How to enjoy summer in Lanzhou? This guide is worth reading

🔅Lanzhou, the only city in China where the Yellow River flows through, is named Jincheng, meaning 'Golden City,' and has been a crucial transportation hub since ancient times. In the Qin Dynasty, Yuzhong County was established here; in the Western Han Dynasty, it became Jincheng County; in the Eastern Han Dynasty, it was Jincheng Commandery; and during the Sixteen Kingdoms period, the Western Qin Dynasty made Lanzhou its capital. 🔅Due to its rich heritage, Lanzhou retains abundant historical relics, making it an excellent place to experience the charm of Jincheng. Below, I will share a historical tour route in Lanzhou that can be completed in 1-2 days. ⛰️Itinerary: Day 1: Jintian Temple--Baiyun Temple--City God Temple--Lanzhou Museum--Zhongshan Bridge--Baita Mountain Park Day 2: Gansu Provincial Museum--Mother Yellow River Statue I personally recommend spending one and a half or two days on this route, especially taking a good half-day to slowly appreciate the Gansu Provincial Museum. 🔅What are the highlights? ✅Jintian Temple: Many friends traveling to Lanzhou do not include this place in their travel list, but I personally think that although it is niche, it is worth seeing. Firstly, it is a national key cultural relic protection unit, housing three ancient Sophora trees from the Tang Dynasty and the Bixue Stele from the 16th year of the Ming Chongzhen era, recording the history of General He Jin of Li Zicheng's army attacking Lanzhou. Secondly, the entire site has very few tourists, mostly locals resting and chatting here, making it a place where you can discover the local life of Lanzhou. ✅Baiyun Temple: This is a provincial-level cultural relic protection unit in Gansu, built during the Daoguang period of the Qing Dynasty by the then Governor of Shaanxi and Gansu, Hu Song'e, using his salary. It is also one of the three ancient temples in Lanzhou. Today, the temple is bustling with incense, and you can see the strong cultural beliefs of Lanzhou inside the temple. ✅Lanzhou City God Temple: Also a national key cultural relic protection unit, it was built in the 7th year of the Jin Mingchang era. It was once the Loyal Martyrs' Hall and later converted into the City God Temple. Today, it preserves Qing Dynasty stone lions, Ming and Qing style wooden archways, bell and drum towers, offering halls, main halls, and sleeping palaces. ✅Lanzhou Museum: Like the Gansu Provincial Museum, it is also a national first-class museum, but it is much quieter in comparison. However, there are many highlights. Firstly, the courtyard of the Lanzhou Museum houses a White-Clad Temple Pagoda, an ancient pagoda from the Ming Dynasty with a lower part in the shape of an overturned bowl and an upper part in the Han style. Many relics related to Princess Xiong of Suwang were unearthed here. Many of these are housed in the Lanzhou Museum, such as gold hairpins, jewelry, and Buddha statues. Key artifacts to focus on: Black and white colored water wave pattern pottery dou, Kui swirl pattern bronze he, gold filigree inlaid jade Guanyin hairpin, Western Xia script bronze seal, lion knob xu-shaped furnace with the character 'Wang,' Banpo type painted pottery, etc. ✅Zhongshan Bridge: This is a must-see landmark for travelers to Lanzhou and the first bridge in the entire northwest region of China built with foreign technology in modern history. It spans the Yellow River and is very imposing. ✅Baita Mountain Park: After crossing Zhongshan Bridge, you can climb the mountain. The mountain is not high, and it takes about 20 minutes to reach the top, where there is a white pagoda built in the Yuan Dynasty and rebuilt in the Ming Dynasty. The octagonal seven-story white pagoda is similar in style to the White-Clad Temple Pagoda in the Lanzhou Museum. From the top of the mountain, you can also get a panoramic view of Lanzhou city, including the Yellow River, city buildings, iron bridge, and mountains. ✅Gansu Provincial Museum: Finally, don't miss the heavyweight Gansu Provincial Museum, which houses many national treasures and is worth spending half a day to appreciate slowly. Key artifacts are listed here: Galloping Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow (Bronze Galloping Horse), Blue Lotus Cup, murals and statues from Tiantishan Grottoes, painted pottery, bronze chariot and horse procession, painted wooden unicorn, Eastern Roman deity-patterned gilded silver plate, postman painting brick, and the Eight Banners Tiger Tally. Indeed, compared to Xi'an, another city in the northwest, Lanzhou's tourism resources are not as abundant, but the recommended treasure travel destinations above are equally worth visiting for cultural travel enthusiasts.