Shaanxi Loess Plateau

The Loess Plateau, also known as Huangtu Plateau (黃土高原), is made up of the unique geographical features unlike anywhere else in the world. This vast plateau covers a massive area of about 640,000 square metres; surrounds the upper and middle reaches of China's Yellow River, that stretches across parts of Gansu, Ningxia, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Henan, Qinghai -- and the south-central part of which is located in northern Shaanxi.

Shaanxi is a province in the Northwest of China. Xi'an is the capital, in the south-central part of the province. One of the major ancient capitals of China, Xi'an was known as Chang'an before the Ming dynasty.
The province steep in history and a treasure trove of cultural relics is home to the Terracotta Warriors and the Ancient Silk Road.  

 A stone-built Yaodong in Yan'an Loess Plateau -- a family usually has three to five caves. 

A two-week journey, from March to first week of April, Tashi joined me in Xi'an. The train journey up north to Yan'an city took just over two and a half hours. We met with Geng and Wang and, embarked on an overland journey to experience the unusual and different landscape that has changed and adapted over thousands of years. 

Yan'an is located on the south-central part of the Loess Plateau. We drove through arid and dusty countryside with sparse vegetation that looks almost surreal and uninhabitable. Yet, the rural folks have made the Loess Plateau, their home for centuries and living in Yaodong, cave dwellings. 

According to the local folks, there are three varieties of Yaodong or Loess Cave Dwellings -- the earth, the stone or the brick kind. The brick type is the most common of modern cave dwellings. 
The name, Yaodong (窰洞) literally means, "kiln cave", aptly named due to the architectural structure, the interior shapes like a kiln.

We visited a family's uninhabited, old Yaodong. Their granny and the generation before her lived in this Loess Yaodong -- the climb up the wooden ladder to the main entrance. 

The steep Yaodong dwelling built into the side of the mountain

A two-cave loess cave dwelling  

The worn, wooden ladder leads into the old Yaodong that is now used as storage and also gives access to the opposite rooftop of the new brick-built outdoor Yaodong dwelling.

The soil used for plastering the interior walls function as an effective insulator -- keeping the structure warm in winter and cool in summer.

The old Yaodong has two caves -- the bigger cave leading to the smaller cave to the left of the cave dwelling.

Their granny sat outside, keeping happily busy making custom-tailored shoes for her husband. She now lives with her children in a modern brick-built Yaodong dwelling.

Amazingly simple and practical, the shoes are made from cotton material and cotton thread. 

The walk up to another uninhabited stone-built Yaodong; built into the mountain cliffs of the Loess Plateau. 

The walk around the soft loess ground at this Yaodong dwelling.

The interior of the stone-built Yaodong that felt like a natural air-conditioned  room.

The stone-built arch-shaped interior

Geng brought us to his family modern brick-built outdoor Yaodong, now left uninhabited -- the relatives of the Geng family continue to upkeep their family home that has five caves. 

The Geng's family owns a large piece of land -- the older Yaodong nearby was once used as a storage quarter. The bare trees are red jujube trees that thrive in this region. Harvesting season is in autumn.

The modern brick dwelling and the older uninhabited stone cave dwelling and, the Geng family's jujube orchard on the Loess Plateau hill slopes. 

Their family rooster and hen live on their family home compound. 

Yan'an renowned Yaodongs

For those who would like to experience a slice of the Chinese Revolutionary History, this is the place, where the earlier leaders of the Chinese Communist Party set up their military headquarters. 

A quaint village in Liangjiahe became a popular local attraction after the President, Xi Jinping visited the region prior to this Lunar New Year in February, 2015. 
He lived in Liangjiahe for about seven years in the three different Yaodong quarters from 1969 to 1975. In 1969, he joined other urban youths to work in the village, where he lived a spartan lifestyle in a harsh environment

The first Yaodong in the Liangjiahe Village that President Xi Jinping lived during the Cultural Revolution past.

A platform bed covered with reed mat.

A basic platform stove and the platform bed

The second Yaodong living quarter.

The second Yaodong quarter that President, Xi Jinping lived during the Cultural Revolution past. 

Liangjiahe Village inhabitants nearby living in the Yaodong dwellings. Some of them made embroidery insoles or caps to sell to visitors to supplement their income.  

The third Yaodong living quarter that the President, Xi Jinping lived during the Cultural Revolution past. 

A kerosene lamp, an abacus, an inkstone and a writing table.

