| General
Introduction
South
of middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River
lies Jiangxi, a province bordered by Zhejiang
and Fujian Provinces to the east, Guangdong
Province to the South, Hunan Province to the
west, and Hubei and Anhui provinces to the north.
Under the jurisdiction of Jiangxi are 4 prefectures
(Ji'an, Yichun, Wuzhou and Shangrao) and 7 municipalities
(Nanchang, Yingtan, Pingxiang, Xinyu, Jiujiang,
Jingdezhen and Ganzhou). Nanchang, the capital
city, is the leading transportation hub of the
entire province and a major transit center for
travelers entering and leaving the province.
With the Beijing Kowloon Railway crossing the
Hangzhou-Nanchang Railway in Jiangxi, where
more than 70 pairs of trains shuttle to and
fro on a daily basis. The charms of the local
landscape are ascribed to the magnificent forms
of the Lushan (a world cultural heritage site),
Jinggangshan, Longhushan and Sanqing mountains,
as well as the mirror-like Poyang Lake, the
largest freshwater lake of China. Porcelain
making goes back a long time at Jingdezhen and
forms a cultural school in its own right. The
Prince of Teng's Tower by the Poyang Lake is
one of the three major towers south of the Yangtze.
The presence of so many revolutionary sites
bespeak Jiangxi's important position in modern
Chinese revolution.
Climate
Jiangxi has a sub-tropical climate, warm and
humid. It has a mean annual temperature of 16oC.-20oC.,
increasing from north to south, and a mean annual
precipitation of 1,300-2,000 mm. Nanchang is
one of the hottest cities in China.
Topography
Jiangxi
is high in the south and low in the north. It
is bordered by hills and mountains, the land
generally sloping towards Poyang Lake in the
north. Hills and mountains exceed 60 per cent
of the province's total area. The mountains
are not high and have many natural passages
facilitating its links with other provinces.
The Mufu, Jiuling, Wugong and Wanyang mountains
lie in the west; the Dayuling and Jiulian mountains
in the south; the Huaiyu and Wuyi mountains
in the east; and Lushan Mountain in the north.
There are many red-soil hills and basins in
the central-south. The Jian Basin in the middle
and the Southern Jiangxi Basin in the south
are major farming areas. The Poyang Lake Plain
in the north is part of the Middle-Lower Yangtze
River Plain. With numerous rivers and streams,
fertile soil and a dense population, it is known
as a "granary south of the Yangtze River".
Lushan Mountain with its main peak towering
1,474 meters above sea level on the lakeshore
is a famous tourist spot.
The
Ganjiang, Fuhe, Xinjiang, Pojiang and Xiushui
rivers flow into Poyang Lake from the south,
east and west. The Ganjiang flows through central
Jiangxi from north to south and drains half
of the province's total area. Poyang is the
largest freshwater lake in China.
SCENES
& SIGHTS
Nanchang
Nanchang,
the capital of Jiangxi Province, is better known
as a heroic city because of the 1927 Communist-led
August 1 Nanchang Uprising, which marked the
birth of the Chinese People's Liberation Army.
The city's sizeable industrial setup consists
of iron and steel, electronics, machine building,
auto, tractor, chemical, power, papermaking
and textile industries. Former revolutionary
sites mingle with a rich cultural heritage in
this city.
Prince
of Teng's Tower
Prince
of Teng's Tower, built in 659 in Nanchang, is
one of three major towers south of the Yangtze
River whose national fame stems from the Tang
poet Wang Bo's "Introducing Prince of Teng's
Tower". The tower as it stands today is
a 57.5-metrehigh reinforced concrete structure
built in 1985 in Tang and Song architectural
styles. Soaring from amidst the lush foliage
of trees to the clouds in a most elegant fashion,
its multiple layers of eaves curving gracefully
like so many wings, the building commands a
most breathtaking view of the picturesque surroundings.
