A Bite of Xian: Snacks Guideline

I have heard a lot of compliments for snacks of Xian, and some of my friend who have been Xian also have mentioned about it, therefore, after a long time of planning, I decide to go to Xian, together with my wife. Last time when I traveled in Beijing, I had a lot of famous snacks in Beijing, but Xian bite is the first time.
1. Cruded Pancake in Mutton Soup of Mi Family. A Medium size meal for 15 yuan RMB, including a bowl of mutton soup and a pancake. Generally, it is enough for one person. But id it is not enough, you can buy another pancake with 0.5 yuan.

2. Bingfeng soft water. It is a local brand which is 1.5 yuan for a bottle. Similar to Beibingyang soft water in Beijing, Bingfeng is nothing special, just from my point of view. But Bingfeng is well-known by everyone in Xian. For Xian citizens, it is probably a taste of childhood, and even a kind of precious memory. Bingfeng to Xian is what Beibingyang to Beijing. If you want to join a Beijing to Xian tour, you can try the Beibingyang, and then you would see it.
3. Persimmon Osmanthus (also Crystal Persimmon Cake). It is a kind of dessert which is made of persimmon and flour. PS: the best seller is Yiguzhai.
4. Jia San Dumplings Restaurant. It is one of the most famous snacks in Xian. Jia San is a Hui people. He is a genius in business and finance management. If you join a Xian package tour, the tour guide will recommend many delicious snacks, Jia San Dumplings will be definitely in the list.

Heilongjiang: the First Cliff Diver in China — Di Huanjie

When the feature program The First Cliff Diver in China—Di Huanjie broadcast on August 14 on CCTV-4 this year, I was just travel in Jingpo Lake Scenic Spot in Mudan River, China’s northeasternmost Heilongjiang Province, and I was so lucky to have witnessed the amazing cliff diving performed by Di Huanjie in Diaoshuilou Waterfall.

Jingpo Lake is the second largest alpine barrier lake in the world. And Di Huanjie perhaps is the name card of the lake, he is known by most of people as the first cliff diver in China. Di Huanjie is 56 years old this year, and he has kept jumping down from the 20 meters high cliff and diving in the 60 meters deep Heilong Pool(Black Dragon Pool) every day for the past 30 years. On Oct 5 of this year, he won the the Guinness World Record certificate and was hailed as “the First Cliff Diver”. In winter, the lake is coated with ice, but he still keeps diving every day, in the environment of minus 20 ℃.

After the performance, I interviewed him briefly. He also told me that he was not a professional diver and never had dive training. Diver is only his hobby. He told me that he also had dived in Wenchuan Bridge, Mudanjiang Bridge, Yellow River’s Hukou Waterfall and Harbin’s Songhuajiang Bridge etc.

Hubei Suizhou: the Ancient Ginkgo Valley

Ginkgo biloba is the oldest relict plants of the existing seed plants. Known as a living fossil, it was born hundreds of millions years ago, with species of the same contemporaries has been extinct. So far the living ginkgo is scarce and dispersed in the world. In Luoyang Town, Suizhou in the world. However, in Luoyang Town, Suizhou City, Hubei Province, there is a most intact and the the most well-preserved thousand years old Ginkgo tree group across the country and even in the world.

The Ginkgo Valley stretches for 12 kilometers with 308 Millennium ginkgo trees, and 17,000 over100-year-old ginkgo trees more than 17,000 trees. The ancient ginkgo trees in the region forms a community which has become one of the four largest assembling ginkgo community.

When autumn falls, the ginkgo valley is covered with golden leave, presenting a spectacular scenery, which attracts numerous visitors from surrounding areas.

Hainan: Nanshan Temple in Sanya City

Located in Sanya, capital city of Hainan Province and the most beautiful coast city of China, Nanshan(or South Mountain), is the southmost mountain throughout the country. According to Buddhism sutra, Avalokitesvara had ever made twelve wished, the second of which is living in the South Sea. Therefore, Nanshan has been seen as a holy land of Buddhism.

Now I will introduce some famous landscapes of Nanshan Temple Scenic Area - Gold and Jade Satue of Avalokitesvara: This statue of Avalokitesvara is enshrined and worshiped at a resplendent hall. The statue is 3.8-meter high and is famous for being made of over 100 kg gold, over 120 g South African diamond and over 1000 grains of rubies, sapphires, emeralds, pearls, jades… In 1998 it was confirmed to be the biggest Buddha statue made of gold and gems in the world and entered the Guinness World Records of 1999.

