"Golden Pig Celebrates the New Year and Enjoys the New Year"--2019 Spring Festival Holiday Welcome Spring Travel Notes
2019.02.12
Looking forward, looking forward to, the Spring Festival holiday of the Year of the Pig is finally here.
Before the festival, I considered several travel plans, and the preferred plan was the Nanjing-Shanghai plan. I wanted to go to Nanjing to see the Ming Tomb and Nanjing Museum, and to Shanghai to see Disney, but my wife felt that it was too far away, so she gave up this plan. The next option was to go to Harbin to see the ice sculptures and the Sophia Cathedral. Later, I found out that there was no fur coat at home, and I was worried that I would be exposed to the cold, so I gave up.
On the evening of the 29th of the twelfth lunar month, when I checked the air ticket information, I found that the discount of the air ticket from Dalian to Hohhot was very low.
After purchasing the air ticket, I simply planned the itinerary and set the route as Dalian-Hohhot-Datong-Beijing-Dalian.
On the first day of the new year, when I was on duty at the company, I took the time to write a simple itinerary plan, selected a few scenic spots I wanted to see, and according to the schedule, booked train tickets and accommodation hotels between the three places online.
On the morning of the second day of the Lunar New Year, I packed my luggage and went straight to the airport. Due to the late selection of seats, I only chose the middle of the cabin, near the wings. The flight time from Dalian to Hohhot was nearly 2 hours, and the flight process was very smooth. The clouds under the wings were continuous, like a huge cotton quilt spread out. It's just that the flight does not provide a meal, only biscuits and drinks, which is far from the roasted whole lamb meal I imagined that the flight to Inner Mongolia should provide. The bottled water provided looks pretty good. It is produced in Tibet. According to the description, the water will not freeze at minus 8 degrees, which is amazing. The clothes worn by the flight attendants on the plane are all Mongolian-style clothes, which are somewhat similar to cheongsam. Sitting in the same row is a young man who looks like a middle school student. It is probably the first time he has taken a plane. He is full of curiosity about the things on the plane. He keeps looking around with a faint smile on his face. The dining table can also be fiddled with for a long time. A man and a woman sat in the front seat. They looked about 30 years old, and they had been interacting with each other along the way, looking very excited. The world is so big, traveling will always allow you to meet people with different personalities and different things, and let you understand this beautiful world more diversely.
After getting off the plane, I found that the scale of Hohhot Airport is not large, which is about the same size as Dalian Airport. Immediately after leaving the airport, I felt the biting cold wind, which was much colder than Dalian. I checked the weather forecast and found that the lowest temperature that day was minus 22 degrees.
After getting off the plane, I took the airport bus to the hotel. Along the way, I saw that the urban construction of Hohhot is good. The urban area is long and narrow, and many buildings have Mongolian style. It took more than 20 minutes by car to arrive at the hotel. As soon as I entered the hotel, I was pleasantly surprised. It turns out that this hotel is a five-star hotel. I didn’t notice it when I booked the hotel online. It is 42 square meters, and the facilities in the room are very complete. This hotel is very cost-effective. It is absolutely suitable to stay in this kind of hotel when traveling.
On the corridor from the hotel lobby to the restaurant on the first floor, there are more than 20 leather carving paintings on the wall. Leather carvings are traditional Mongolian handicrafts. These paintings are not bad in workmanship and are relatively exquisite.
After checking in at the hotel, drop your luggage and go to the first scenic spot in the plan: Wuta Temple. Since I didn’t get the roasted whole lamb on the plane as I wished, I was a little hungry. Before visiting the Wuta Temple, I found a restaurant next to the scenic spot for lunch. This restaurant specializes in Mongolian-style hot pot, and the beef is cut to order. The proprietress is more honest and reminds two people that ordering one portion of beef is enough. This meal is very filling, the beef shabu-shabu is delicious, the price is not expensive, and I am quite satisfied with the food.
After lunch, visit Wuta Temple. When I arrived at the gate, I found that the two ticket windows were all closed. Is it free to visit in the off-season now?
