http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/ Travel adventures in journals and photos from Asia , China , Gansu , Lanzhou en-us Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:36:57 BST Sat, 11 Oct 2008 00:36:57 BST We have just returned to Lanzhou from a night in Liujiaxia. The main aim was to go and have a look at the Big Buddha at Bingling Si. Liujiaxia is only about 2hrs out of Lanzhou but up at 1600m. To get to Bingling Si involved a 45 min speed boat ride on the Yellow River. The place itself is beautiful and very peaceful. The Big Buddha is not far from the water's edge and then we followed a dry river http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-309668.html We headed out of Xian yesterday. really ready to get on the road. Xian is a nice city and all geared up for the Olympics but I was ready to see what was around the next corner. We loaded up the truck and started out with the aim of reaching Pingliang around 10 hrs later. It was 300km. The plan was to visit a big buddha along the way. About half an hour into the journey we hit the first section http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-308574.html I stay a couple of nights at Pingliang possibly the world's most boring city but visit Mount Kongtong a Daoist monastery perched precariously on the top of a cliff. It's quite a walk up the mountain but absolutely worth it and looks just like you imagine China to look like with little temples and Pagodas clinging to the treelined slopes.When you see these stunning views it becomes immediat http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-297351.html I say for a couple of nights in a town called Liujaxia where they obviously don't see many Westerners from the looks I got and caught a boat up the Huang He Yellow River from the huge Dam 60km to the Bingling Si Buddha caves.An enormous seated Buddha has been carved from the cliff face. At 27m high and 1600 years old it's an amazing thing to behold though not the biggest in China by a long http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-297344.html Writing this a day late while I'm in Jiayuguan but will do my best to remember what went on.BeijngWoke up really early as in 445 and was amazed how light it was out that early quickly packed up my things had breakfast and embarresingly left a bag of milkycornflakes on the table. I know it sounds weird but I had a bowl of cereal didn't finish it probably had to do with the fact that http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-279569.html frohe vorweihnachtstage euch allen sitzen gerade in lanzhou einer millionenstadt irgendwo in der noerdlichen mitte chinas. eine stadt die sich damit ruehmen kann in den neunziger jahren als region mit der hoechsten luftverschmutzung chinas gegolten zu haben. angesichts der nicht eben kleinen konkurrenz in diesem ranking eine zu beachtende leistung heute soll alles besser sein. naja die sonne s http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-229001.html Plans change deal with itREPOST I neglected to mention that the night before in Xian I went to a sound and light show at the Big Wild Goose Pagoda and it was amazing. Then as we wandered back towards our hostel we came across a heaps of people doing exercises and dances all following someone with an umbrella and waving fans to te beat of massive drums being played. It was really a good way to http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-225641.html Back to ChinanbspAsia raquonbspChina raquonbspGansu raquonbspLanzhou By cosimovagaNovember 1st 2006cosimo http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-178776.html As we travelled from Xiahe to Lanzhou the scenery changed from treecovered mountains and sloping pasturelands to scrubby hills where brown was the dominant colour. The religious landscape also changed with many more skull caps crescent moons and minarets in evidence. I'd never thought of China as having much of a Muslim population but apparently it wasn't only goods that came along the Silk R http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-172900.html Spent a night to break the trip at Lanzhou quite a big city a bit smoggy. Had to go to Bank of China to use the ATM found it and used the machine without any hassle. We dined out to a Korean restaurant next door to the hotel it was very interesting and fun there's a hot plate with coal underneath sunken in the middle of the table you order your food and cook it yourself to your liking we h http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-167647.html Having heard so much of the Yellow River I was finally there .. http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-153856.html Hi allThe great wall was very very impressive. Very steep in some areas so quite a lot of exercise that day.The weather had that China haze thing happening so we couldnt see very