Lanzhou today spreads many miles along a thin valley,
sandwiched in by hills and the Yellow River. With
a population of 2.83 million people, it is one of
the largest cities in the northeast, and this concentration
has done little to improve the pollution that thickens
the air and that flows downriver. The city, thankfully,
has some good sights, both within its environs and
nearby, and it is these, along with the good transportation
links and friendly populace, that draw travelers here.
Lying in the central
section of Gansu Province, this provincial capital
received its name from the "lan" of the
Gaolan Mountain Range to its south. Lanzhou was also
in the past called the "Gold City", due
to the precious metal that was found here. It was
this discovery, along with the fact that the city
was a significant fortress (for around 1,400 years)
of the Hexi Corridor, an eastern and crucial stretch
of the Silk Road, that led to a long period of great
prosperity in the city.
In recent years the
city has grown enormously, so that it now claims a
length of around 30km, snaking along the southern
bank of the river. After the Communist succession
to power a population explosion increased residency
numbers tenfold in just one generation. Of the now
more than three million people in the city, the majority
are Han, although many other peoples make this city
their home, including the Hui (Muslims), Tibetan,
Uigur, Dongxiang, Mongolian, Bonan, Kazak, Tu, Salar
and Manchurian minorities.
Of all of the sights
that are in and around the city, it is the Bingling
Temple Caves that are the gem of Lanzhou. These are
not the most easily accessible of China's caves, but
it is this that is probably the most contributing
factor to the caves little spoilt charm. Although
the temptations of heading north towards Xinjiang
or west towards Xiahe and then Sichuan are pulling,
a day trip to the caves, and the Lujiaxia Reservoir
that surrounds them, is rewarding.
infotmation