Wuta Temple is a Tibetan Buddhist temple and the birthplace of Tibetan Buddhism in Mongolia. In front of the temple are several main halls, and in the innermost part of the temple, you can see the famous relic pagoda. This stupa was built in the Yongzheng period of the Qing Dynasty. It is about 16 meters high. The body of the tower is made of glazed bricks. The carving is exquisite, exquisite and beautiful.
On the north wall behind the stupa, there is a Mongolian astronomical map stone carving. This is the only astronomical map marked in Mongolian in the world so far, which has high scientific research value.
After visiting the Wuta Temple, walk for about ten minutes to reach the second scenic spot: Xilituzhao. Does the big lion in front of this gate look familiar? I think it looks a bit like the big lion in front of Tiananmen Square. Across from Xi Lituzhao is the Dazhao Temple. Go to the ticket window and check. If you buy two tickets, it costs 30 yuan, and if you buy a combined ticket, it is 50 yuan.
Xili Tuzhao is the largest temple in Hohhot, commonly known as "Xiaozhao" by the locals. Xilitu means "Dharma Seat" in Mongolian, and the Chinese name of the temple is "Yanshou Temple". It used to hold the power of the Yellow Sect in the Hohhot area. The building in Xilituzhao is spacious and unique in style. It is an exquisite Tibetan temple. Despite four hundred years of wind and rain and turmoil, it is still relatively intact. The Sutra Hall is the main building of Xi Lituzhao. It is resplendent and magnificent, adopting a Tibetan structure. The four walls are decorated with colored glazed bricks, forming various patterns and patterns, which are dazzling and full of strong artistic effects. Xilituzhao is still very distinctive, but because it is not as famous as Dazhao Temple, tour groups generally rarely bring tourists to Xilituzhao.
After visiting Xili Tuzhao, I came to Dazhao Temple, which is separated by a road. Dazhao Temple is the number one tourist attraction in Hohhot, with many tourists. In the main hall of the temple, you can see a "Sakyamuni statue" made of 30,000 taels of pure silver. The silver Buddha was built in the 14th year of Wanli (1586). The murals and statues inside are very beautiful.
This is a sneak shot of a little lama dozing in a corner with the afternoon sun.
Due to the low temperature, many lamas were busy clearing the ice cubes in the water tanks in front of the main halls.
After leaving Dazhao Temple, walk along Saishang Old Street, and after about ten minutes, you will arrive at the next scenic spot: Guanyin Temple. Saishang Old Street is also a scenic spot. On both sides of the long pedestrian street, there are some ancient-style buildings, and many hawkers are selling some tourist products.
In front of the gate of Guanyin Temple, there were some beggars. I met an old lady with a very hunchback who was begging me. I found out a dime coin and handed it to her. He found out another 1 dime and handed it to her, and the old grandma let out another oops, could it be that it was less?
Guanyin Temple is the only intact Qing Dynasty Han Buddhist temple in Hohhot. It was first built in the Jiaqing period of the Qing Dynasty and rebuilt in the Daoguang period. It was once the activity center of Han Buddhism in the history of Hohhot. The statue of Guanyin Bodhisattva in the temple is very exquisite. When I first saw it, I couldn't help but sigh in my heart: it's so beautiful.
Opposite the Guanyin Temple is the Baoerhan Pagoda, which is very tall and majestic, but according to the introduction, this pagoda is not a historic site, but a modern one. But what is different is that this pagoda contains rare holy objects donated by a living Buddha: the relics of Sakyamuni Buddha, the relics of ten Arhats, as well as many precious scriptures, Buddha statues, etc., which are very precious. Pilgrims braved the severe cold and surrounded the pagoda to pray for the turret.
After visiting for an afternoon, I felt that the temperature in Hohhot was too low that day, and the wind force was at least level 5. The cold wind penetrated my down jacket and went straight into the bone crevices. If it wasn't for the fat on my back, I probably couldn't resist it. live. The original plan was to continue to visit the Great Mosque. Considering the current situation of the hunger match, I decided to have dinner, and then go back to the hotel early to rest and warm up. Before going to the restaurant, I searched the rankings of local specialties on the Internet. One of the restaurants ranked third was just not far from the hotel, so I decided to go there for dinner to eat local special Mongolian food. The decoration style of this store is not bad. I ordered a pot of milk tea, a pot of brick tea, a top-quality milk skin, a lamb chop, a pot of haggis, a yurt stuffed with lamb, an Alxa camel meat pie, and a One serving of sweet cheese pie and one serving of Amusu are local specialties. They feel a bit expensive and the quantity is small, so the taste is not bad. This store has a special feature, there will be waiters singing Mongolian songs to the diners, and then presenting hada. After listening to it several times, I can’t understand a word. It is estimated that the general meaning of the song is: Guests from afar, please come and sit often.
