All posts tagged: travel

Places to Go: Beijing Botanical Garden

Published by Sula H.

Situated in the northwestern outskirts of Beijing, the Beijing Botanical Garden covers an area of 564,000 square meters. While the garden is counted among the major tourist attractions of the city, it also is an important base for science education and research. The Botanical Garden features many different areas, including a lake, the Perennial Garden, Peony Garden, Ornamental Peach Garden, and various other gardens featuring camellias, bamboo, tree peonies, ornamental cherries and many others. The most important attraction within the Garden probably is the Conservatory, a greenhouse,  about 10.000 square meters in size. It holds the Rain Forest House, the Orchid House, Desert Garden House, and other various exhibitions. Several thousand differing plant species can be found throughout the gardens, some of them famous or very rare specimen. The metasequoia, for example, is one of these rare species. Discovered in the 1940s, these fast-growing, large trees that belong to the same family as the famous Californian Giant Sequoia, have been cultivated in one area of the Botanical Garden.

Places to Go: Zhujiajiao Water Town (Shanghai)

Published by Sula H.

Some call it the “Venice of Shanghai”: Zhujiajiao. Located on the outskirts of Shanghai, this ancient town is characterized by water. Several rivers and canals run through the center of the town, lined by ancient buildings from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. 36 bridges span the waterways, the longest being Fangsheng Bridge where tourists can buy fish and release them into the stream for ‘good luck’. Probably the most featured bridge of Zhujiajiao is Lang Bridge; the only wooden bridge in town that spans the water like a narrow corridor. The town has been well developed for tourists. Visitors can tour the canals on little boats operated like the famous gondolas in Venice. Narrow alleys accommodate countless stores in which visitors can buy all sorts of souvenirs, handcrafted local pieces of art as well as the usual goods you can get anywhere else in China. Zhujiajiao is also known for its gardens, the largest one being Kezhi Garden, which is also open to the public. Kezhi Garden an extensive enclosure featuring ancient buildings, artificial landscaping, …

Places To Go: Mt. Jigongshan (Xinyang)

Published by Sula H.

Not far from Xinyang, about 40 km south of the city, Mt. Jigongshan is located. Jigongshan literally means “Rooster Mountain.” It’s been said that looking at the peak, it gives the impression of a crying rooster, and that’s how the mountain got its name. With its peak rising about 814m above sea level, Jigongshan borders in a transitional region between the subtropical and the warm moderate zone, making it an ideal getaway for summer. The constant cooling breeze has made Rooster Mountain such a comfortable place to be in the heat of summer, that it was discovered as a perfect summer resort early in the last century already. Such illustrious people as Sun Yat-sen (the first president of the Republic of China), Chiang Kai-shek and other former high ranking government officials have sought refuge on this mountain. As a result, there are a number of villas and lodgings in various architectural styles which were built on top of the mountain and can be visited today. Some of the buildings have even been turned into museums …

Places to Go: Nan Wan Lake (Xinyang)

Published by Sula H.

West of the city of Xinyang, the Nan Wan Reservoir spreads about 20 miles wide and 50 miles long – a beautiful nature retreat. Surrounded by mountains and woods, and strewn with countless little islands, Nan Wan has much to offer to the visitor – cruises on the lake, cultural insights into the traditions of tea drinking – after all, Xinyang is famous for its tea – and for those who love to get out into nature, the lake is a perfect escape. The most popular pastime for visitors is the cruise to different islands: the bird island, monkey island and the tea island. Each island in itself has its own attractions. The bird island is spanned with a large canopy holding quite a variety of birds, local and foreign. The monkey island hosts dozens of “wild” monkeys, and the tea island with its beautifully landscaped gardens, tea plantations and pagodas has its own charms. Visitors can stroll  all over the island and watch tea drinking ceremonies performed in one of the exhibition centers.

Places to Go: Qian Men (Beijing)

Published by Sula H.

“Qian Men” means “Front Gate” and refers to a tower right in front of the Forbidden City, just south of Tian AnMen Square. It used to be the main gate into the city and once was part of the city wall, when it still existed. Now, it stands isolated – an ancient tower (in fact there are two towers that together formed the “Front Gate”), a distant reminder of Beijing’s former days. Qian Men not only marks the southern boundary of Tian AnMen Square, it also stands for an old Beijing district that has been renovated and restored in recent years, and has become quite a tourist magnet. Famous for its ancient looking houses hosting countless stores, among which there are many international brands and labels, Qian Men is especially beautiful at night, when all the fronts of the buildings are illuminated with all sorts of lights. There are lots of hotels and hostels in the area and the later it gets in the day, the more crowded the streets get with Chinese as well …