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Wǔhóu Temple
Located adjacent to Nánjiāo Park and surrounded by mossy cypresses, this temple (rebuilt in 1672) honours several figures from the Three Kingdoms period, namely legendary military strategist Zhuge Liang and Emperor Liu Bei (his tomb is here). Both were immortalised in the Chinese l
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Tsang Traditional Folk House
If you have a spare 40 minutes, this private folk museum opposite Palha Manor is worth a visit. Alongside the normal mockups of a traditional kitchen, mustard seed oil press and chang (barley beer) still, are such treasures as a fish-skin saddle, a barley guillotine, and yak-skin b
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Garzě Gompa
North of the town’s Tibetan quarter is the region’s largest monastery, dating back more than 500 years and glimmering with gold. Encased on the walls of the main hall are hundreds of small golden Sakyamunis. In a smaller hall just west is an awe-inspiring statue of Jampa (Maitreya
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Chingwa Tagtse Dzong
This dzong can be seen clearly from Chongye town and from the burial mounds, its crumbling ramparts straddling a ridge of Mt Chingwa. Once one of the most powerful forts in central Tibet, it dates back to the time of the early Yarlung kings. The dzong is also celebrated as the birt
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Martyrs Memorial
This park marks the site of an old Kuomintang prison, where 800 communists, intellectuals and political agitators were executed between 1928 and 1937. A modern underground tunnel leads to the original jailhouses and the small execution ground. Scattered throughout the manicured law
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Seven Stars Park
One of China’s original tourist attractions, first opening to sightseers during the Sui dynasty, the 137-hectare Seven Stars Park makes for some pleasant strolls. There are peaks to climb, caves to explore, lawns to picnic on and even wild monkeys to see; early evening on Moon Toot
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Ping Kong
This sleepy walled village in the hills south of Sheung Shui is seldom visited by outsiders. Like other walled villages still inhabited in Hong Kong, it is a mix of old and new, and has a lovely little Tin Hau temple (天后廟) in the centre. To get to Ping Kong from Sheung Shui East Ra
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Fǎyǔ Temple
Colossal camphor trees and a huge gingko tree tower over this Chan (Zen) temple, where a vast glittering statue of Guanyin sits resplendently in the main hall, flanked by 18 luóhàn effigies. Each luóhàn has a name – for example the Crossing the River luóhàn or the Long Eyebrows luó
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Mausoleum of General Yue Fei
This temple is more meaningful for Chinese patriots, rather than foreign visitors. Commander of the southern Song armies, General Yue Fei (1103–42) led successful battles against northern Jurchen invaders in the 12th century. Despite initial successes, he was recalled to the Song c
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Dàoyùnlóu
China’s largest octagonal Hakka earthen house, Dàoyùnlóu is located in Raópíng (饶平), 53km from Cháozhōu. Six hundred villagers once resided in this stunning complex built in 1587; now only 100 remain. Ascend to the upper floors from unit 18 to admire the views and frescoes. Buses t
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Kunde Ling
At the foot of Parma Ri, close to Beijing Zhonglu, is one of Lhasa’s four former royal temples. The ling (royal) temples were appointed by the fifth Dalai Lama, and it was from one of them that regents of Tibet were generally appointed. There are only a couple of restored chapels o
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Lover’s Rock
Lover’s Rock or Destiny’s Rock (Yan Yuen Sek) is a, well, phallus-shaped, boulder on a bluff at the end of a track above Bowen Rd. It’s a favourite pilgrimage site for women with relationship or fertility problems. It’s busy during the Maidens’ Festival , held on the seventh day of
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Taiping Heavenly Kingdom History Museum
Hong Xiuquan, the Hakka leader of the Christian Taiping, had a palace built in Nánjīng (then named Tiānjīng or Heavenly Capital), but the building was completely destroyed when Nánjīng was taken in 1864, after a long siege. This museum was originally a Ming-dynasty garden complex a
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Temple of Sumeru, Happiness & Longevity
This huge temple was built in honour of the sixth Panchen Lama, who stayed here in 1781. Incorporating Tibetan and Chinese architectural elements, it’s an imitation of the Panchen’s home monastery Tashilhunpo in Shigatse, Tibet. Note the eight huge, glinting dragons (each said to w
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Sai Ying Pun Community Complex
A high-rise imposed on Victorian remains constitute this complex thats fondly nicknamed the High Street Haunted House. The grey stone facade and arched verandah, both heritage structures (c 1892), were part of a nurses’ dormitory, then a mental asylum and an execution hall during t
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Sāngkē Grasslands
Expanses of open grassland dotted with Tibetans and their grazing yak herds highlight a trip to the village of Sāngkē, 14km from Xiàhé. Development has turned the area into a small circus, complete with touristy horse rides and fake tourist yurts, but there is good hiking in the ne
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Hūlún Lake
One of the largest lakes in China, Hūlún Lake is called Dalai Nuur (Ocean Lake) in Mongolian. It unexpectedly pops out of the grasslands like an enormous inland sea. You can hire a horse (¥100 per 30 minutes) or a quad bike (¥100 per 20 minutes), take a boat ride (¥10 per 20 minute
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Reting kora
The monastery is still graced by surrounding juniper forest, said to have sprouted from the hairs of its founder Dromtompa. A pleasant 40-minute kora leads up from the old guesthouse around the monastery ruins, passing several stone carvings, a series of eight chörtens and an activ
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Tsingtao Beer Museum
For a self-serving introduction to China’s iconic beer, head to the original and still operating brewery. On view are old photos, preserved brewery equipment and statistics, but there are also a few fascinating glimpses of the modern factory line. The aroma of hops is everywhere. T
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White Chapel (Lhakhang Karpo)
The entry to this side chapel is marked by a finely carved deodar (cedar) doorframe that originated in India. Inside are detailed 15th- and 16th-century murals, somewhat affected by water damage though mostly restored with Swiss assistance. The central statue is an old Sakyamuni Bu
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