Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
13
; the latter statue has been defaced with graffiti by workers from Hohhot
and other miscreants.
Cave 20
is similar to the Ancestor Worshipping Cave at Longmen, originally
depicting a trinity of Buddhas (the past, present and future Buddhas). The
huge seated Buddha in the middle is the representative icon at Yungang, while
the Buddha on the left has somehow vanished. Many caves in the western
end of Yungang have Buddhas with their heads smashed off, as in
Cave 39
.
Most of the caves come with good English captions, but there's also a free
audio guide in English (¥100 deposit). Note that photography is permitted in
some caves but not in others.
Getting There & Away
Take bus 4 (¥1, 30 minutes) from outside the post office opposite Datong's
train station to its terminus (tell the driver you're headed for the caves). Then
cross the road and catch bus 3 (¥1, 30 minutes), which goes to the main gate.
Buses run every 10 to 15 minutes. A taxi is ¥40 each way.
Detour:
Hanging Monastery
Built precariously into the side of a cliff, the Buddhist
Hanging Monastery
(
Xuankong Si; admission ¥130; 8am-7pm summer)
is made all the more stunning
by its long support stilts. The halls have been built along the contours of the cliff
face, connected by rickety catwalks and narrow corridors, which can get very
crowded in summer.
Buses travel here from Datong's main bus station (¥30, two hours). Most will
transfer passengers to the monastery into a free taxi for the last 5km from Hunyuan
. Heading back, you'll be stung for ¥20 for a taxi (per person) to Hunyuan.
