Religion in Shanghai

Due to its cosmopolitan history, Shanghai has a rich blend of religious heritage as shown by the religious buildings and institutions still scattered around the city. Taoism has a presence in Shanghai in the form of several temples, including the City God Temple, at the heart of the old city, and a temple dedicated to the Three Kingdoms general Guan Yu. The Wenmiao is a temple dedicated to Confucius. Buddhism has had a presence in Shanghai since ancient times. Longhua temple, the largest temple in Shanghai, and Jing'an Temple, were first founded in the Three Kingdoms period. Another important temple is the Jade Buddha Temple, which is named after a large statue of Buddha carved out of jade in the temple. In recent decades, dozens of modern temples have been built throughout the city.

Shanghai is also an important center of Christianity in China. Churches belonging to various denominations are found throughout Shanghai and maintain significant congregations. Shanghai has the highest Catholic percentage in Mainland China (2003). Among Catholic churches, St. Ignatius Cathedral in Xujiahui is one of the largest, while She Shan Basilica is the only active pilgrimage site in China. Shanghai has the highest Catholic percentage in Mainland China (2003). The city is also home to Muslim, Jewish, and Eastern Orthodox communities. A predominant religion in Shanghai is Mahayana Buddhism, and Taoism is also followed by many Shanghai residents.

Guilin--Heavenly Beauty

As the famous tourism city in China, Gulin has long enjoyed the reputation that "Guilin wins the world for its mountains and waters".
Located in the northeast part of Guangxi, Guilin has warm climate and abundant rainfall; the Karst landscape creates the rising mountains with various forms; the water of the winding Lijiang River is crystal clear; the mountains have many deep caves with grand sceneries; the grotesque rocks in the caves are the genius work of the nature. All of these constitute the “four wonders” of Guilin: green mountains, clear water, surprising caves and grotesque rocks. Lijiang River, Xiangbi Mountain, Diecai Mountain, Ludi Rock, Qixing Park and other famous scenery spots contribute to the unique charm of Guilin landscape.

Guilin is an ancient culture city with more than two thousand years’ history. After Emperor Qin Shi Huang united China, he set up the Guilin Shire and ordered to excavate Lingqu to connect Xiangjiang River and Lijiang River. This makes Guilin an important town connecting the ocean and the plain area. The marvelous landscape of Guilin has attracted numerous scholars, who left lots of ever-lasting poems and prose, and more than 2,000 stone inscription and wall calligraphy. The ancient relic sites here shape the unique charm of the integration of natural scenery and humanistic scenery.

In addition, Guilin is home to many ethnic groups, such as Zhuang, Yao, Miao, Dongand so on. The various folk traditions make Gulin landscape different from others. On your tour to Guilin, you may take an excursion to the Minority Ethnic Villages, to sense the peculiar local traditions and life style.

the importance of water during travel

Are you one of those people who are constantly traveling form one place to another? Does your job takes your to places where there are limited sources of clean water? Since it is very important for people who are traveling to drink plenty of water always and avoid dehydration, constant travelers like you should make sure that you get plenty of supply of clean drinking water wherever you go. To ensure that you get ample supply of clean drinking water during your travels, it would be wise to buy a travel water purifier so that even when you are in a place where the water may be contaminated, you can still drink safe and clean water. Having a travel water purifier means you don’t need to worry about drinking clean and safe water wherever you might be. With your travel water purifier, you can easily purify your water before drinking it. What to Look for in a Travel Water Purifier? There are a number of travel water purifiers being sold in the market nowadays. These water purifiers use different types of technologies such as distillation, ionization, carbon absorption, filtration, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet (UV) radiation and others. According to experts, all these types of water purification processes are effective in removing pollutants. However, since you are traveling, you may not want to bring along a travel water purifier that is bulky or heavy. To make sure that you do not carry more weight than necessary when traveling, try to find a travel water purifier that is handy but still has all the necessary requirements to purify your drinking water. Although the weight, size and cost of the travel water purifier are also important considerations, it should never be the primary consideration when it comes to choosing the right travel water purifier for you. Selecting Brands and Models In choosing your travel water purifier, go only for those brands and models that have been tested to be effective when it comes to cleaning your drinking water. Although these well known brands and models of travel water purifiers may be a bit more expensive that those purifiers which have no proven track record, yet when it comes to water purification, you can be sure that these brands are really worth your money. Note that when it comes to your health, you should never sell yourself short.