After dinner with Mongolian characteristics, return to the hotel to rest. The original plan was to visit three scenic spots tomorrow, namely the Great Mosque, the Inner Mongolia Museum, and Princess Qing Mansion, and then take the afternoon train to Datong. When I was resting at the hotel at night, I checked the weather forecast. The temperature of the next day was still very low, so I decided to cancel the itinerary of these three scenic spots and take the train in the morning, all the way south to Datong, avoiding Inner Mongolia. In severe cold weather, although the Inner Mongolia Museum is a scenic spot that I really want to see, I can only stay and see it next time I have a chance. After waking up the next day, after packing up my luggage, I went to the restaurant on the first floor of the hotel to have breakfast. The breakfast in this five-star hotel is different from the breakfast in ordinary hotels. The restaurant has a large area, a large variety of dishes, both Chinese and Western styles, especially the service is also very good. There will be a waiter who will refill tea and coffee for guests. Very polite and professional in speech and demeanor. After breakfast, I went to the hotel lobby to check out and checked the price. The business double room I lived in was more than 1,000 yuan offline. I didn't expect it to be so expensive.
From the hotel to the train station, it takes about 20 minutes by car. Hohhot East Railway Station is a newly built railway station, about the same size and style as Dalian North Railway Station. I don't know why, but there is no bullet train or high-speed rail from Hohhot to Datong, and there is no bullet train or high-speed rail from Datong to Beijing. I had to buy a fast train ticket to Datong, which is the kind of green leather train. The train departs after 9 o'clock, and the journey takes about 3 hours. After noon, arrive at Datong Station.
After leaving Datong Station, you can clearly feel that the temperature is much higher than that in Hohhot, without the feeling of cold wind piercing your bones.
The booked hotel is next to the train station, and it takes a few minutes to walk to the hotel. Compared with the five-star hotels in Hohhot, this hotel is much inferior, but the room is not too small, with 38 square meters. When I checked in, I specifically asked for a high-rise, wanting to see the whole picture of Datong City from a height.
After checking in, it was past one o'clock in the afternoon, so I hurried to find a restaurant for dinner. After searching on the Internet, I chose a hotel that was relatively close to the scenic spot that I was going to visit in the afternoon. This hotel ranked second in Datong. When I took a taxi to the restaurant, I found out that during the Spring Festival, the taxi fare was adjusted from 7 yuan to 10 yuan. I checked online, and it really happened. It was a notice from the Datong City Government. What is the situation? It hurts the hearts of foreign tourists too much. When I arrived at the restaurant, it was already past 2 o'clock. I went in and saw a sea of people. I asked the waiter and was told that they would stop taking orders after 2 o'clock. It opened at 6 o'clock in the evening, and I had to queue up in advance to get a number after 5 o'clock. Reservations are not accepted. It's scary, is it so hot?
After leaving the hotel, I walked along the street towards the scenic spot. I asked several restaurants, but they were closed in the afternoon. I felt that the restaurants in Datong were only open during the meal time, and they would not accept guests after the meal time. There was no other way, so I had to find a small shop on the street, and simply ate jelly and Roujiamo for lunch.
After lunch, visit the ancient city of Datong. The ancient city has a large area and there are many scenic spots in it.
I visited several scenic spots in turn, and they were all pretty good. It may be because the weather is a bit cold, and there are not many tourists.
This is the Five Dragon Wall.
This scenic spot is the Confucian Temple, which commemorates Confucius.
This scenic spot is Guandi Temple, which commemorates Guan Yu.
In the ancient city, there is also a great mosque. I didn’t visit the great mosque in Hohhot, so I happened to make up for this regret in the ancient city of Datong.
