Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
east from Hua Shan; pretty much everyone catches a taxi to the highway and
then flags down buses headed for Yuncheng, Taiyuan or Luoyang.
LUOYANG
0379 / POP 1.4 MILLION
Capital of 13 dynasties until the Northern Song dynasty shifted its capital to
Kaifeng in the 10th century, Luoyang was one of China's true dynastic citadels.
It's hard today to conceive that Luoyang was once the very centre of the
Chinese universe and the eastern capital of the great Tang dynasty. The heart
of the magnificent Sui-dynasty palace complex was centred on the point where
today's Zhongzhou Lu and Dingding Lu intersect in a frenzy of traffic.
Nearby, the magnificently sculpted Longmen Caves by the banks of the Yi
River remain one of China's most prized Buddhist treasures and the annual
peony festival
, centred on Wangcheng Park in April, is colourful fun.
Sights & Activities
Museum
LUOYANG MUSEUM
( Luoyang Shi Bowuguan; Nietai Lu; 9am-4.30pm Tue to Sun)
The location,
in the south of town, is inconvenient, but where else in the city is there space
to build such an imposing new building that stands toe to toe with both Shang-
hai and Beijing's best? The museum houses an exhausting amount of displays
across two huge floors and is one of the few places you can get your finger on
the pulse of ancient Luoyang. Take bus 77 from the train station. A taxi from
town will cost ¥20.
OLD TOWN
( laochengqu) Any Chinese city with any sense of history has its old town.
Luoyang's old town lies east of the rebuilt
Lijing Gate
(
Lijing Men), where a
maze of narrow and winding streets rewards exploration, and old courtyard
houses survive amid modern outcrops.
Historic Area
