The Confucius Temple (Fuzimiao) was originally built during the Song Dynasty and is situated on the north bank of the Qinhuai River. Today, the entire area around the Temple consists of a series of tourist shops, snack bars, restaurants and entertainment arcades all done up in "Ming" and "Qing" style architecture.
There is a vaguely kitsch feeling about the area and the Temple itself is a bit of a disappointment but the area is great fun and a very pleasant part of the city to walk around (the only pedestrianised area in the city). Absorb the relaxed atmosphere, have something to eat and take part in the fun! It is particularly interesting in the evenings when a lively street market sets up in the district, and locals and tourists take part in the bargain hunting!
The Song Dynasty was a period of great Confucian revivalism and the temple here is considered to be one of the best preserved of its type in China. During the Ming Dynasty the temple was expanded and became a school for children of the imperial court. The buildings on both sides of the Temple which are now small tourist shops were once individual study rooms for Confucian scholars.
The Qinhuai River flows in front of the Temple and there is also a 110-meter-long screen stonewall (the largest in the nation) nearby, which can be viewed from the bridge crossing the river in front of the Temple. A beautiful ˇ°Lantern Showˇ± is held at the Temple during the 1st to the 18th days of the Lunar Year.
Cost: RMB10 to enter the Temple.
How to get there: Take bus No.1 (RMB1) from Xinjeikou roundabout and get off at the last stop. Alternately, take a taxi to "Fuzi Miao" this should cost approximately RMB10-15 and take about 10 minutes.
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Gulou (Drum Tower) is situated in the very center of Nanjing at the Gulou roundabout. The Tower was built in the 15th year of the reign of Hongwu during the Ming Dynasty (1382) and renovated during the Qing dynasty. The Drum Tower is a beautiful classical two
story building set amidst a pretty and secluded garden. The scale of the building is very unusual in Chinese architecture and the views from the top of the tower afford a great panorama of this small city.
The Tower originally housed two large drums, 24 small drums and other musical instruments. Today there is only one large but impressive drum remaining on the top of the tower. The drums were used to announce the arrival of the emperor and his court to Nanjing and to warn city residents of danger. There is also a lovely little tea and snack house up here, which is usually blissfully quiet!
How to get there: From Xinjeikou roundabout head directly north up Zhngshan Lu.
Opening hours: 8am-5pm. RMB6.
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Jiming
Temple, (Jiming si) situated in the east of the city, is an
ancient city Buddhist temple with a long history.
During the Three Kingdoms Period, this
site was an official garden belonging to the Wu State. A Temple was
first built on the site in 527 during the Liang Dynasty. This original
temple was destroyed and renovated many times until 1387, the 20th
year of the Ming Emperor Hong Wu, when the present Jiming Temple was
constructed.
Nearby this pretty little active temple,
is a Rouge Well, so called because the Emperor's
concubine used to clean the well with her handkerchief and leave the
stain of her rouge behind. The Temple and the Rouge Well
are nearby to Xuanwu
Lake, in the northeast of the city.
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The Linggu Temple, (Lingu si) the Linggu pagoda and the Beamless Hall are situated on the eastern side of Purple Mountain. This area can be reached by a shuttle bus from the Mausoleum but the nicest approach is to take one of the numerous paths into the woods that head east from the Mausoleum . Just follow the signs along the route and you will eventually arrive at the Linggu Park containing a few interesting buildings.
The Beamless Hall is where the bus stops. This is an unusual construction built using only five columns and no beams. The Hall was originally used to display Buddhist statues but today there is a much less interesting and slightly bizarre exhibition of mannequins reenacting Chinese history throughout the ages!
Directly North of the Hall is the pretty Linggu Pagoda which affords great views of the surrounding countryside and the city in the distance. The pagoda is sixty meters high and was built in the 1930s.
The Linggu Temple itself is a very active Buddhist Temple. Originally built in the Ming dynasty but recently restored, the Temple provides an insight into Chinese Buddhism and the everyday life of these monks. The Temple has a shrine containing the skull of the Chinese monk who went to India to collect the Buddhist scriptures.
Opening hours: 7am-6pm.
Cost: RMB10.
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The
Ming Tombs (Ming Xiaoling) are situated on the southern slope
of Purple Mountain. Work on the tombs began even before the Emperor,
Hong Wu (founder of the Ming dynasty) died in 1398.
The tombs here are some of the largest
Ming Tombs in China and the only Ming Tombs located outside Beijing.
Hundreds of small stone statues still guard the Emperor's tomb today,
although much of the original site has been destroyed.
The approach to the tomb is along Shixiang
Lu, a pretty path littered with stone statues of real and
mythical animals.
How to get there: Take
bus No.9 to Sun
Yatsen's Mausoleum and walk back down the hill from here.
Opening hours: 7am-6pm.
Cost: RMB10.
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Sightseeing
Index
