China - Beijing - Fayuan Temple

The Buddha statue of the Pilu Hall in the Fayuan Temple.

Sent by Nic from China.

Fayuan Temple (Temple of the Origin of the Dharma) is situated in the south of Jiaozi Hutong, Xicheng District of Beijing. With a long history of more than 1,300 years, it is the oldest Buddhist temple in Beijing. In addition, the Buddhist Academy of China and Buddhist Library and Museum of China are located inside, making it an important place to study the Buddhist culture and cultivate young monks. With its time-honored history, distinctive cultural significance as well as the rich historical relics displayed, the temple is greatly appreciated by visitors. In 2000, the Taiwanese writer Li Ao published a novel, "Martyrs' Shrine: the Story of the Reform Movement of 1898 in China" (another name is Beijing Fayuan Si), set right in this temple, which made the temple even more famous. Since then, more and more Buddhist believers as well as tourists come to visit it year after year.

Fayuan Temple was originally built to mourn the dead soldiers by Emperor Taizong (598-649) of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). When finished in 696, Empress Wu Zetian (624-705) gave it the name Minzhong Temple, which means a temple to mourn the late loyal people. However, due to flood, earthquake, war and other damages, the temple has been destroyed, rebuilt, and renamed several times. It was not until the Emperor Yongzheng's throne in the Qing Dynasty (1636-1912) that it was greatly repaired and then renamed as Fayuan Temple, which has been retained to the present day. In fact, since the temple was first built to recall the dead soldiers, there were several loyal people who were associated to it in different dynasties. During the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Xie Fangde (1226-1289), official of the fallen former Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279), starved himself to death in the temple as he would not surrender to the new rulers. In the late Qing Dynasty, after the leaders of the Reform Movement in 1898 had been killed, their coffins were stored in this temple for some time. For more than a thousand years, the temple has witnessed the change of history (read more).

China - Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing

China's World Heritage List

Temple of Heaven: an Imperial Sacrificial Altar in Beijing

Sent by Mikaela from Zhengzhou, China.

The Temple of Heaven, founded in the first half of the 15th century, is a dignified complex of fine cult buildings set in gardens and surrounded by historic pine woods. In its overall layout and that of its individual buildings, it symbolizes the relationship between earth and heaven – the human world and God's world – which stands at the heart of Chinese cosmogony, and also the special role played by the emperors within that relationship.

The Temple of Heaven is an axial arrangement of Circular Mound Altar to the south open to the sky with the conically roofed Imperial Vault of Heaven immediately to its north. This is linked by a raised sacred way to the circular, three-tiered, conically roofed Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests further to the north. Here at these places the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties as interlocutors between humankind and the celestial realm offered sacrifice to heaven and prayed for bumper harvests. To the west is the Hall of Abstinence where the emperor fasted after making sacrifice. The whole is surrounded by a double-walled, pine-treed enclosure. Between the inner and outer walls to the west are the Divine Music Administration hall and the building that was the Stables for Sacrificial Animals. Within the complex there are a total of 92 ancient buildings with 600 rooms. It is the most complete existing imperial sacrificial building complex in China and the world's largest existing building complex for offering sacrifice to heaven (read more).

China - Terra-Cotta Middle-Rank Officer

A terra-cotta middle-rank officer.

Sent by FuPing from Beijing, China.

A terra-cotta middle-rank officer is a life-sized statue from the Terracotta Army in China, distinguished from higher-ranking generals and lower-ranking soldiers by a specific set of uniform and armor details, such as armor that covers most of the upper body but not as heavily as a general's, and a height that is generally between that of a basic soldier and a general. These figures vary in height, hairstyle, and uniform, reflecting their rank and function within the army.  

Middle-ranking officers hold a rank above the common soldiers but below the generals. Their specific roles and uniforms reflect their position in the military hierarchy.Their armor is typically detailed and covers the upper body, with some examples having heavy armor covering the upper arms and most of the body. The specific type of armor, like the presence or absence of shin pads or the type of trousers, can vary to indicate differences in rank, function, and position in formation. 