The Yaodong keeper

The ancient Yaodong dwellings in the Loess Plateau are unlike any other building on earth. Their cultural significance dates back to the ancient Silk Road and leads right up to the Cultural Revolution. 
Indeed, a fascinating eye-opener, like travelling back in that period at what life was like after the birth of the ancient Silk Road -- and, the living and working conditions of the earlier leaders of the Cultural Revolutionary history. 



The Rich Cultural Heritage of Ansai
From Yan'an, we continue our journey North, about less than an hour drive, to arrive in Ansai, Loess Plateau. 

The most popular traditional folk art includes the Ansai paper-cutting (安塞剪纸), the colourful paintings of rural lives of farmers, the vibrant Ansai waist drum, waist drum folk dance (安塞腰鼓舞) and folk songs. 

Traditionally, to celebrate happy occasions and festivals, all Ansai women folks create paper-cuts by hand to decorate the home and windows with symbols of the Chinese horoscopes, good fortune and prosperity. 

The twelve Chinese horoscopes and floral paper-cuts adorned the window in one of the Yaodong's dwellings -- the view from the inside

The exterior view -- the symbols of the twelve Chinese horoscopes and floral paper-cuts. 

Traditional Paper-cuts

Ansai paper-cuts has been recognized as the "living fossils" of cultural treasures. The form of paper-cutting is simple, concise that has an inherent raw beauty that generally depict the rural daily lives and ethnic culture of the local folks.

The primitive themes of the human race and nature are my favourites. 

Depicting the popular waist drum and waist drum folk dance 

The various forms of paper-cuts depicting the "Zhuaji Wawa" with the Chinese phoenix. 

Paper-cuts depicting the "Zhuaji Wawa" with cats, birds and flowers.

Paper-cuts depicting the "Zhuaji Wawa" (抓髻娃娃) with birds and gold coins. 

Manor of Jiangshi Zhuang Yuan
Jiangshi Zhuang Yuan (姜氏庄园) is located in Mizhi County, Yulin City. This impressive manor was built by Jiang Yaozu, the wealthiest man in the village during the Qing Dynasty.
The manor covers an area of over 2.7 hectares; a specially commissioned work designed by a team of specialists from Beijing that reflected the fine works of the architectural arts of the Qing civilization and, took about thirteen years to complete. The manor consists of the lower, central and upper sections. 
The lower section is surrounded by a 9.5 metres stone wall and connected to the central section by an eight to ten metres wall. The upper section is the living quarter. There is a cave that connects the back of the manor to a mountain, a defense to deter attacks.

The grand manor entrance built at the highest point of the Loess Plateau in the village -- the formidable 9.5 metres high stone wall.

The arched entrance, the paved stone pathway leading to the lower section -- the centre stone pavers designed for horses and carriages and, the eight to ten metres thick arched stone wall connected to the lower section. 

The central part of the manor

The main entrance of the living quarter

The Yaodong living quarters

The stables for horses on both sides of the manor of the central entrance

A section of the courtyard

Granny Zhuang, happily dusting away, is the descendant of the Zhuang family -- the sixth generation living here. 

(Entrance ticket : CNY20)


Xianglu Temple, Jia County
According to history, Xianglu (incense hearth) Temple was built in the Ming Dynasty. It is so called because the huge stone pillar resembles that of an incense hearth. 

The interesting rock formation. 

Xianglu Temple, perched atop the mountain cliff overlooks the Yellow River. 

The steps up leading to the incense hearth

The-three-metres long bridge transverses the bridge across cliff bank of the incense hearth -- sitting atop is the temple hall. 

The incense hearth has a magnificent view that overlooks the banks of the Yellow River

Xianglu Temple overlooking the banks of the Yellow River and the modern highways. There are cave dwellings in the village nearby. 

Yulin

Yulin is situated in a valley and the surrounding mountains by the Yuxi River which extends north to south in the farthest north of Shaanxi, bordering Inner Mongolia (Ordos City) to the north, Shanxi to the east, Ningxia to the west and Yan'an to the south. 
This city is rich in cultural relics as well as in natural resources such as coal, oil and natural gas. 

Red Rock Canyon
Red Rock Canyon or "Grand Rock Canyon" runs across a Red Valley. This is a popular attraction in summer. At sunset, when the sun rays cast over the rock cliff surface, it glows a fiery red. 

There are interesting stone calligraphy works at the entrance pillars 

The eastern face of the rock cliff has several caves temples and famous ancient calligraphic inscriptions on the cliff walls.

