanks
to its geographical location and political importance, Nanjing has a
rich and varied history and is well known throughout China. Perhaps
most importantly, the ancient city enjoys major religious significance
for the Chinese. The Jiming
Temple, and the Wuliangdian Hall, an arch-shaped brick hall in the
Linggu
Temple built without using an inch of wood or nail, are both good
examples of the city's religious position.
Nanjing is a city with mountains, waters
and green trees. With the Yangtze River running through the northeast
of the city, mountains and hills encircling on three sides and
rivers and lakes scattered about, Nanjing boasts beautiful natural
scenery, as well as historically being a great defensive capital. The
locals have learned to love this green and varied landscape, giving
the area such pretty sights as the Plum
Blossom Hill, Zixia
Lake and Xuanwu
Lake.