Middle-ranking officers are often depicted as having a solid build. Their uniforms and hairstyles also vary based on their specific rank and duty. For example, one replica is based on a lieutenant officer who wears heavy armor and holds a sword and another long weapon. 

China - Jiangsu Province - Suzhou City Wall

Suzhou City Wall.

Sent by Gengxu from Dalian, China.

The Suzhou City Wall was the city wall that once surrounded Suzhou, a major city in southeastern Jiangsu Province in eastern China.

The state of Wu is recorded fortifying its capital of Wu (modern Suzhou) in 514 BC. The original city wall had only one entrance, the Pan Gate. Most of the current fortifications date to around 1662, when they were rebuilt under the early Qing dynasty to repair damage from the conquest of the Ming. Most of the wall was demolished in 1958.

Before its demolition, the city wall was 15,204 m (49,882 ft) long. Today, only 2,072 m (6,798 ft) remain (read more).

China - Jiangsu - Nanjing Fuzimiao

The Confucius Temple.

Sent by superqq87 from China.

Nanjing Fuzimiao (Chinese: 南京夫子庙) or Fuzimiao (Chinese: 夫子庙; lit. 'Confucian Temple'), is a Confucius Temple and former site of imperial examination hall located in southern Nanjing City on banks of the Qinhuai River. It is now a popular tourist attraction with pedestrian shopping streets around the restored temple buildings.

Nanjing Confucius Temple is located in Qinhuai District, Nanjing City, on the north bank of the Qinhuai River Gongyuan Street, Jiangnan Gongyuan west, located in the Confucius temple Qinhuai scenery belt core area, namely Nanjing Confucius Temple, Nanjing Confucian Temple, Wenxuanwang Temple, for the place of worship and sacrifice of Confucius, It is the first national highest institution of learning in China, one of the four major temples of literature in China, the hub of ancient Chinese culture, the place where Nanking history and humanities gather and is not only the cultural and educational centre of Nanjing in the Ming and Qing dynasties but also the cultural and educational architectural complex that ranks first in the southeastern provinces.

In first year of Jianwu reign of the Jin dynasty (CE 317), Nanking Imperial University was founded, initially on northern bank of Qinhuai River, and in the third year of Xiankang (CE 337) the campus extended to southern bank. Temple of Confucius was firstly constructed in the national school in the ninth year of Taiyuan (CE 384). The place was later destroyed. It was destroyed by fire during the Jianyan years of the Southern Song dynasty. In the first year of Jingyou during the Song dynasty (CE 1034), Confucius Temple was newly constructed on former site of imperial university, and was called Fuzimiao area along with Nanking Fuxue. The place became Imperial University again in 1365 in the early year of the Ming dynasty, and sixteen years later recovered to be the campus of Fuxue. During the Qing dynasty, there were two Xianxue (county schools of Shangyuan and Jiangning) in Fuzimiao area. In the end of Qing a primary school jointly sponsored by counties of Nanjing (Jiangning Fu) was established there. The current buildings date from the 19th century, in the Qing dynasty, with additions made since then. The temple lost all financial support by the state as a result of the revolution of 1911. During the late 1920s to 1931 and again in 1932 it was used as army barracks for troops the KMT regime and left in a dilapidated state. Some halls were used as picture gallery. In 1985 Fuzimiao area was restored (read more).

China - The Changbai Mountains

Paektu Mountain, also known as Baektu Mountain or Changbai Mountain, whichis an active stratovolcano on the border between China and North Korea.

Sent by Danbo from Sichuan Province, China.

The Changbai Mountains (simplified Chinese: 长白山脉; traditional Chinese: 長白山脈; lit. 'long white mountain range') are a major mountain range in East Asia that extends from the Northeast Chinese provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning, across the China-North Korea border (41°41' to 42°51'N; 127°43' to 128°16'E), to the North Korean provinces of Ryanggang and Chagang. They are also referred to as the Šanggiyan Mountains in the Manchu language, or the Great Paekdu in Korean. Most of its peaks exceed 2,000 m (6,600 ft) in height, with the tallest summit being Paektu Mountain at 2,744 m (9,003 ft), which contains the Heaven Lake, the highest volcanic crater lake in the world at a surface elevation of 2,189.1 m (7,182 ft). The protected area Longwanqun National Forest Park is located within the vicinity of the mountain range.