The interesting rock cliff formation

The Yuxin River runs though the valley

There are several cave temples -- the fourth and sixth caves have some interesting remains of stone engravings, the oldest relics of the Song and Yuan era.

The view of the western cliff face from the cave 

A single-file walkway along this stretch on the eastern cliff face that leads into another cave

The stairway leading down from the cave temple to another cave.

Rock engraving in one of the caves 

The Yuxin River that runs through the valley

On the one side of the canyon is the East Cliff and the opposite, the West Cliff.

Relics dated back to the Song and Yuan era from the excavated temples and caves. 

Zhen Bei Tai Great Wall 
Zhen Bei Tai Great Wall, a section of the Great Wall of China, located in Mount Hongshan was built in 1607. It was the vibrant trading centre between the Han and nomadic people -- the largest of the towers that served as an observation post became the prominent landmark as a fortified city and a military post during the Ming dynasty.

The Zhen Bei Tai Great Wall is very different to the sections of the Mutianyu Great Wall, the Juyongguan and Badaling that I have visited; having been built in a different dynasty. 
Looking at the huge tower, the ruins of the two smaller fortresses nearby and the surrounding spare vegetation, one could perhaps feel a sense of utter desolation. The desert sand is gradually consuming what little is left of this section of The Great Wall. 

Both attractions are located north of the city (5km), easily accessible by taxi or by public bus. We took a taxi (metered fare CNY10/USD1.70) from our hotel to Red Rock Canyon. 
The weather was too beautiful to pass up to explore the surroundings on foot from Red Stone Canyon to Zhen Bei Tai Great Wall. We chanced upon a sheep farm nearby; met with the owner, learned about their challenging sheep farming business and tasted the fresh sheep's milk. We continued our way, stopped at a corner sundry shop fronting the main road to have some mung bean popsicles while chatting with the local folks. We then walked to the Zhen Bei Tai Great Wall. After a final round of mung bean popsicle (CNY2.50/USD0.45), we hopped on the local public bus (CNY2/USD0.35), that took us back to the city centre. 

 The sheep farm nearby

Milking sheep -- the milk tasted so rich and so creamy! (CNY6/USD1)

We parted with Geng and Wang in Yulin. They returned to Yan'an for the Qingming festival while we stayed on for several days before taking the overnight train back to Xi'an.  
Special thanks to Geng and Wang for making our loess journey most memorable! 

Xi'an -- The Ancient City

Like all major cities in the country, although Xi'an has seen a boost in the number of new buildings and shopping malls around the old town, I have been fortunate to soak up the scenes of a timeless ancient city of a rich culture tradition and savouring the culinary heritage that has remained unchanged. 

My first trip to Xi'an city and the Shannan (southern) region then; in the Lunar New Year month, prior to the Beijing Olympics -- the main street was decorated with numerous beautiful red lanterns.

The scene at the entrance to the bustling Muslim Food Street then.

The Lunar New Year crowd in the Muslim Food Street then.

The outer wall and stone calligraphy of the Temple of Confucius, Xi'an City -- the walk around the old town; my third trip here. 

A section of the Xi'an City Wall 

On a fine spring day, this is where the local folks hang out, playing majiang nearby teahouses while some enjoy the tea culture while others, stood by quietly, watching the game of majiang. Behind is a section of the City Wall. 

The game of majiang is originated from China

Xiangqi or Chinese chess, is another favourite board game. I joined in, like the rest of the local folks, to observe this chess game -- the two local chess players squatting over the chess board, each armed with strategic play plan. 

Total immersion in his next strategic move...

Shu Yuan Man (書院門) -- the Art and Cultural Street is the place to enjoy traditional paper-cuts, paintings, calligraphy and art accessories and, other folk art crafts. The buildings here are of the Ming and Qing styles. 

The Temple of Confucius

Spring foliage -- the scent of spring blossoms subtly permeate the air.

This has been a fantastic spring season experience; wandering through the narrow streets, soaking up the heritage culture, eating my way through the food street in the Muslim quarter and, travelling to northern Shaanxi -- the loess journey that gives me a glimpse into the unique Yaodong cave dwellings in Yan'an, Ansai and Yulin -- the Shanbei region, near the border of Inner Mongolia. 

For history enthusiasts, the ancient city of Xi'an and Shaanxi province will absolutely enchant you! 

(March/April 2015)