- Statue of On-sea Avalokitesvara: This huge statue was started to be built in 1999 and it took six years to finish the project. Standing on a big lotus throne, this three-sided Avalokitesvara is 108 meters in height and is linked with the Avalokitesvara Square and the theme park on the bank by the 280-meter-long Puji Bridge. The statue will also offers beautiful night scene when darkness fall.

Meizhou: A Bite of Hakka’s World

Meizhou City, China’s southeast Guangdong Province is the world known capital of the Hakka people. I remember the director of Meizhou Tourism Administration once said that where there is the sun, there is Chinese people, and where there is Chinese, there is Hakka people, which impressed me a lot.

Beginning with 221 BC when the first emperor of Qin unified the country, Hakka people started the first migration from Middle China(Shanxia and Henan Province) to the south, until the middle 19 century when is Taiping Heavenly Kingdom period(1851-1864), they finished their sixth migration. The Hakka people went through half China and came to Meizhou then scattered in many other places. During the migration, Hakka people integrated with local customs and then formed the present unique Hakka culture, which includes the Hakka delicacies.

Like the delicacies in other places, Hakka delicacy consists of local cuisine and flavor snack. Speak of Hakka cuisine, one ingredient must be mentioned—chicken. In Hakka culture, chicken plays an important role . They all believe that chicken and its blood can ward off evil spirit. The chicken dishes include roast chicken, fried chicken, boiled chicken, pot-stewed chicken, salt-baked chicken etc.

There are also other delicious dishes await for to to taste. I am not gonna talk to you, because my stomach is crying for food now.

Yunnan: Dali Shuanglang

Shuanglang, a shinning pearl lost by the God near Erhai Lake in Yunnan Province, is a village which is about 7 kilometers long encircling Erhai. Time will be suspended like migratory birds in there. Generations of Bai people, one minority peoples in China, live in this arcadia far away from the madding crowd. It is the artists who make Shuanglang known by people outside there. Their arrival makes Shuanglang more fantastic and unique.

Shuanglang was originally named Shuanlang. Later in the Xianfeng reign of Qing Dynasty, Yuji Island and Xiaojinsuo Island were just like two mandarin duck, separating Erhai Lake into a natural harbour, therefore, Shuanlang was renamed as Shuanglang(“shuang” means “two”).

The life in Shuanglang is simple and slow but full of different kinds of emotional appeals.

In the morning, you might be waken up by the cat meowing. Open the windows, and breath a gulp of fresh air taken by Erhai Lake, drink a cup of herbal tea and then start a brand new day with all your energy and live it happily.

Beijing Exquisite Siheyuan

Although time has changed, there are still many old customs remained in the siheyuan. Boys still play games like shooting glass-balls, playing catapults and flapping triangle-cards. Girls' still play with sheep's joint bones, sandbags and rubber bands. People live in siheyuan were particular about food. "Honton for Winter Solstice, noodle for Summer Solstice, eight-precious porridge for the 8th day of the 12th lunar month." "Eating fermented drink made frorn grounded beans with shredded turnip; buckwheat cake, bean jelly and sweet-sour plum juice are good combination." In old times, Beijingers also have some special rules in choosing their dwellings: "Te rich men will not live in room that face southeast, because such room is not warm in winter and not cool in summer. If there is a temple around, it will better to live in front of the temple than behind the temple; it will better to live to the left of the temple rather than to the right of the temple. Most of those exquisite siheyuan grow cherry-apple trees. According to old rules, "White mulberry tree, date tree, pear tree and Chinese scholar tree should not be planted in people's yards; white mulberry tree, pine tree, cypress, pear tree and Chinese scholar tree should not be planted in nobilities' residences." Because the pronunciation of white mulberry in Chinese is the same of "mourning" and the pronunciation of pear sounds like "parting." Pine and cypress are plants for residences of yin nature. However, many people grow Chinese scholar trees in their yards. There is an old saying, "To judge whether a siheyuan is an old one, just look at the size of the Chinese scholar trees in the yard." Many yards also grow date trees. Famous Chinese writer Lu Xun had described two date trees in his rear garden in one of his article. His "vivid description gives us a beautiful picture: "Two date trees stand still, scratching the sky with their dry and painted branches. Under the autumn sun, the yellow-green leaves glows like silk. Dates-fruits for poor people-tremble among the branches and leaves.