The mountain was first recorded in the Classic of Mountains and Seas under the name Buxian Shan (Chinese: 不咸山). It is also called Shanshan Daling (Chinese: 單單大嶺) in the Book of the Later Han. In the New Book of Tang, it was called Taibai Shan (Chinese: 太白山). The current Chinese name Changbai Shan was first used in the Liao dynasty (916–1125) of the Khitans and then the Jin dynasty (1115–1234) of the Jurchens (read more).

China - Speed Train "Harmony"

A high-speed train from China's railway system, specifically a CRH (China Railway High-speed) train, also known as a "Harmony" (和谐号) train.

Sent by Fei Mo from Beijing, China.

Hexie (Chinese: 和谐号; pinyin: Héxié hào; lit. 'Harmony'), also known as the CRH series EMU, is an umbrella term for the multiple unit high-speed and higher-speed trains operated by China Railway under the China Railway High-speed brand. All series of Hexie are based on foreign-developed technology and later manufactured locally in China through technology transfer licenses, with the ultimate goal of China acquiring the know-how and capability to produce high-speed rail trains.

The Harmony series does not belong to any single platform, instead encompassing all high-speed trains in China with roots in foreign technology, specifically CRH1, CRH2, CRH3 and CRH5. Although later variants of Hexie such as CRH380A were designed by Chinese companies, they are still classified as CRH due to incorporation of foreign technology.

In 2007, China's Ministry of Railways drafted a plan for China's future high-speed network. Bombardier Transportation, Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Alstom and later Siemens joined the high-speed train manufacturing project that later became known as Harmony. Forming joint-ventures with Chinese company CNR and CSR, these four foreign companies signed agreements with China to manufacture high-speed trains for China as well as provide assistance for Chinese companies to manufacture train cars locally in the future (read more).

China - Sichuan - Zigong UNESCO Global Geopark

Traditional salt well structure in Zigong, Sichuan Province, China.

Sent by Huang Peijin from Zigong, China.

Zigong UNESCO Global Geopark lies in Zigong City, Sichuan Province, China, in the Asia-Pacific region. Zigong UNESCO Global Geopark belongs to the Ziliujing Depression of the Sichuan syncline on the Yangtze Platform. It connects with the southern margin of Weiyuan-Longnusi uplift on the north, the southern Sichuan lower folded zone on the southeast and the Liangshan folded zone on the southwest. The geoheritage in Zigong UNESCO Global Geopark is dominated by the extremely abundant dinosaur fossils and other vertebrate fossils, the typical Jurassic section and complete salt production relics. Most of this geoheritage is of national and international significance in scientific research. The widely distributed Jurassic terrestrial strata in the UNESCO Global Geopark yields a great amount of dinosaur and other vertebrate fossils, commonly forming large-scale taphonomic assemblages. Zigong UNESCO Global Geopark is rich in salt mines, with a production history of about two thousand years. A variety of the salt industry relics have been well preserved (read more).

China - Shanghai - Pudong Financial District

A cityscape with a prominent river and several tall skyscrappers, including the Shanghai Tower and the Shanghai World Financial Center, in Pudong financial district in Shanghai, China.

Sent by Yuan Cheng from Shanghai, China.

Pudong is a district of Shanghai located east of the Huangpu, the river which flows through central Shanghai. The name Pudong was originally applied to the Huangpu's east bank, directly across from the west bank or Puxi, the historic city center. It now refers to the broader Pudong New Area, a state-level new area which extends all the way to the East China Sea.

