Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SEAN CAFFREY/GETTY IMAGES ©
Don't Miss
Pingyao City Walls
The magnificent city walls (
cheng qiang
), which date from 1370, are unmissable. At
10m high and more than 6km in circumference, they are punctuated by 72
watchtowers, each containing a paragraph from Sunzi's
The Art of War
. Pingyao's
city gates
(
chengmen
) are fascinating and are some of the best preserved in Ch-
ina; the
Lower West Gate
(Fengyi Men; Phoenix Appearing Gate) has a section of
the original road, deeply grooved with the troughs left by cartwheels (also visible at
the South Gate).
RISHENGCHANG FINANCIAL HOUSE MUSEUM
( Rishengchang; 38 Xi Dajie; 38 )
Not to be missed, this museum began life as
a humble dye shop in the late 18th century before its tremendous success as
a business saw it transform into China's first draft bank (1823), eventually ex-
Museum
