TOUR IN HENAN

Henan (South of the River) is in Mid-China. It is a part of the cradle of Chinese civilization. The oracle bones with earliest Chinese writings were found here. Several ancient capitals are located here. China's first Buddhist temple, the Luoyang Grottoes, are still standing here.

Capital city, Zhengzhou, is 20 km south of the Yellow River. Historians may want to sightsee along the River or go to the Provincial Museum, one of the best in China, or visit the nearby ancient palace ruins and city walls. Dahecun ( River Village) is a 5000-year-old site of neolithic cultures and ruins of Shand dynasty, the second dynasty in history.

75 km SW of Zhengzhou is Songshan Mountain, one of the 5 most famous mountains in China. It is also famous for Shaolin Monastery, where generations of monks have practised China's martial arts here. The monastery has a Pagoda Forest, where over 240 miniature pagodas were built. A 40-meter-high pagoda at another temple is the oldest existing pagoda in China.

Kaifeng, 75 km east of Zhengzhou, 10 km south of the Yellow River, was the capital of several dynasties. Built 2600 years ago, the city saw 12 recorded terrible Yellow River floods. It is a wonder Kaifeng stands so intact today, with its well-preserved earth city wall. A delightful Song-dynasty street was built after an ancient painting of the city.

Another ancient capital is Luoyang, 25 km south of the Yellow River. It is important also because of the Longmen Grottoes and the White Horse Temple. Longmen Grottoes rank the top three among China's 19 cave temples. The grottoes extend 1000 meters. There are over 100,000 Buddhist images, ranging in size from 2 cm to 17.14 meters. The White Horse Temple, the 1st Buddhist temple in China, had its name from a white horse ridden by 2 Indian monks who brought scriptures to China. There is also the Tomb of Guan Yu, Chinese God of War. Luoyang produces exquisite palace lanterns and reproductions of 3-color Tang porcelains.

Anyang, one of the oldest cities in China, was once the capital of China's first dynasty, the Xia (summer). It is here that China's earliest writing on tortoise shells were found. The Yin Ruins include palace foundations, royal tombs, bronze and jade artifacts. The Yuan Mauseleum holds the remains of an ambitious Qing official who declared himself emperor in 1915 and died in 1916.