The traditional area of Pudong is now home to the Lujiazui Finance and Trade Zone and the Shanghai Stock Exchange and many of Shanghai's best-known buildings, such as the Oriental Pearl Tower, the Jin Mao Tower, the Shanghai World Financial Center, and the Shanghai Tower. These modern skyscrapers directly face Puxi's historic Bund, a remnant of former foreign concessions in China. The rest of the new area includes the Port of Shanghai, the Shanghai Expo and Century Park, Zhangjiang Hi-Tech Park, Shanghai Pudong International Airport, the Jiuduansha Wetland Nature Reserve, Nanhui New City, and the Shanghai Disney Resort.

Pudong—literally "The East Bank of the Huangpu River"—originally referred only to the less-developed land across from Shanghai's Old City and foreign concessions. The area was mainly farmland and only slowly developed, with warehouses and wharfs near the shore administered by the districts of Puxi on the west bank: Huangpu, Yangpu, and Nanshi. Pudong was originally established as a county in 1958 until 1961 when the county was split among Huangpu, Yangpu, Nanshi, Wusong and Chuansha County (read more).

China - Beijing - Hutong People

Hutong People in Beijing.

Sent by Ying Huang from Beijing, China.

Few cities can match Beijing for big-hitting historical sites. From the Forbidden City to the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace and the incomparable Great Wall, there’s a richness of culture to be found in China’s capital that’s hard to beat. But beyond the main attractions, it’s the Beijing hutong (胡同), the city’s ancient residential alleyways, that leave the deepest impression. 

These grey-brick, tree-shaded small streets are where local life unfolds: a game of xiangqi (Chinese chess) drawing a crowd; songbirds in cages; fruit-sellers and scrap collectors; a cleaver-sharpener doing the rounds. These residential areas are where you’ll find an older generation living their lives in traditional dwellings, removed from the breakneck pace of change in the rest of the city.

More recently, multiple hutong have become homes to hip cafés, cocktail bars and boutique hotels, meaning there are even more alleyway gems for the curious traveller to discover (read more).

China - Xinjiang - Kizil Buddhist Caves

Kizil Buddhist Caves

The Kizil Caves were inscribed in 2014 on the UNESCO World Heritage List as part of the Silk Roads: the Routes Network of Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor.

Sent by Jingtairan from Shenyang, China.

The Kizil Caves (also romanized as Qizil or Qyzyl; Uyghur: قىزىل مىڭ ئۆي, lit. 'The Thousand Red Houses'; Chinese: 克孜尔千佛洞; lit. 'Kizil Caves of the Thousand Buddhas') are a set of Buddhist rock-cut caves located near Kizil Township (克孜尔乡; Kèzī'ěr Xiāng) in Baicheng County, Aksu Prefecture, Xinjiang, China. The site is located on the northern bank of the Muzat River 65 kilometres (75 km by road) west of Kucha. This area was a commercial hub of the Silk Road. The caves have an important role in Central Asian art and in the Silk Road transmission of Buddhism, and are said to be the earliest major Buddhist cave complex in China, with development occurring between the 3rd and 8th centuries CE. The caves of Kizil are the earlier of their type in China, and their model was later adopted in the construction of Buddhist caves further east. Another name for the site has been Ming-oi (明屋), although this term is now mainly used for the site of Shorchuk to the east (read more).

the matching stamp

China - Gansu Province - Mogao Caves

Motifs of the craftsmanship of Sui Dynasty (581-618) in Cave No. 107.

Sent by Han Tong from P.R. China.

Carved into the cliffs above the Dachuan River, the Mogao Caves south-east of the Dunhuang oasis, Gansu Province, comprise the largest, most richly endowed, and longest used treasure house of Buddhist art in the world. It was first constructed in 366AD and represents the great achievement of Buddhist art from the 4th to the 14th century. 492 caves are presently preserved, housing about 45,000 square meters of murals and more than 2,000 painted sculptures. Cave 302 of the Sui dynasty contains one of the oldest and most vivid scenes of cultural exchanges along the Silk Road, depicting a camel pulling a cart typical of trade missions of that period. Caves 23 and 156 of the Tang dynasty show workers in the fields and a line of warriors respectively and in the Song dynasty Cave 61, the celebrated landscape of Mount Wutai is an early example of artistic Chinese cartography, where nothing has been left out – mountains, rivers, cities, temples, roads and caravans are all depicted (read more).