Cheongsam

Cheongsam is one type of traditional Chinese female costumes. It is featured by stand collar, right side opening, fitting waist and slip bottom, which can fully set off the beauty of the female shape.Derived from the garment of bannermen in the Qing Dynasty, cheongsam was the basal garment for the Manchus in Northeast China. It was modified in early 20th century to be more suitable and comfortable yet retained the craftwork of traditional ones. Cheongsam greeted its prime time in the 1930s when its irreplaceable role in female garment was established. It was extraordinarily popular with the women in Shanghai for the reason that its slimness and fitness had made it as a perfect choice for the slender and exquisite-stature women in South China. Soon afterwards, it swept the whole country as the favorite garment for Chinese women. Compared with old-style cheongsam, the modified style is more capable of popping out the beautiful curves of a woman and has stood out from the obsolete pattern as a typical representative of Chinese female garment.Cheongsam has been experiencing constant changes with the fashions in different ages. While inheriting the characteristics of traditional cheongsam in details, the new-style one is associated with new features and a great deal of modern design elements in color, cutting and match, which are mainly embodied in the change of the bottom (A-shape, asymmetrical type and picture puzzle type, etc.) as well as diversified materials. Other than meeting aesthetic requirements of young women in China, new-style cheongsam is of great vitality with its easy wearing. As a special traditional garment, cheongsam is of unique aesthetic values and therefore acts as a spokesman of the art of Chinese garment.

Yeya Lake ,Beijing

Yeya Lake (Wild Duck Lake) is located in Yanqing District, northwest of Beijing. It is the only wetland reserve for birds in Northern China, and has a surface area of 6,873 hectares (68.7 million sq.m). The reed beds at Wild Duck Lake (the Eglish translation of "Yeya") are relatively large and there are growths of floating grass. Because the natural environment is well preserved, it is an ideal habitat for migratory birds. According to official statistics, there are 264 kinds of birds, including 6 types of primary state-level protected birds and 34 secondary state-level ones, such as the bustard, gray crane and swans. The site is really at its best in early spring (mid or late March through to mid-April) and in mid-late autumn (mid-October to mid-November) when large numbers of water birds visit the site. Over 234 species have been reported here. It was confirmed as the Beijing Wetland Nature Reserve and a hotel complex has been built for birdwatchers.

National Flower

Tree Peony is regarded as the national flower of China.

The elegance and fragrance of the tree peony has been a favorite in Chinese culture throughout history. Early in Southern and Northern Dynasties there were records of tree peony planting. The technology of planting was largely developed later in Tang Dynasty when tree peony was reputed as "the king of flowers". It is said once in Qing Dynasty, a brother of the then emperor went to Jile Temple to appreciate tree peony, and then wrote inscriptions "National Flower Temple" on the plague of the temple. Therefore it was from early Qing Dynasty that tree peony won the title "National Flower".

Tree peony of China is famous at home and abroad. In Origin of the Species by Darwin, the planting of tree peony in China was quoted as an example to prove the "Theory of Natural Selection and Artificial Selection". Tree peony is widely favored by people all over the world. In the eighth century, tree peony of China was introduced to Japan, in 1330 to France, in 1656 to Holland, and in 1820 to the United States.

By now tree peony is planted and cultivated in more than 20 countries world wide. It is said that in Tang Dynasty, the then Emperor Wu Zetian once got drunk in a winter day and ordered all flowers in the palace to bloom at once. Tree peony refused and was soon driven out of the imperial palace to Luoyang in today's Henan Province. From then on tree peony was reputed as the "Best Flower under Heaven" Tree peonies are upright, tall and handsome, with bright and showy flowers.

The characters of tree peonies are quite similar to that of the Chinese people. In Ming Dynasty, Caozhou County in Shandong Province once won the title "Hometown of Tree peony" when tree peony was in fashion for a period.Each spring Henan Province's city of Luoyang ?C the capital of several Chinese dynasties in central China ?C holds a 10-day peony festival and trade show (April 15-25). Varieties of peonies from overseas are displayed besides the some 600 varieties of peonies developed in Luoyang itself.

the Ice City –Harbin

As the weather becomes colder and colder ,the ice city will see in its tourism spring, the winter scenery of Harbin is different from other cities in China. Apart from the winter view ,at the same time , the history and culture of Harbin are worth your understanding.Harbin, with its long history, and the cradle of Jin and Qing Dynasties and the settlement of multi-nationalities. Situated in the belt within 44°04′N to 46°40′N and 120°42′E to 130°10′E, the city is located in the temperate zone with a character of continental climate. The Songhuajing River, like a shining pearl string , winds through the domain of this distinctive, celebrated city in the northeast China. The well-webbed branches of the river affords a luxuriant vegetation. The black soil here is promisingly fertile and the forest is a symbol of treasury. The Song(Songhua River)Nen(Nen River) Plain well deserves its position as one of the national bases of grains, timber, oil and coal production. Harbin has an area of 53200 square kilometers. Agriculture is famous for top quality rice, soy bean, and corn . Apart from Korean pine ,larch and white birth, more than 40 rare animals like Sibera Tiger and bear, and other beasts and birds forest. In the Mountain, there grow some wild economic plants such as ginseng, live in the black edible fungus and mushrooms. There are dozens of mineral deposits such as copper, iron and coal underground. The thriving civilization has been the fruits of common efforts made by the people of more than 40 ethnic groups, including the Han, the Korean, the Manchurian, the Hui, the Tibetan, the Ewen, the Oroken, the Miao, the Zhuang ,the Daur, The Xibe, the Hezhe, the Russian, the Tujia, and the Uygur. The combination of these ethnic groups , you will feel their friendly and passion while you are visiting Harbin.