Beyond the reputation of the strange mountains and water, people tend to ignore the history and humanity of Guilin. In fact, Guilin is also one of the first historical and cultural cities in China. Although historically, it was once a foreign land inhabited by the Hundred Vietnamese and a barbaric wasteland where the Chinese imperial court relegated its officials, these intellectuals who were exiled to Guangxi brought advanced culture and enlightened the local culture.
North and South Dynasties, Yan Yanzhi was relegated to Guilin, so that the local literary style; Tang Dynasty, Liu Zongyuan was relegated to Liuzhou assassin, he vigorously in Liuzhou to build official schools, educate the people; the Northern Song Dynasty, Zeng Gong came to Guangxi, and found that the difference between the local culture and the Central Plains has been not very big.
Guilin also has a reputation - "10,000 years of wisdom," because in the territory of the discovery of about 10,000 years ago, the Neolithic Age Caipi Yan site, which unearthed the pottery daisy ware using the "two-material mixing "
This is a sign of the transition from grilled food to boiled food, and demonstrates the wisdom of the ancestors of Caipiayan.
Today's article, take a stroll around Guilin, tour the landscape, but also understand some of the humanities.
Scenery
"The landscape of Guilin is the best in the world, and the landscape of Yangshuo is the best in Guilin".
The most beautiful part of Guilin's landscape is not in the city, but in Yangshuo County, about 80 kilometers south of Guilin. Most of the scenic movies we see on the Internet or in magazines about Guilin's landscapes are shot here, and the famous large-scale landscape show "Impression of Liu Sanjie," directed by Zhang Yimou, is also located here.
From Guilin to Yangshuo, you can take a boat down the Li River, nearly 5 hours on the water, you can enjoy the Huangniu Gorge along the way, half of the old ferry, Yang Dike, Langshi and other scenic spots, known as the "100 miles of the Li River Gallery", and the end of the gallery, but also the "painting exhibition! "
In addition to the gallery, there are also a number of other places where you can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the Li River.
In addition to the text mentioned at the beginning of the 20 yuan yuan background where the Li River essence of the landscape, there are also peculiar karst landscape, there are rock climbing enthusiasts all over the world to aspire to the rock wall, there is the magical moon mountain and the ancient banyan tree, and full of ethnic minority style butterfly springs and Totem ancient road, Xu Beihong here to create a heirloom masterpiece "Li River spring rain" ......
(Xu Beihong's famous painting "Spring Rain on the Li River", picture from the Internet)
Even former U.S. President Richard Nixon was full of praise after visiting the place: "My wife and I have visited more than 100 cities in more than 80 countries in the world, and I will say without reservation that none of them is as beautiful as Yangshuo in Guilin. "
How beautiful is Yangshuo?
First, let's take a look at the Ten Mile Gallery, which is as beautiful as its name suggests.
The first scene of the Ten Mile Gallery is the Totem Ancient Road, a scenic spot displaying stone tools, pottery, totem poles, etc. It recreates the historical style of Guilin's ancestors' residence, life, religion and hunting from 12,000 to 7,000 years ago, as if it opens a door to the distant past.
Shortly after passing through the Totem Trail, there is a steep cliff by the roadside, where a bare-chested athlete is jumping on the "rock wall ballet".
The best place to climb in Yangshuo is at Moon Mountain in the Ten Mile Gallery, a world-class rock-climbing destination that has seen 15 routes opened up by climbers from around the world since 1992, when American rock-climber Todd Skinner opened the first route.
(The big hole at the top of Moon Mountain: due to the good quality of the stone and the special difficulty of the arch, this place has become a rare mecca in the rock-climbing world)
Moon Mountain is also named thanks to the airy hole, which looks like a bright moon from a distance, and it will show different shapes such as half-moon, eyebrow moon and so on from different angles.
Nixon's "Yangshuo is the most beautiful" exclamation was issued after visiting the Moon Mountain, when he looked at the "moon" from afar, he was surprised to ask: "The moon on the mountain is the moon that you have pierced with missiles, right? " Wait until he climbed to the top of the mountain, close observation, only to confirm that it is nature's ingenious masterpiece. Afterwards, people called the path Nixon climbed to the moon "Nixon Trail".
More than Nixon, Yangshuo has attracted leaders from more than 150 countries to visit the city, and now tourists ride along the Ten Mile Gallery's road, also known as the "Carter Scenic Byway," where former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, hearing about the stunning scenery of the Ten Mile Gallery, changed his original plan for touring the city by automobile to a bicycle tour. The government later built a 10-mile bike path for tourists to enjoy the scenery along the way.