far into the distance. We then had the joy of overnight train from Beijing to Xian which is one of the oldest cities in China 3000Yrs. The train was brand new so it caught on fire just a little which was a bit exciting http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-96642.html Raus aus der Stadt X'ian nach einer Woche. Im Schlafbus 95 Stunden holterdipolter richtung Lanzhou. Kaum geschlafen die ganze Nacht weil es richtig eng war und wie gesagt ziemlich unruhig. In dieser Nacht hab ich die Sterne so nah wie selten gesehen anfangs dacht ich das sind Strassenlichter aber es waren Sterne zum greifen nah und soviele davon. Das hat die fast schlaflose Nacht zu etwas ga http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-96596.html Bingling si are Buddhist temple grottoes which can only reached by boat and only if the water level is high enough in wet season summer. Therefore they are not so well known but definitely worth the effort. It makes a nice daytrip from Lanzhou or Linxia or a nice stop between both cities.They were initially made in 420 and expanded several times through the ages. Nowadays there still exis http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-89892.html The airport bus takes an hour to drive from the airport into town we paid 30Y there is only 1 stop. Itrsquos a long taxi drive to the West part of town we paid 16Y to arrive at the Youyi Binguan.We stayed at the Friendship Hotel Youyi Binguan situated in the West part of town right across the Provincial MuseumTel 86 931 2333051 60189 Economy double 80Y 40Y common facilities St http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-89889.html For our trip from Belgium to China and Australia we bought a stopover ticket to Darwin with a long stop in Hong Kong. We were very unlucky with the typhone that hung over Hong Kong at that time and were brought over Kaishung Taiwan to Singapore to wait for better weather. 30 hours later we finally landed at Hong Kong.This how we travelled from Hong Kong into China At the airport in Hong K http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-89884.html Binglingsi zijn Boedhistische tempelgrotten die alleen te bereiken zijn per boot en alleen in de zomermaanden wanneer het peil van het meer en de Gele Rivier hoog genoeg is voor de boten.We reisden vanuit Linxia naar Binglingsi minibusjes vertrekken er op een kruispunt dicht bij het Westelijk busstation Dongzhan 6Y 1u. Het was erg slechte weg het minibusje heeft zijn eindterminus vlakbij http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-88935.html LanzhouWe deden Lanzhou aan om de Bingling si grotten te bezoeken. We hadden al eerder deze stad bezocht dus hebben we er niet veel tijd besteed. Spijtig genoeg konden we Provinciaal Museum niet bezoeken omdat het nog steeds dicht is voor renovatiewerken. We bezochten wel het nieuwe ldquoWaterwielrdquo park in het Noordoosten van de stad.Het was er rond 30C buiten in de zon werd het tot 35 http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-88933.html We reisden via Hong Kong naar China In de luchthaven van Hong Kong zijn loketten van 3 verschillende busmaatschappijen die een Expressbus naar Guangzhou aanbieden zij bevinden zich zeer dicht bij de opstapplaats van de MTR. Ze zitten naast mekaar de concurrentie is er erg groot hun prijzen waren respectievelijk 200 220 en 250 HK bij alle 3 kan je met kredietkaart betalen maar sommigen rek http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-88930.html Vrijdag 11 augustusLanzhou is de hoofdstad van de provincie Gansu. Dit is een zeer grote provincie bijna 1700 km lang maar in het midden is de provincie amper 100 km breed. Daar ligt ten zuiden een ontoegankelijke bergketen en ten noorden de woestijn. Alle handelroutes die in het verleden tussen China en het westen ontstonden liepen door deze smalle corridor de Hexi corridor genoemd. Via deze http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-88520.html Donderdag 10 augustus.Ons plannetje om vanuit Linxia de grotten van Bingling Si te bezichtigen lukte bijzonder vlot om 8u namen we de taxi van het hotel naar het Oostelijk busstation voor de bus naar Lianhua. Daar hadden we onmiddellijk een speedboot om ons naar de overkant van het meer te laten brengen en waren we om 9u al ter plaatse De grotten van Bingling Si lagen aan de Gele Rivier in een http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-88510.html Zondag 6 augustusNa een stevige nachtrust en een dito ontbijt slaagden we erin om in hetzelfde hotel een veel betere kamer vast te krijgen. Daarna gingen we op ontdekkingstocht we konden al snel een stadsplan te pakken krijgen met enorm veel informatie over de buslijnen. Bij de toeristische dienst wist men ons te vertellen dat het archeologisch museum van Lanzhou dat volgens alle reisboeken dit http://www.travelblog.org//Asia/China/Gansu/Lanzhou/blog-87756.html