This scenic spot is four archways. Is there anything to discuss in these archways? They are sitting together for a meeting.
This scenic spot is the Nine Dragon Wall. There are three famous Nine Dragon Walls in China, among which the Nine Dragon Wall in Datong is the largest Nine Dragon Wall.
This is the Drum Tower with golden walls under the night. Compared with the Drum Towers in Xi'an and Kaifeng that I have been to, the scale is slightly smaller and the format is different, but it looks more refined.
There is a restaurant on the edge of the Gulou Square that specializes in sliced noodles. The sliced noodles are a Shanxi specialty. This restaurant is so popular that it is crowded with people. We waited in line for about half an hour before eating the noodles.
I ordered two bowls of sliced noodles, one bowl of haggis, one serving of dried tofu, and one serving of kimchi.
On the way back to the hotel, there are lights and festoons everywhere on both sides of the main road of Datong and on the walls of the ancient city.
This hotel does not provide breakfast. After getting up in the morning, Mr. Li went downstairs to the hotel and had a beef noodle set for breakfast.
After breakfast, take a bus in front of the hotel to the planned attraction: Yungang Grottoes. While waiting for the bus, the soliciting taxi driver came to strike up a conversation. After being rejected, he said bitterly: Yungang Grottoes are sunny in the afternoon and can shine into the cave. It is best to visit in the afternoon. I ignored him, because I had to take the train to Beijing in the afternoon, and it was too late.
The hotel is not far from the Yungang Grottoes. There is no escort along the way. It takes about half an hour to arrive by bus. When taking the bus, I found that the bus in Datong has already implemented Alipay payment. Scan the QR code and you will be there. You can take a car, which is very convenient. This is indeed in front of Dalian. When I came to the ticket office, I saw that a lot of tourists had gathered, and they hurriedly lined up to buy tickets to enter.
As soon as we entered the scenic spot, we saw several tour groups. The two of us found a relatively large group and followed it. We followed the tour guide closely and listened to the tour guide's explanation while walking.
I don’t know if it’s because there are too many people in the team or because the tour guide is too fat. The movement speed of this group is too slow. Although the tour guide is constantly explaining, the speaking speed is relatively slow. The amount of knowledge is very rich, but the sense of humor is slightly It's not enough, it's just memorizing the explanation.
Yungang Grottoes is one of the three major grottoes in my country. It was built in the Northern Wei Dynasty and is very different from the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang.
The Yungang Grottoes are more than 1,500 years old. After such a long time of baptism, it still makes people feel very shocked.
The big Buddha in this cave is the symbol of Yungang Grottoes, just like the big Buddha of Lushena is the symbol of Longmen Grottoes.
It took almost three hours to visit Yungang Grottoes. Because we had to catch the afternoon train, we returned from Yungang Grottoes around 13:00. On the way back, we found a one-sided road to Yungang Grottoes. The escort was very serious, and the long queue was endless at a glance. I was glad that I didn't listen to the taxi driver's advice, otherwise I would have to delay more than an hour on the way to Yungang Grottoes in the afternoon. I quickly returned to the city by bus, and before 14:00, I rushed to the restaurant where I hadn’t had lunch at noon the day before, but it was still full, and the aisles were full of customers waiting to be seated. I was told by the waiter that I would not take orders anymore. I had no choice but to visit the restaurant and take a photo with a row of wine jars. I was afraid that my wife would starve, so I went to McDonald’s to buy a hamburger for my wife.
Next to McDonald's, there is a Wal-Mart supermarket. This trip, I left in a hurry and forgot to bring a thermos. In addition, it was cold and I couldn’t drink cold water. When I visited the scenic spots in the past two days, I didn’t grab hot water to drink. So, the two of us went to Walmart to buy two thermos cups. After using them, we found that these two cups have very good thermal insulation performance, and the price is reasonable, which is very valuable.
Before boarding the train, the two of us went to the restaurant to eat dumplings stuffed with shrimps, plus a plate of Harbin red sausage and a plate of preserved egg and cucumber. The train at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, because there is no high-speed rail or bullet train, can only take the express train. The journey takes about 6 hours and arrives at the capital of the great motherland: Beijing at 10 o'clock in the evening.