China - Chongqing Province - Dazu Rock Carvings

Partial view of a group of stones sculptures Mount Baoding.

Sent by Han Tong from P.R. China.

The steep hillsides in the Dazu area near Chongqing, contain an exceptional series of five clusters of rock carvings dating from the 9th to 13th centuries. The largest cluster at Beishan contains two groups along a cliff face 7-10m high stretching for around 300m. There are more than 10,000 carvings dating from the late 9th to the mid-12th century which depict themes of Tantric Buddhism and Taoism. Inscriptions give insight to the history, religious beliefs, dating and the identification of historical figures. The late 11thcentury Song dynasty carvings at Shizhuanshan extend over 130m and depict Buddhist, Taoist and Confucian images in a rare tripartite arrangement. The Song dynasty carvings at Shimenshan dating from the first half of the 12th century extend along 72m and integrate Buddhist and Taoist subjects. At Nanshan the Song dynasty carvings of the 12th century extend over a length of 86m and depict mostly Taoist subjects. The culmination in terms of expression of Tantric Buddhism is found in the U shaped gorge at Baodingshan which contains two groups of carvings dating from the late 12th to the mid-13th century near the Holy Longevity Monastery. The very large group to the west stretches for about 500 metres and comprises 31 groups of carved figures depicting themes from Tantric Buddhism as well scenes of herdsmen and ordinary life (read more).

China - Liaoning Province - Shenyang

The Impression of Shenyang.
The Charm of Shenyang Landscape

Sent by David from Shenyang in Liaoning Province, China.

Shenyang, formerly known by its Manchu name Mukden, is a sub-provincial city in China and the provincial capital of Liaoning province. It is the province's most populous city with a population of 9,070,093 as of the 2020 census, also making it the largest city in Northeast China by urban population, and the second-largest by metropolitan population (behind Harbin). The Shenyang metropolitan area is one of the major megalopolises in China, with a population of over 23 million. The city's administrative region includes the ten metropolitan districts, the county-level city of Xinmin, and the counties of Kangping and Faku (read more).

China - Jiangsu Province - Zhouzhuang Town Exploration Guide

PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA - KUNSHAN
ZHOUZHUANG TOWN EXPLORATION GUIDE

Sent by Monna from Kunshan in Jiangsu Province, China.

Zhouzhuang (Chinese: 周庄; pinyin: Zhōuzhuāng; Wu: Tseu-zaon) is a water town known for its canals in Jiangsu province, China. It is located within the administrative area of Kunshan, 30 km southeast of the city centre of Suzhou.

Zhouzhuang is a popular tourist destination, classified as a AAAAA scenic area by the China National Tourism Administration. It is noted for its profound cultural background, well preserved ancient residential houses, and elegant watery views. A 2017 article in the Smithsonian Magazine described Zhouzhuang as "the most famous and most commercialized ancient water town in China," noting that its architecture "dates back more than 900 years, with about 60 original brick archways and 100 original courtyards." It has also been called "Venice of the East".

CNN ranked Zhouzhuang the third most beautiful water town in China in 2017 and included it in its 2019 collection of Asia's 13 most picturesque towns (read more).

China - Guandong Province - Pan Tang Ancient Village

With a history of more than 900 years, Pan Tang Ancient Village, is the only remaining intact of Qing Dynasty rural settlement in Guangzhou. There are also many historical and cultural landscapes nearby, such as Renwei Ancient Temple, Litchi Bay, Wen Tower, etc., as well as intangible cultural heritage such as Cantonese Opera, three carvings, one color, on folkecological parke embroidery, and martial arts. It is the most Guangzhou.

I have no idea who sent this postcard from China.

In the southern city of Guangzhou, there is an ancient village called Pan Tang, with a history that dates back at least 900 years. On the first day of the Chinese New Year, locals perform lion dances to bring blessings of happiness, health and prosperity. 

Despite being on the banks of a popular lake, the remarkable heritage of the village has largely gone unnoticed in the modern era. But that's slowly changing (read more).