Carter Scenic Road links up many attractions, including the Moon Mountain, such as the Butterfly Spring, a mecca of mountain waterfalls and suspension bridges:
The Dragon Pool, with its peaks competing for attention like dragons in the clouds, and the milky rocks inside the pool that look like dragons playing in the water:
Of the many wonders to be seen, the most famous is the Big Banyan Tree.
The banyan tree is famous because of an old movie - "Liu Sanjie", which was popular at home and abroad, and many of the shots were taken here.
The picture above is is that famous big banyan tree, compare the tourists below, you can know the big banyan tree. It was under this banyan tree that Liu Sanjie and Ah Niu threw the embroidered ball to fix their lives in the movie.
(The banyan tree has a singing platform on the other side of the river, which was the stage for Liu Sanjie, who loved to sing songs)
This banyan tree was planted in the 10th year of the Sui Dynasty (590 years), which is more than 1,400 years old, and it resembles a mushroom, with luxuriant branches and leaves, and it is known as the "Longevity Tree" because of its spirit of the earth and the sky, "love tree" and "money tree", there is a local saying: "walk around the tree, live through 99; turn around under the tree, can earn thousands of millions."
The above attractions are all separated by walls, and there is a charge for entry, while the most beautiful scenery of the Ten Mile Gallery is actually the landscape along the way, where there is the largest tributary of the Li River in Yangshuo, the Yulong River, which offers the most beautiful landscape scenery whether you are riding along the riverside or canoeing on the river.
The peaks on both sides of the river are clear and meandering, with a thousand different shapes, some like camels, some like bushels ...... Rolling and beautiful.
The river bank green grass, green bamboo lush, trees shade; river water is clear and transparent, such as green emerald, the bank of the green trees and green mountains are clearly reflected.
The fish swim idly, the water raft floats, the breeze passes by, the ripples, picturesque, mesmerizing.
The above is what you see when the weather is sunny and bright, but the most beautiful weather on the Li River is rainy and cloudy, the so-called "smoky and rainy Li River". The next day, at Xingping in Yangshuo (where the background image of the 20-yuan yuan comes from), the clouds were thick and misty, and even though it wasn't raining, there was some of the haze of the smoky Li River.
(In the background of the $20 RMB, the famous Li River scenery "Nine Horses Painting Mountain" is in the distance on the right)
Xingping Town is another must-visit place in Yangshuo, which is surrounded by green mountains and peaks, with thousands of colors and reflections, limpid green water, forests of bamboos, and weeping willows, which make for a fascinating scene.
(The left side of the mountain peaks like eagles spreading their wings)
The water here is very clear, the gravel at the bottom of the river fish can be seen clearly.
Local people carrying cormorants on their shoulders can be seen along the riverbank. Cormorants were originally used by the people along the banks of the Li River to catch fish for a living, and they can still be used to make a living, but by taking photos, after all, the beauty of the "Li River Fishing Fire" is very powerful.
(Li River fishing fire, picture from the network)
(Green mountains and clear water, ready to go)
After touring the landscape of Yangshuo, you shouldn't miss the landscape of downtown Guilin, which has been a "water city" since ancient times, and has the Li River, Peach Blossom River, Ronghu Lake, Suguhu Lake, Guihu Lake, and Mulong Lake and other waterways in the city. In the Tang Dynasty, there was a tradition of swimming in Guilin by water; in the Song Dynasty, boat trips to Guilin were extremely prosperous; in the new century, the government has linked up the originally separated "rivers and lakes", realizing the aria of the Southern Song Dynasty lyricist Liu Kezhuang about Guilin - "Thousands of mountains stand around the field, and one water embraces the city! The city is surrounded by thousands of mountains, and the water flows around the city", making Guilin comparable to Venice, the city of water.
The two rivers and four lakes are another important part of Guilin's landscape.
The Two Rivers and Four Lakes include the Rong and Cedar Lake Scenic Area, the Gui Lake Scenic Area, the Mulong Lake Scenic Area, the Li River and the Peach Blossom River running through them, as well as numerous humanistic and historical sites dotted among them. During the day, you can walk through them to browse a variety of sculpture buildings, along the way you can view the Li River on both sides of the Elephant Trunk Hill, Fubo Hill, Folding Color Hill, Seven Star Hill, Old Man Hill, Baosi Hill and more than a dozen other famous mountains, and at night it is best to take a boat ride all over the sparkling water, the lake shore lights, dreamy, fantastic.
