'Ning'
is the colloquial term for the Ningxia Hui Autonomous
Region. Find it on the map in northwest China and into the middle
and lower reaches of the Yellow River. It is
bordered by Gansu to the south, Shaanxi
to the east, and the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
to the north, and is one of the five ethnic minority autonomous
regions in China. Ningxia covers a total area of 66,000 square
kilometers (about 25,484 square miles) and has a population of
5.62 million; one third of who are Hui minority people. It has
a temperate continental climate of long, cold winters and short,
hot summers with the temperature being lowest in January, averaging
from -10C
to -7C
and highest in July, averaging from 17C
to 24C.
Annual rainfall averages from 190-700 millimeters.
History
Ningxia, a region as culturally rich as the entire area south of
the Yangtze River, continues to be admired for its resplendent cultural
heritage garnered from the long river of history. During the time
of the Tang and Han Dynasties (206 BC - 907 AD) Ningxia was the
main place for trade and transportation between the eastern and
western regions of ancient China. Ruins of the Great Wall of the
Ming Dynasty can be found in east Ningxia.
What to see
A unique landscape, unique local customs and habits, and ancient
history, all add up to make Ningxia an interesting tourist area
for those wishing to discover a rich and diverse region.
Yinchuan City (also called 'Phoenix City') is
the capital of the region situated in the remote northwest of
China. The 1000-year-old city is a famous cultural city beyond
the Great Wall. The old sector of Yinchuan City
to the west is green and peaceful, and contains all the places
of interest. It includes the 1500-year-old Haibao Pagoda;
the famous Buddhist architecture from the West Xia Kingdom Chengtiansi
Pagoda; and the West Xia Imperial Tombs
known as the 'Pyramids of China'. One can also find there the
mystic Helan Mountain Cliff Painting, created by the ancient nomads
who dwelled in the regions of the Helan Mountains in northwest
Ningxia. They used a bold and descriptive chiseling and drawing
technique, to which they added dazzling colors, to depict the
history of a splendid Chinese civilization.
Liupan Mountain is located in south Ningxia.
This is an area famous for its picturesque scenery and it certainly
lives up to its reputation as the 'green islet'.
Sand Lake Scenic Resort is the national
tourist trump card for those looking for a place with a lake, sand
dunes, reeds, birds and fish. During the May-September period, the
lake becomes a veritable paradise for a dozen or so varieties of
precious bird species, such as swans, white and grey cranes, black
storks, and wild geese.
Shapotou on the southern rim of the Tengger
Desert: There one will find the Desert Research Centre, established
in 1956 to find ways of preventing the sands from encroaching
onto the railways, and one of China's four singing sand dunes.
Sliding down the sand dune gives one the ethereal feeling of descending
from the sky. The peculiar geological structure of the place causes
the sand to emit a resonance that reverberates like the tolling
of a huge bell or the beating of a big drum. Limpid water flows
gently in a knee-deep stream at the foot of the dune.
Ningxia is the home of Chinese Muslems. When you
go, please be respectful of the unique local customs and habits
of the Hui people.
