Tianshui

🌟 Tianshui: A Pearl Lost Along the Silk Road

Stepping into Tianshui, Gansu feels like entering a corner of a historical scroll. Nestled between the Longshan Mountains and Wei River, this city has been a vital Silk Road outpost since ancient times. Wandering through the alleys of Qinzhou District, every cobblestone beneath your feet whispers tales from millennia past.

🏯 Fuxi Temple: The Cradle of Human Civilization
In Tianshui, Fuxi Temple is an unmissable treasure. As the ancestral home of Fuxi, the progenitor of Chinese civilization, this Ming Dynasty temple holds the genetic code of Chinese culture. Strolling through its grounds, the stone carvings on the Bagua Platform seem to echo with the sounds of ancient people recording events with knotted ropes. Most awe-inspiring is the 1,700-year-old cypress in the Xiantian Hall, standing tall through dynastic changes as steadfast as ever.

⛰️ Maijishan Grottoes: A Buddhist Kingdom on Cliffs
When dawn's first light touches the Maijishan cliffs, the Buddha statues carved during the Northern Wei Dynasty glow golden. Don't miss the Grand Buddha Cave on the eastern cliff, where a 7-meter seated Buddha serenely gazes upon visitors. Climbing the "Sky Ladder," look back to see hundreds of cave temples honeycombing the mist-shrouded cliffs - a sight that instantly explains the phrase "rein in at the brink of a precipice."

🏰 Nanguo Temple: Du Fu's Spiritual Refuge
The "Wild Old Man of Duling" (Du Fu) lived in Tianshui for over a year, composing more than 100 poems. Nanguo Temple was his frequent retreat, where his calligraphy "Ancient Cypresses Reaching the Sky" still hangs. Standing beneath the ancient pine where the poet once lingered, one can't help but recall his immortal line: "Flowers by the high tower grieve the traveler's heart."

🌿 Li Guang's Tomb: Final Resting Place of the "Flying General"
The legendary general from the verse "The moon still shines on Qin's passes and Han's frontiers, Where warriors far from home have never returned" sleeps eternally in Tianshui. The weather-beaten stone horse in the cemetery evokes images of the general charging across battlefields. Particularly moving are the pair of Tang Dynasty stone tigers guarding the tomb - fierce yet weathered by time.

Tianshui's beauty demands slow savoring. Every ancient structure narrates legends; each historical site conceals moving stories. This northwestern town captivates visitors with its unique charm, allowing every traveler to find their own moment of wonder at the intersection of history and modernity.

Post by LEWIS CLARK | Jul 14, 2025