I came to Ningbo in a hurry and left in a hurry, without doing enough homework

From the hotel upstairs, I saw an ancient pagoda built in the Tang style not far away. Only after looking it up did I realize that this is the Tianfeng Pagoda, which predates the city of Ningbo. At the beginning of Ningbo's construction, it was during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian, coinciding with the years of 'Tiance Wansui' and 'Wansui Dengfeng'. The name 'Tianfeng Pagoda' was derived by taking one character from the beginning and end of these phrases. Although it has been repaired many times over the 1300 years, its ancient charm still remains. So I hurriedly went there in the drizzle before the typhoon.

Across the street from Tianfeng Pagoda is the entrance to the Lianqiao Di, which is the former residence of Tu Youyou. Unfortunately, I missed the opening hours and could only walk around in the nearby streets and alleys. This newly restored old district, in addition to the Tu family, has many other famous people's former residences and scholars' homes.

The name of Lianqiao Di comes from 'Lianqiao Street, formerly known as Cailianqiao Xia, Henghetou.' In the Tang Dynasty, under the Cailian Bridge of Lianqiao Di, there was a Sun Lake corresponding to the Moon Lake, and the two lakes together formed the character 'Ming'. The old name of Ningbo, 'Mingzhou', comes from this. Today, the Moon Lake is still there, with the Tianyi Pavilion located on its banks, but the Sun Lake has gradually dried up and been filled in, disappearing from sight.

Tianyi Pavilion is long-renowned, but the second place one should visit in Ningbo is definitely Tianfeng Pagoda and Lianqiao Di.

Post by William Radcliffe | Apr 14, 2024