The most beautiful view is at the Banyan and Fir Lake Scenic Area, located in the center of Guilin City, named for the banyan and fir trees growing along the lake shore. The most conspicuous structures in the lake are the Twin Pagodas of the Sun and Moon, which are the tallest copper pagodas under water in the world. All the components of the towers, such as tiles, corners, door arches, sparrow, doors, windows, pillars and beams are made of steel casting and forging, and are equipped with exquisite copper murals, the daytime towers overlooking the two rivers and four lakes in full view, the night view from afar, the splendor of the magnificent, colorful.
After enjoying the water, then watch the mountains.
Guilin is known as "the view in the city, the city in the view", if you do not see, you will not imagine the meaning of these eight words.
(The view is in the city: the landscape, flowers and trees can be seen everywhere in the city)
(The city is in the view: the city buildings are surrounded by lush greenery)
What makes Guilin's view of the city indistinguishable from the city is the countless peaks that rise up from the ground, the most famous of which is Elephant Trunk Hill, the emblem of the city and the symbol of tourism in Guilin.
(Although many locals privately say there is nothing to see on Elephant Trunk Hill, tourists still flock here to take photos)
(A rock on the bank of the Yulong River in Yangshuo resembles an elephant trunk hill)
Why it is called "Elephant Trunk Hill" can be seen by looking at the shape of the hill, which is similar to an elephant trunk hill that stands by the river with its trunk out and drinks from the Li Li River. The elephant's trunk is stretched out on the side of the river, drinking from the Li River's sweet springs.
("Elephant" and "baby elephant" stand opposite to each other, playing in the water)
Besides the resemblance of the shape of the Elephant Trunk Hill, there is another magical place which is the big hole between the trunk and the elephant's legs, which is like a bright moon floating in the water, known as "Water and Moon Cave", and it shows the "Elephant Mountain Water and Moon Cave" here in the night. At night, there is a beautiful scene of "Water and Moon in Elephant Trunk Hill", in which the moon in the sky, the moon in the cave and the moon in the water are reflected in March, which is mesmerizing, and a poet of Song Dynasty described this strange scene as follows: "There is a bright moon under the water, and a bright moon floats on the water. Water flow moon does not go, the moon goes to the water is still flowing."
(Elephant Trunk Hill: Pictures from the Internet)
Bypassing Elephant Trunk Hill, you can get to the neighborhood of Shuiyue Cave, where there are more than 50 pieces of cliff carvings inscribed by famous writers, such as Lu You, Zhang Xiaoxiang, Fan Chengda, etc., most of which are praises of Guilin's landscapes, such as "The river is like a green belt, and the mountains are like jasper hairpins" by Han Yu of the Tang Dynasty, which was reportedly written by Xu Xiake during the Ming Dynasty in order to get the best of what he had to offer. It is said that Xu Xiake visited Shuiyue Cave three times during the Ming Dynasty in order to get the stone carvings.
Top of Elephant Mountain is the Puxian Pagoda, built in the Ming Dynasty, dedicated to the Bodhisattva Puxian. The mount of Puxian Bodhisattva is a white elephant, and the Puxian Pagoda was built on the top of Elephant Mountain to reflect this legend. There are only two pagodas in China dedicated to Puxian Bodhisattva, one on Mount Emei, the Taoist temple of Puxian, and the other here.
(Puxian Pagoda: it looks like a bottle from afar and is also known as the "Bottle Pagoda")
Atop Elephant Mountain, you can see the city of Guilin from afar, with a panoramic view of the water and mountains, and a thousand picturesque landscapes.
Unlike the lofty mountains of the western frontier or the famous mountains of the Central Plains hinterland, Guilin's mountains, though small, are superior to many and strange, and you can imagine any image in the rolling curves: camels, elephants, immortals, turtles ...... It's as if you're seeing a mountain system in miniature, with thousands of peaks competing for attention.
There are also some distinctive sculptures in the Elephant Mountain Scenic Area, some romantic, some mysterious.
(Romantic Couple)
(Mysterious Elephant Walled City)
In the center of the crisscrossing water network and starry hills of Guilin City, there is a strange peak that is distinctive from its name, Duxiu Peak, and the phrase, "Guilin has the most beautiful landscape in the world! The saying "The landscape of Guilin is superior to the rest of the world" first came from the cliff carvings under Duxiu Peak, and the place where Duxiu Peak is located is the King City of Jingjiang - the vassal palace of King Zhu Shouqian, the King of Jingjiang in the Ming Dynasty, as the saying goes, "Read all of the king's city to know Guilin". Starting from the King City, we will learn about the humanities of Guilin.