Chongqing has a couple of names. Houses and apartment blocks built half way up

mountains from an undulating pattern, Chongqing is, therefore, called "the Mountain City". Standing at the confluence of the Jialing and Yangtze rivers,

it is thus called "the River Town" as well.

The night view of Chongqing is very famous. Soon after the dusk,

myriad twinkling lights will soon greet the eyes. Consisted of the light of street lamps,

the dazzling stream of light looks just like bright pearls. The panorama has fully

demonstrated the majestic feature of a mountain city. Standing on the Kanjiang

Pavilion located on the top of Eling Park, one is sure to enjoy more than the eye

could take in.

The majestic construction of the People's Great Hall is the landmark of Chongqing.

The whole building displays elegant design, superb craft and the harmonious

disposition of colors. Especially the dome above the front gate, a typical architectural

creation in Chinese antique flavor, is highly praised by the tourists from abroad

and home.

The central part of the city is located on a peninsula-shaped ridge, commanded

by Loquat Hill and Eling Ridge. It is overlaid with buildings climbing the hills and

roads snaking their way among the hills. With Chaotianmen Gate in the east and

Futuguan Pass in the west, the terrain gives an altitude difference of as many as

220 meters, the lowest being 160 meters above sea level and the highest, 360

meters above sea level. Hence the saying "Nine Gates and Eighteen Ladders".

And now, there appear automatic ladders and cable-cars facilities in many

important places. Besides, There are 8 bridges linking the connection between

the opposite banks of the two rivers and the city proper. At present, another

3 bridges are under construction.

Chongqing is a city fully of cultural relics, historical sites and scenic spots.

In the 13th century, the great general Monka, called "Whip of God" in the

west, was seriously hurt at Diaoyucheng in the outskirts of Chongqing and

died there soon after. Now there remains only an ancient battlefield for people

to visit.

During the World War II(1937-1945), the Chinese government moved from

Nanjing to Chongqing and made the latter a war-time capital. As the site

of second peace negotiations held between the Chiang Kai-shek Nationalist

Party and the

Chinese Communist Party and the seat of headquarters of US Forces in

China-Burma- India Theater, Chongqing has been affected to many changes

of political events. Some sites as the former thatched-cottage of Gen. C.

Marshall, the Museum of Gen. J.W. Stilwell, the former residence of Chiang

Kai-shek, the dwelling place of Madam Sun Yat-sun, the site of Provisional

Government of the Republic of Korea, the Red Crag Village left over from

the war are well preserved.

Three Gorges

The Yangtze River is famous for its historical sites and enchanting scenic spots.

The Three Gorges Cruise is most attractive.

Being famous for a majestic view of the Qutang Gorge, the deep and quite

canyon of the Wuxia Gorge and the dangerous torrents and shoals of the

Xiling Gorge, the Three Gorges are the fine scenic spots of the worldwide

level. Numerous scenic lookouts as the bright jewels adorn the Three Gorges

forming a beautiful gallery of landscape. It looks as if a fairyland with the cruise

on board along the section of the Yangtze River. A tour of china will be

incomplete without a tour of the Yangtze River

Dazu Grottoes

Built continuously from the first year of the reign of Emperor Yonghui of the

Tang Dynasty

(650) to the Qing Dynasty, Dazu Stone Carvings'Grottoes represent a beautiful

gem

in the treasure trove of grotto arts in China.

Located in Dazu County, 81 km by express way, west of the city proper of Chongqing,

the stone carvings of Dazu, chiefly consisting of Buddhists images, are the art of religious

nature. More than fifty thousand figure statues are scattered over 75 places. Those carved

out of the rocks at Beishan, Baodingshan, Nanshan, Shizuanshan and

Shimenshan are the most concentrated in number, the largest in scale, t

he finest in craftsmanship and the richest in content. In 1961, they appeared

on the list of the first group of important cultural relics under state protection

as announced by the State Council and in 1999 it was inscribed on the World

Cultural Heritage List by the UNESCO.

All the cliffside carvings, ingeniously conceived with a great originality,

are well-known for their variety in subject matter, richness in content,

and their co-existence of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. The

unfathomable Buddhist theology was combined with folkloric life stories

easy to understand making people experience the temperament and interest

of the laical world in the"bounds of Buddha

Nevertheless, the stone carvings of Dazu Grottoes differ somewhat from

the stone sculpture produced in the previous period. Emphasizing on

both the law of aesthetic standards and

the law of art form, the outstanding practice in Dazu was regarded

as a good example to promote the advance of the grotto art from

chiseling to cliffside carving. Apart from being an important component

of China's grotto art, it is a glorious chapter in the history of worldwide

grotto art during the years from the 9th to 13th centuries.

Hot Springs

There are ten springs. Although the temperature of the water in the park is a

constant 35

95.0 ?H -98.6 ?H ),the water contains alkali minerals that are considered as

having beneficial medicinal properties. It is said to be effective in curing arthritis

and skin diseases.After from a standard swimming pool, there are 75 indoor

bathrooms, a newly built triangular indoor

swimming pool and a play pool for children.
Location: Beibei District Chongqing Municipality .30Km far from the

downtown.
The price of the park's ticket: 30yuan

(excludes the fee of dining and accommodation).

2.South Hot Springs Park
Location: Nanquan Town Nan An District Chongqing which is 35km far from the

downtown. Take bus611 from Chongqing Railway Station and 302 from Jiefangbei

to the park.
The price of the park's ticket: 30yuan (excludes the fee of dining and accommodation).