After leaving the train station, I took a black car and rushed to the hotel. Since Beijing is a popular tourist city, the hotel prices are relatively high, and the accommodation conditions are much worse than the five-star hotels in Hohhot.
Because I slept late, I woke up naturally the next day. I woke up at 9 o'clock to wash up. When I went to the hotel restaurant, I found that breakfast was still provided. It was 18 yuan per person. The restaurant is a bit small, compared to the five-star hotel restaurants in Hohhot. There is a lot of difference, many guests are eating at the same table, an old woman with a southern accent, because of occupying a seat, has a slight verbal friction with a middle-aged woman with a northern accent, why bother? When traveling, it is very important to maintain a good mood. If you understand more, if you give way, it will not be a problem.
After breakfast, take the subway to the first scenic spot in the plan: the National Art Museum of China. Because my wife is more interested in painting, I want to take her to see the highest-level art exhibition in China.
When taking the subway, I found that Beijing’s subway also uses mobile phone scanning codes to ride. Compared with buying tickets in the past, it is much more convenient. I hope that Dalian Metro will also realize scanning codes to ride sooner or later. It is indeed much more convenient.
After entering the art museum, I found that there are exhibitions from the first floor to the fifth floor, with a total of more than 20 exhibition halls, and there are many tourists who come to visit. After visiting, I found that most of the exhibition halls are art exhibitions. Are there so few categories of art? Are there no other types of works?
After wandering all the way to the fifth floor, I finally found that there were sculpture exhibitions in several exhibition halls, and my aesthetic vision finally changed from flat to three-dimensional.
In the exhibition hall on the fifth floor, two famous paintings by Picasso were also found, both of which are authentic. Among them, this painting is called "Man Smoking a Pipe". I know that Picasso is an abstract painter? Where are the cigarette butts? Duanxiang spent a long time, but still couldn't find it.
This is another Picasso painting on display. The name seems to be "Man and Woman by the Vase", which is still quite abstract.
I originally thought that according to the introduction, the exhibition will end on the fifth floor, and the office area above the fifth floor. Unexpectedly, when a staff member was answering tourists' questions, he mentioned that there was an exhibition hall on the 6th floor.
When the two of us came to the 6th floor, we found that there was only one exhibition hall, and the area was not too large. The exhibition halls on the first to fifth floors are all marked with numbers, but the exhibition hall on the sixth floor has a unique name called Treasure Pavilion. Come in and take a look, it's really a treasure. In the middle of the exhibition hall, there is a well-known painting on display. It is Xu Beihong's most famous painting "Running Horse", and it is an authentic work. Next to this painting is "Ink Crab" by Qi Baishi, but Qi Baishi is famous for painting shrimps. This painting of ink crabs does not feel as vivid as the painting of shrimps. When I came to the art museum this time, I was able to see the authentic works of Picasso, Xu Beihong, and Qi Baishi with my own eyes. Of course, there are many excellent works by famous painters in other exhibition halls. Very nice work.
After visiting the art museum, on the way to Nanluoguxiang, I saw a century-old Halal shop, so I went in for lunch.
The inside is also full, and I finally found a seat. After waiting for a long time, the dishes were served. I ordered a signature dish of roasted lamb, a plate of lamb liver, a plate of sauced beef, a sesame candied biscuit, a bowl of Tofu and vegetable soup, the price is quite expensive, but the signature dish roasted lamb is very good, crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, with a good taste.
After lunch, walk for about ten minutes to Nanluoguxiang, which is a group of hutongs, alleys are connected to hutongs, and it is a famous hutong tourist attraction in Beijing. This is the Temple of Prime Minister Wen, a memorial hall to commemorate the patriot Wen Tianxiang. Wen Tianxiang lived in this place in his last days in Beijing. His well-known sentence "No one in life has died since ancient times, keep his loyal heart to reflect history" is even more well-known.
This is an Internet celebrity restaurant. I went in and took a look. The inside is relatively narrow and there are many people.
This is the former residence of Mao Dun. The place where Mao Dun lived in Beijing is also the place where he wrote many masterpieces. After going in and looking around, the courtyard is not bad. At that time, such a place of residence should be very good.
