Overview

Located at the center of Henan Province and south of Yellow River, Zhengzhou is the capital city of the province, which boarders Luoyang to the West, and Kaifeng to the east. It has a long history of about 3000 years, which left behind rich historical heritages. According to the statistics in 2006, the city covers an area of 7446.2 square kilometers with a population of 724.3 million.

Zhengzhou is the transportation hub in Central China with Jingguang (Beijing/Guangzhou) and Longhai (Lianyungang/Lanzhou) railways crossing here. Zhengzhou has been one of the major industrial cities in China since 1949. The city's staple industry is textiles. Others manufactured items include tractors, locomotives, cigarettes, fertilizer, processed meats, agricultural machinery, and electrical equipment.

The major tourist attractions in Zhengzhou are Yellow River Sightseeing Zone, Shang Ruins and Henan Museum. Nearby city Kaifeng is also a draw to tourists, where tourists can see some more historical sites.

Attractions

Henan Museum

Situated in Nongye Road of Zhengzhou, Henan Museum is a newly-built modern history and art museum. It has a collection of more than 130,000 pieces of cultural relics through the ages. Henan Museum occupies an area of more than 100,000 square meters, with a total floor space of 78,000 square meters.

At present the museum has a collection of more than 130,000 pieces of cultural relics treasures, of which more than 5,000 pieces are treasures of the first and second grades. Among them, the prehistoric cultural relics, bronze vessels of the Shang and Zhou Dynasties, and pottery and porcelain wares of the various dynasties in Chinese history possess most distinguishing features. Inside the museum, there are basic exhibition halls, specialized exhibition halls and provisional exhibition halls. For the first batch of exhibitions, two basic displays and six specialized displays are offered. They are rich in contents, presenting a spectacular sight to visitors.

Modern technological means have been adopted, such as audio tour, magnified video-tape playing, computer consultation and visitor's interactive facilities, so as to meet the needs of visitors for knowledge and appreciation of cultural relics and for entertainment.

As a modern museum, Henan Museum is equipped with advanced security system, automatic building management system, audio-visual education system, service information computer network system, cultural relics preservation, protection and research system and other high technology equipment.

Yellow River Sightseeing Zone

On the south bank of the Yellow River, some 25 km northwest of Zhengzhou in Henan Province is the Yellow River Sightseeing Zone, which is worth a short visit. To walk up to a high position (Five Dragon Peak) and have a panoramic view, you will be rewarded by fantastic scenes of Yellow River the second longest river of China.

The major attractions in the park include Five Dragon Peak (Wulongfeng), Camel Mountain Range, Yueshan Temple, Sculptures of Yan and Huang Emperor, Ancient Town of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu.

Hovercrafts and speedboats are popular on the Yellow River at the park. The park is home to China's large fleet of tourist-use hovercrafts.

Xiangguo Temple

First founded in 555 AD during the Northern Qi Dynasty, the temple of Kaifeng has been frequently rebuilt over the following 1000 years. Under the Tang Dynasty (618-970 AD) it was one of the Empire's leading Buddhist institutions. During Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD) it grows to over 1000 monks in some 64 different Buddhist colleges. In 1644 Xiangguo Temple was completely destroyed when the Yellow River floodgates were opened in a disastrous attempt to halt Manchu invasion.

The current Xiangguo Temple was built from 1766 and has undergone several renovations later. The surviving structures include Shanmen Gate, the Heavenly King Hall, the Arhat Hall, the Great Treasure House, the Sutra Library, the Drum Tower and the Bell Tower.

A wooden statue of a Bodhisattva carved out of a gingko trunk during the reign of Emperor Qianlong in the Qing Dynasty and found in the Arhat Hall is most impressive. The four sides of the statue are of the same sculpt. On each side, there are six big hands and three to four layers of small fanlike hands, with an eye on each palm. The number of the hands totals 1,048, and likewise the number of the eyes.

Iron Pagoda (Tie Ta)

The Iron Pagoda in Kaifeng is actually not made of iron, but of red, brown, blue and green glazed bricks. As the main hue is reddish brown, the pagoda looks like iron from afar and has thus been called the Iron Pagoda for hundreds of years.

The pagoda is located in the northeastern corner of Kaifeng. The predecessor of the Iron Pagoda was a huge octagonal, thirteen-storied wooden pagoda called Lingwei. It was once very famous, but for a very short time. In 1044 during the Northern Song Dynasty the wooden pagoda was struck by lightning and burnt down. Five years after the wooden pagoda was burnt down, the emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty ordered another one built on the same site. This time it was built of fire-resistant glazed bricks that remain today. It has been almost one thousand years since the pagoda was rebuilt, but it remains firm despite fierce winds, torrential rains and earthquakes. In 1841 the Yellow River overflowed and the city of Kaifeng was flooded. The thousand-year- old temple collapsed in the flood, but the towering pagoda survived and stood firm.