3.Tianci Hot Springs Park
Location: Baishiyi Hangu Town Jiulongpo District Chongqing .35Km far from the d

owntown (by the side of highway to Chengdu )
The price of the park's ticket: 70yuan (excludes the fee of dining and accommodation).

4.Tongjin Hot Springs Park
Location: Tongjin Town Yubei District Chongqing .55km far from the downtown.

Email: davidth028@yahoo.com.cn

taohong0228@yahoo.com.cn

ICQ: 265-058-721

Tel: 0086-023-4865-0296

Temple of Heaven

At the Temple of Heaven Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (1368-1911) worshiped Heaven and prayed for good harvests. The northern part of the outer surrounding wall is semi-circular; the southern part is square; this forms a pattern symbolic of the ancient belief that Heaven was round and the earth square. The double surrounding wall separates the temple into the inner and outer temples with the main structures in the inner one, covering 273 hectares.

The inner temple is also partitioned by a wall into two groups of buildings. The north structure is the Altar for Praying for Good Harvests with the Hall of Prayers for Good Harvests as the principal building used to pray each spring for good bumper harvests. The south structure is the Circular Mound Altar used to worship Heaven at the winter solstice; the principal construction here is a large round marble terrace named the Circular Mound.

The two altars, connected by a 360-meter-long raised walk called the Red Step Bridge, are arranged in a line forming a north-south axis 1,200-meter long; the walk is flanked by century-old cypresses.

To the inner portion, south of the West Celestial Gate is Abstinence Hall where the emperors observed abstention before the rituals. In the western part of the outer temple is the Divine Music Office, which was in charge of the teaching and performance of the music for the rituals. The Temple of Heaven are includes the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, the Hall of the Heavenly Emperor, the Circular Mound, the Imperial Vault of Heaven, Abstinence Hall, the Beamless Hall, the Long Corridor, Longevity Pavilion in a double ring shape as well as the Echo Wall, the Three Echo Stones, and the Seven Meteoric Stones.

Built first in 1420 during the Ming Emperor Yongle's reign, it was expanded and renovated during the Ming Emperor Jiajing's (1522-1566) and Qing Emperor Qianlong's (1736-1795) reigns. The Temple of Heaven is a magnificent masterpiece of architecture in a solemn environment. Since the founding of New China, the government has allotted major resources to protect and restore the cultural monuments here. The Temple of Heaven with its long history, deep cultural significance and magnificent architectural style mirrors the ancient culture of the China.

A masterpiece of the Ming and Qing architectural art and a precious example of China's ancient architecture, the Temple of Heaven is the largest architectural group for worshipping Heaven in the world. In 1961, it was listed by the State Council as a key monument under state protection." In 1998, it was recognized by UNESCO as a human heritage of the world."

Yuanmingyuan

Panorama: Ruins of Yuanmingyuan

Yuanmingyuan, located in the northwestern suburbs of Beijing next to the Summer Palace, is a theme park with particular historic meaning renovated on the ruins of the famous imperial garden in the Qing Dynasty.

Yuanmingyuan was composed of three separate gardens: Yuanmingyuan (Garden of Perfect Splendor), Changchunyuan (Garden of Eternal Spring), Qichunyuan (Garden of Blossoming Spring). It covers an area of about 350 hectares with scenic spots up to one hundred. In 1707 the Qing Emperor Kangxi built the first garden on this site. In the next 150 years through the reigns of other five emperors¡ªYongzheng, Qianlong, Jiaqing, Daoguang and Xianfeng¡ªthe garden was constantly expanded to be the largest imperial garden in the world at the time. The builders of Yuanmingyuan not only inherited and developed the traditional gardening art of China by reproducing many famous natural scenes and gardens south of the Yuangtze River, but also introduced some European horticultural techniques. Streams and lakes enlivened the garden's hills. The man-made landscapes looked very natural. During its heyday the Europeans extolled it as the ¡°Garden of Gardens¡± and ¡°Versailles of the East¡±. Unfortunately this ¡°wonder of human civilization¡± was sacked, looted and burned to the ground by the Anglo-French Allied Forces in October 1860.

Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese government and the Communist Party of China have paid great attention to the preservation of the ruins. A special administrative office was set up. The Chinese government has listed Yuanmingyuan as one of the key cultural sites under special national protection. After many years of renovation the greater part of the water system and hills have been restored. Some of its original splendor has reappeared. A number of important sites have been repaired. A complex of ruins represented by the European Palaces has taken shape.

Peking Man Cave

Panorama:Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian Peking Man Cave was a limestone cave into which, about half a million years ago, Peking Man came to live intermittently until 200,000 years ago. As the cave became gradually filled with Peking Man remains and relics, stones and sands, and so on, a thick deposit was formed consisting of 13 layers which from east to west are about 140 meters long, 2-40 meters wide and about 40 meters deep. The site was discovered in 1921 and the intensive excavation, beginning in 1927, was suspended by July 7 Incident of 1937 until the time China was liberated. During the past several decades, nearly 27,000 cubic meters have been excavated mainly from the middle part of the deposit; the discoveries include nearly two hundred pieces of Peking Man fossil representing about 40 individuals, thousands of stone artifacts, several layers of ash as evidence of fire use and nearly two hundred species of fossil animals. This is most complete site of the same Geological Age in the world and plays an important role in scientific research.

The Summer Palace

Panorama : the Tower of the Fragrance of the Buddha, the Summer Palace

The World Park in Beijing