Travel China: Gansu Part I

The province of Gansu provided my most memorable travel experience in China to date. Gansu province is the geographical center of the People’s Republic of China. It is archaeologically and ethnically diverse beyond compare, and famous for its strategic position in commerce along the historic Silk Road. Featuring an astonishing range of topography, not unlike my birth home in Colorado, I was saddened to leave and vow to go back and see the areas I missed.

I have joking referred to Gansu with friends as the “Province of stairs”because after a few days at a mile or so above sea-level and everything seems uphill or upstairs. I playfully call this shot “Stairway to Heaven” as it leads to one of the earliest Taoist Temples in China. (below):

Geographically speaking, Gansu province is home to the Yellow River, and even a portion of the Gobi Desert resides there. The region features mountains to the south, and vast grasslands are to be found in the northern part of the province. The geography and climate provide the ideal conditions for growth of medicinal plants and herbs, and Gansu is the second largest producer of both in China. The area also provides a wealth of minerals, including rare metals. Gansu province produces the habitat necessary for the survival of their native animals, including the giant panda, snow leopards, Bactrian camels, and snub-nosed monkeys.

Gansu province has a long historical and rich cultural background that spans centuries. Part of the longest man-made structure, the Great Wall of China, has its Jiayuguan Pass entrance located in Gansu province. This pass was the first one built by the Ming dynasty on the west end of the wall, and because of this it was called “The First and Greatest Pass Under Heaven.”

The Gansu village of Dunhuang, is a stop that merchants would make when they traveled along the Silk Road which connected China with Asia Minor and the Mediterranean, and was used as one means of development for China’s great civilizations. In Gansu merchants would restock food stores, and replenish camels and security forces in order to proceed across the dangerous desert.

A community Warning Bell near Lanzhou:

Religion plays a large role in famous archaeological remains that one can still visit in the Gansu province. Because of the danger that often befell the traveling merchants of the Silk Road, before they left Gansu they prayed at the Mogao Grottoes. The grottoes today consist of 492 Buddhist temples located in caves and containing a wide variety of Buddhist art. Intrepid travelers who visit Gansu province in the summer or fall seasons are able to take a boat in order to gain the only possible access to the Bingling Temple, which resides in a canyon beside the Yellow River. Full of Buddhist frescoes, sculpture and carvings, it features the towering Maitreya Buddha, which stands over 27 meters tall. Maijishan Grotto is one of 48 tentative sites along China’s section of the Silk Road chosen for inclusion  as a  World heritage Site:

Monasteries were vital in the tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Gansu is home to the Labrang Monastery, located in the southern part of the province. Labrang houses cultural artifacts, including over sixty thousand sacred texts and other literary works.