Jiangxi
History Museum
The
History Museum of Jiangxi covers an area of
4 hectares in Nanchang. Collected in its various
buildings, totalling 26, 000 square metres in
floor space, are 15,000 or so revolutionary
relics and some 100,000 historical and cultural
artefacts-pottery, bronze ware, calligraphic
works and paintings, ancient books and documents,
local gazetteers, stone tablet rubbings, and
whatnot. Among those on display are 600 exquisite
pieces of porcelain.
Bada
Shanren's Studio
This
studio, situated at Qingyunpu in south Nanchang,
showcases calligraphic works and paintings by
Bada Shanren, a Ming abstract painter whose
real name was Zhu Da. On the premises are the
tomb of the painter and a garden graced with
a tiny bridge, gurgling stream, old trees, and
bamboo groves.
Lushan
Mountain
Lushan
Mountain is an important national scenic and
summer resort. In 1996 it was endorsed as world
cultural heritage site. Towering over Yangtze
River in the south of Jiujiang on one side,
and Poyang Lake on another, the mountain is
linked with Nanchang by a 100-km expressway.
Since ancient times Lushan has been frequented
by famous men of letters, who have left a wealth
of cultural heritage. Altogether there are 474
scenic spots in 12 scenic areas. The beauty
of Lushan Mountain is attributed to its exotic
peaks and mysterious caves, cascading waterfalls
and gurgling springs, ancient temples and stele
forest, and buildings that seem to be suspended
in midair. "The waterfalls of Lushan is
famous under heaven", as one saying goes.
"The beauty of Lushan is unmatched under
heaven," goes another. It is a religious
sanctuary, as well as a centre of education,
culture and politics. China's first subtropical
mountain botanical garden was built there. In
the 1920s, Lushan became the summering centre
of the ruling Kuomintang Party, which left quite
a few historical sites there. The mountain today
is equipped with a complete array of tourist
facilities. Transportation is made convenient
by airports at Nanchang and Lushan. Lushan is
also a terminal on the Beijing-Kowloon Railway.
A highway extends directly to the centre of
Lushan-Guling Town.
Longhu
Mountain
Longhu
(Dragon and Tiger) Mountain is a national scenic
resort 20km to the south ern suburbs of Yingtan.
Clustered along the bewitching Luxi River are
a series of scenic spots, which can be observed
by rafting down the river. Coffins are seen
suspended on some cliffs by the river. As the
domain of the Zhengyi sect of Taojism, Longhu
Mountain is visited by a constant stream of
pilgrims.
Jinggang
Mountains
Jinggang
Mountains, sitting astride Hunan and Jiangxi
provinces, is a national scenic place in China.
So many revolutionary sites, monuments, and
museums indicate that Jinggangshan was a cradle
of Chinese revolution. The mountains, looking
majestic, breathtaking, and graceful, are excellent
for sightseeing, summering and recuperating.
The back of the Chinese banknote with a 100-yuan
denomination is printed with a picture of Wuzhi,
the major peak of Jinggang Mountains.
Jingdezhen
Jingdezhen,
China's capital of porcelain-making industry,
used to be known as Changnan and Xinping. During
the Jingde reign (1004-1007) of the Song, the
quality porcelains made by local artisans drew
the attention of Emperor Zhenzong, who designated
them for imperial use and had the wording "Made
during the Jingde Reign" printed on the
bottom of every piece of porcelain made there.
Hence the name, Jingdezhen. A 1,700-year-old
history in the making of porcelain has pockmarked
the land of he city with ancient kilns, and
nurtured a distinctive folklore. Avisit to the
place never fails to become a most rewarding
experience. Panlong Town in the west of the
city is the site of the Jingdezhen Porcelain
Museum, whose cluster of Ming and Qing buildings
and Ming porcelain-making kilns capture exactly
the essence of the local cultural heritage.
Sanqing
Mountain
Sanqing
(Pure Trinity) Mountain is another national
scenic resort in northeast Jiangxi Province.
Exotic-looking rock prominences are the forte
of this resort, which is also graced with running
springs and cascading waterfalls and historical
sites of Taoism. Transportation has been vastly
improved, and there are a complete line of facilities,
as the resort is fast emerging as a key tourist
destination in Jiangxi.
|
Booking
Now
