| | Qingyang Palace Opening time: 08:00 -18:00 | Admission fee: 5RMB |
Qingyang Palace is one of the most famous Taoist temples in China. It is conveniently located in the northwest part of  Chengdu. The temple was originally built in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), a period when Taoism was flourishing. Most of the parts of the temple that remain in existence are restorations from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), including Sanqing Hall, Doulao Hall, Hunyuan Palace, the Eight Trigrams Pavilion, and Wuji Palace. Many important exhibits of Taoist cultural relics are also on display in Qingyang Temple, such as the wooden engraving of the Dao Zang Ji Yao (Abstract of Collected Taoist Scriptures) and the stone sculpture of Patriarch Lu Dongbin, who was one of the Taoist Immortals in Chinese History. Wandering through the temple, you will find many locals and visitors eating, drinking tea and playing Mahjong at the temple's teahouse. This is a traditional and extremely popular pastime for the people of Chengdu. If you have time, joining the locals for a pleasurable afternoon at the teahouse is an excellent way to experience life in China off the beaten track. Thatched Cottage of Du Fu Opening time: 08:30 -17:30 | Admission fee: 60RMB |
 Du Fu, a very famous poet, lived in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Just as its name implies, the Thatched Cottage of Du Fu was his home more than a thousand years ago. During his four years there, Du Fu composed more than 240 poems that are considered to be precious national treasures. Nowadays the Thatched Cottage of Du Fu covers a total area of 24 hectares, and is the combination of both Fan'an Temple in the east and the Plum Garden in the west. Construction inside The Thatched Cottage of Du Fu belongs to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) style, with gardens in the unique compound style of traditional Chinese gardening. Inside the thatched cottage: gardens are quiet; streams are winding; bridges and pavilions are interwoven; trees reach for the sky; plum trees and bamboos stand side by side; and classical architectural styles bring you a strong cultural atmosphere. Besides, whenever you walk here, you will feel uplifted, because the plum blossoms in spring, the lotus flowers in summer, the chrysanthemums in autumn and the orchids in winter will bring you the enjoyment of both man-made beauty and nature's romance. Today Thatched cottage of Du Fu is a shrine to Chinese literature and a commemorative museum in the form of a traditional garden. Wuhou Temple Opening time: 08:30 -17:30 | Admission fee: 60RMB |
Situated in the south of Chengdu, Marquis Wu's Temple is a memorial temple for Zhuge Liang, Prime Minister of kingdom Shu in Three-Kingdom dynasty. First built in Jin dynasty (6th century A.D.), the temple was merged into Zhaolie temple (namely the temple of Liu Bei, the king of kingdom Shu) in early Ming dynasty. Covering an area of 56 mu, Marquis Wu's Temple consists of the front door, the second door, Liu Bei Palace, Mid-hall, Zhuge Liang Palace and the tomb of Liu Bei. The most valuable cultural relic within the temple is the stele set up in 809. This huge stele 367-centimeter high and 95-centimeter wide is called the Triple-Success Stele. The three successes are: an article written by Pei Du, a famous minister of the Tang Dynasty who served four emperors in succession, calligraphy by Liu Gongquan, one of the most brilliant calligraphers in Chinese history, and a statement about the morality and achievements of Zhuge Liang.