The thirteen-storey brick structure, modeled after wooden counterparts, is 54.66 meters high. The glazed bricks are lined with ordinary bricks. The doors, windows, pillars, brackets, bracket supports, pent roofs and balconies on the pagoda's exterior are all modeled after wooden ones and pieced together from twenty-eight standard brick components. The outer walls, comer pillars, doors, windows and bracket supports are all composed of glazed bricks of various colors. Carved on these component parts are more than fifty ornamental designs, including images of Buddha, bodhisattvas, flying apsarases, heavenly kings, celestial guards, lions, unicorns, musicians, peony and lotus flowers and figurines, making the pagoda the oldest and largest artifact of glazed bricks and tiles in China.

Under the main body is a high stone Sumeru pedestal that has been buried by mud because of frequent flooding by the overflowing Yellow River. The present pagoda has doors on four sides, but people can approach the pagoda only by the steps on the north side.

Dragon Pavilion

Located in the northwestern part of Kaifeng city on the ruins of the imperial palace of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), the 13.7?meter-high Dragon Pavilion was a big hall belonging to the Longevity Palace of the Qing Dynasty. In the ancient times, local officials used to come here and hold ceremonies to pay tribute to the emperor.

The Dragon Pavilion was built on a 13-meter-high brick base with a flight of 72 steps, which are made of broad slabs leading up to the pavilion. The middle part of the flight is carved from top to bottom with a huge pattern of nine dragons in token of prosperity. In front of the Dragon Pavilion stands a bronze statue of Dr. Sun Yat-sen erected in 1929.

Dining

Zhengzhou and Kaifeng are the major source for Henan cuisine (also called Yu cuisine). As the capital of the province, Zhengzhou has a diverse array of fine Chinese cuisine. Its location at China's center means you can find almost any type of Chinese food here. Some of the finest restaurants are located on Jingsan Road. To find these restaurants, ask a taxi driver to take you to a restaurant called Xiaonanguo. You'll find a number of options about. Xiaonanguo itself is an excellent restaurant featuring regional dishes from all over China.

The night market in Erqi Square is an ideal place for a snack and scenery. There's the usual assortment of dumpling shops and noodle joints on every street and back alley. There's a good number of Sichuan restaurants, which make sense considering the proximity to the Province of Spice. Noodles, especially the mutton noodle are the must-try in Zhengzhou.

A specialty of Kaifeng is 'Bao Zi' (steamed dumplings stuffed with meat and vegetables) . The famous place to get them in best quality is the 'Di Yi Lou' Restaurant in Kaifeng. These Bao Zi contains hot soup. So the eaters have to be careful when having it at mouth.

Due to an important presence of Muslims in the town, you can also find a lot of restaurants serving Islamic dishes.

Shopping

Zhengzhou is not one of China's larger cities, but you can find a good selection of markets and department stores within the city zone. Zhengzhou has been a commercial city for centuries and today, it is the business center of Middle China due to its transportation advantages. The city's commercial streets include Er' qi Lu, Taikang Lu, Renmin Lu and Jiefang Lu and these are mainly located in the northeastern area adjacent to the railway station. Currently, Er' qi Commercial area is the most prosperous and popular commercial location in Zhengzhou.

Local Products

Jade Sculpture art has more than a three-thousand-year history in Zhengzhou. Such jade articles from Xinmi, Zhengzhou, are regarded as the most famous in China. Additionally, the jade sculptures are sold throughout Southeastern Asia, Western Europe and Northern America, etc. These jade items are emerald green and translucent with a hard quality, features that are considered to be necessary for classical jade ware by experts.

Honeysuckle is another local product from Xinmi, Zhengzhou. It is a kind of common and efficient Chinese herb used to allay sunstroke.

Huanghe (Yellow River) Inkstone is made from a clay deposit from the Yellow River. Blended with herbs, this inkstone is one of the four famous inkstones that have been used by calligraphers and artists over the centuries. Huanghe inkstone in vermilion or an eel yellow is highly regarded and both of which were popular among emperors and the literati of ancient China.

Huanghe (Yellow River) Cyprinoid is actually a common kind of fish but those from the Yellow River are famed for their fresh qualities and nutritious value. If you would like to try this delicious fish when in Zhengzhou, you can order a dish named Liyu Sanchi (Three cooking methods of Cyprinoid) in a Yu (Henan) style restaurant.

The area also produces fruits such as dates, persimmons, pomegranates, watermelon and cherries etc. All these succulent fruits are worth trying for their flavor and quality.