This is Yandai Xiejie, a tourist commodity pedestrian street with a long history, from here you can go all the way to Shichahai.
This is a bar street in Shichahai. The bars are next to each other. Looking all the way, there are resident singers performing in each bar, but it may be too early. There are not many tourists in each bar. The price of beer in this bar is more than 500 yuan a dozen, which is too expensive. There is a mine at home, so drink it?
After slowly strolling around Nanluoguxiang and Shichahai, it was getting late. I wanted to go to the National Center for the Performing Arts to watch a drama or dance drama, or go to Laoshe Teahouse and Renyi to watch a drama, but after searching, I couldn’t find a suitable one. The drama you want to watch is either too expensive and beyond your budget, or the rehearsal time is at a later date.
In the end, I decided to watch a movie. It happened that "The Wandering Earth" was being released during the Spring Festival. I spent 43 yuan a ticket on Meituan and bought two tickets. When I went to the ticket window of the movie theater and asked, the ticket was 40 yuan per ticket on the spot. What's the situation? Online sales price is actually higher than the on-site price? I'm a little confused. In front of the cinema, there are many tourist bars. Many tour guides are calling tourists to line up and gather in the cinema to watch the program. This formation is like going to the cinema to watch movies together under the leadership of teachers in school days.
Fortunately, the movie is very good, and it is completely worth the ticket price. Outside the movie theater, I accidentally looked up and saw the CCTV office building not far away, the famous "big underpants". It feels very close, and it is estimated that it will be within ten minutes on foot. After watching the movie, I took the subway back to the hotel. I found a halal restaurant near the hotel for dinner. I ordered a bowl of halal beef noodles. There was so little beef that I had to search several times to find a few slices the size of a fingernail. For beef, I also ordered a large plate of chicken and 5 large lamb skewers. The taste is average.
Since I watched the movie late, I still slept until I woke up naturally the next day before getting up to take a shower. Self-guided tours are good. I can go wherever I want, and wake up at any time I want. There is no restriction at all. Breakfast is still settled at the hotel, except that the fritters are missing, the rest are the same types of dishes as yesterday morning. This breakfast is really simple, if I were a hotel chef, I could handle all of these by myself.
After breakfast, I thought about the itinerary. Since I got up late and had to rush back to Dalian at night, I didn’t have enough time to visit during the day. The original plan was to go to the Capital Museum, Baita Temple, Fayuan Temple and the Forbidden City. I went to have a look, but considering the limited time, I temporarily decided to go to Tiananmen Square and the National Museum, because I learned from the TV news that the National Museum is exhibiting a large-scale exhibition celebrating the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up. It is a rare opportunity and I can go there Feel the development and progress of the motherland over the years.
In Tiananmen Square, there are many tourists, and there are enough Chinese people, so I don’t want to join in the fun, for fear of being crowded, I find a place with few people and take a photo with Tiananmen from a distance.
After queuing for a long time, we finally entered the National Museum. Among them, the 40-year reform and opening-up achievement exhibition is located in the exhibition hall on the first floor. The exhibition area is quite large and the exhibits are relatively rich. Among them are aerospace rocket models, space station models, Jiaolong models, Chang'e-4 models, etc. great achievement.
In the exhibition hall on the second floor, there is a Spring Festival couplet exhibition. I think the content of this couplet is not bad, so I took a photo to encourage myself.
This is a replica of an ancient carriage. This luxurious shape is equivalent to today's Rolls Royce.
This is a jade garment with golden thread on display. I asked the staff, it is genuine, unearthed from the tomb of Liu Sheng, King Jing of the Han Dynasty.
This is a national treasure that was returned to China from England in the second half of 2018, and it seems to be a cultural relic of the Western Zhou Dynasty. For this returning national treasure, the National Museum has opened a special exhibition hall.
The museum is relatively large, and there are many tourists visiting it. It was already afternoon after visiting the National Museum. I simply ordered two set meals in Yonghe, and then went to the Daohua Village specialty store. In the evening, return to Dalian smoothly.
This is the story of my travel during the Spring Festival holiday in 2019. Some scenic spots that I didn’t see are reserved for my next trip.
thanks for watching! !
