Plan your Datong Tour? If you are in the process of hotel booking on your short trip to Datong, a basic idea of Datong city layout is essential in finding a perfect place to stay in Datong. Of course, your final decision of for Datong hotel booking also depends on your budget and personal taste….
Plan your Pingyao Tour? Located in central Shanxi Province, about 100 km south of Taiyuan, Pingyao is a tiny ancient city built in the Western Zhou Dynasty. It boasts a history of over 2,700 years. There is no charming landscape. No green mountain or clear water. What is unique in Pingyao is the well-preserved ancient…
Deshengbu Fortress (得胜堡) was one of the 52 fortresses built along the Datong Great Wall in Ming Dynasty ( 1368-1644). Deshengbu, literally “Victory Fort”, was built 1 km south of the pass connecting Datong and Inner Mongolia, an strategically important garrison town in Ming Dynasty. Today the major highways linking Datong and Hohhot still run…
Plan your Pingyao tour? If you are not pressed for time when visit Pingyao, a glimpse of Shuanglin Temple (双林寺) is highly recommended. Shuangling Temple was a UNESCO World Heritage site along with the Ancient City of Ping Yao and Zhen Guo Temple listed in 1997. How to get to Shuanglin Temple Shuanglin Temple is…
The rammed earth Great Wall at Zhenchuan （镇川口长城）is an important section of Datong Great Wall built in Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). Zhenchuankou literally means “Control Mountain Pass” and the wall that was built to guide the pass linking Datong and Inner Mongolia. In Ming Dynasty, the Mongol nomads often raided Datong through the pass at Zhenchuankou….
Zhenbianbu Fortress ( 镇边堡）was one of the five most important forts along Datong Outer Great Wall built in Ming Dynasty ( 1368-1644). The fort was originally built with earth walls in 1539 during the reign of Jiajing Emperor in Ming Dynasty. In 1583 the earth walls surrounding Zhenbianbu Fortress was reconstructed with bricks and stones….
Shoukoubu Fortress ( 守口堡） was once one of an essential fort along the Ming-era Datong Great Wall. “Shoukoubu” ( 守口堡) literally means “Defending the Ravine Fort”. Here there is a valley or ravine in the mountain, a mountainous corridor connecting the Inner Mongolia and Datong ( Shanxi). The ravine was an vulnerable area easy…
If you plan your Shanxi tour or Pingyao tour in particular, you should not miss a side trip to the ancient Qikou Town( 碛口镇, or Qikouzhen as recognized by Google Map). Qikou Town is a rarity of well-preserved ancient town in the style of Ming and Qing Dynasty (1368 – 1911). Unlike the noisy and…