Wenshu Monastery Opening time: 08:00 -18:00 | Admission fee: 5RMB |
Wenshu Monastery is the best-preserved Buddhist temple in Chengdu. Initially built in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), Wenshu Monastery was once called Xinxiang Temple.  Cultural relics are the highlights of Wenshu Monastery. Since the Tang and Song dynasties, over 500 pieces of painting and calligraphy by celebrities have been stored here. In the Sutra-Preservation Pavilion, many famous handwriting exhibits, paintings, and artwork are restored. These precious works of art were created by renowned Chinese painters and calligraphers, including Zhang Daqian, Zheng Banqiao, and Feng Zikai. Of all the precious relics, a piece of the broken skull of Xuan Zhang, a renowned monk of the Tang Dynasty, is the rarest. Another treasure is a delicate jade Buddha statue brought from Burma to China in 1922 by Xing Lin, a Buddhist monk who walked the whole distance. In addition, the monastery houses some 300 Buddha statues of various materials including iron, bronze, stone, wood, and jade, some gloriously painted. In addition to its cultural relics, Wenshu Monastery is famous for its exquisite garden and solemn halls. Tourists and locals can enjoy tea in the Tea House while listening to music by folk artists. Wangjiang Park Opening time: 08:00 -17:00 | Admission fee: 20RMB |
Located on the south bank of Jinjiang River, Wangjiang Tower Park is one of three famous cultural relics in Chengdu, along with Wuhou Memorial Temple and the Thatched Cottage of Du Fu. While Wuhou Temple honors the legendary minister of Shu, Zhuge Liang, and Du Fu Cottage honors the Sage of Poetry, Wangjiang Tower is dedicated to a woman, Xue Tao, a poet in the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Since in the past women lacked social status, the story of Xue Tao is all the more fascinating. Xue Tao was born in a turbulent society so her father named her "tao" wave in Chinese. She led a hard life after her father's death, eventually becoming a singer. She was versatile and beautiful. History records that she wrote 500 poems and that her contemporaries greatly admired her. Bamboos will get your attention as you enter the park. Xue Tao loved bamboo; over 150 kinds of bamboos from home and abroad grow here in her honor. Wangjiang Tower Park with its elegant garden of bamboo is the finest in Chengdu. The 39-meter high Wangjiang Tower is the greatest building in the park. It is also called Chongli Tower, derived from an ancient article describing Chengdu as beautiful and grand. Of the four stories of the tower, the upper two are octagonal while the lower two are square with every eave layer exquisitely decorated with sculptures. Visitors can enjoy tea made from Xue Tao Well water, read poems and couplets left by celebrities, and become intoxicated by the ethereal surrounding.
Jinsha Site Museum
Opening time: 08:00 -18:00 | Admission fee: 80RMB |
Jinsha Site, found in clearly 2001, was situated northesat of Chengdu, Sichuan, with an area of five square kilometers and a history of 3000 years. Important relies were discovered, including large-sized structure foundation, scarifice-offering area, regular residential sites, graveyards etc. Unearthed rare culture foundation, scarifice-offering area, regular residential sites, graveyards etc. unearthed rare cultural relics cover: gold bronze, jade, ivory and lacquer wares, approximately 6000 pieces. In addition, there are round about thounsands pottery sherds, tons of ivory and about 1000 buck teeth of wild boars and antlers, and they are only a "corner" of the entire relics.  The Ruins Hall: It is the excavation site for the events for large-scale scarific-offering to the gods. Best-preserved are the memorial ceremony sites and a collection of sacrificial articles left behind by the ancestors. Meanwhile, it is an archacological site under uniterrupted excavation. Visitiors may at almost Zero distrance the process of the excavation on site.
The Exhibition Hall: On the display are duplications of the eco-envitonment, life scenes, sacrifice offering in the Jinsha period in addition to a focus on elaborate relies unearthed at Jinsha Site. Also, there is a 3-D cinema in the Exhibition Hall. The Exhibition Hall is the biggest size and the highest level of exposition in China. Tourist Service center: Services and facilities are available in restaurant, shopping outlets, enquriy, and business center, etc. Jinsha Theatre: Art performance relating to Jinsha culture are hosted all the year round. The musical Jinsha thrills all the audiences through its explanatory notes on the glamour and splendor of the ancient Shu Kingdom. Garden Area: The rest of the area, largely covered with greenery, is environmentally attractive. It boasts such cultural landscape as the beautifully displayed Sunbird, Jade Road and Block Colour Wood etc.
The Sunbird: the sculpture is a logo of China's culture heritage.
The Black Colour Wood: otherwise known as Yinchenmu Wood, referring specially to those rare ancient trees. Thounsands of years old, hidden deep in the old river bed of the Chengdu plain. They had later turned into a specious quality of neither wood which turns out to be hard and exquiste, and clearly veined.
The ancients commented: We'd rather have a cubic meter of Black Colour Wood than a box of jewels. |
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