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Local
Features: Buddhist Grottoes of Dunhuang |
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| The Buddhist Grottoes of Dunhuang at Mogao are a great treasure
house of Buddhist art. The art forms of architectures, sculptures
and paintings are combined organically into the great expressions
of Buddha worship that have begun from the Han Dynasty and continued
through the Tang, for more than 1,000 years.
After the discovery of approximately 50,000 Buddhist writings
and Holy Scriptures at Dunhuang around 1900, Dunhuang gained a
great fame for its Buddhist art relics. It was only natural that
the United Nations Education, Science and Culture Organization
have listed Dunhuang's Mogao Grottoes on its list of the world's
cultural legacies worthy of special protection in December of
1987.
The mural paintings of Dunhuang are especially famous and focus
on presenting images of the Buddha and Buddhist legends, but also
include examples of landscape paintings, historic architectures,
portraits of the noble patrons, various auspicious animals, plants
and other decorations. One of the main themes of the frescoes
is the fiction; heavenly maidens painted into the frescoes act
as frames on the murals or otherwise decorate the paintings.
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Dunhuang
Climate |
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The best time to visit Dunhuang and the ancient Silk Road is from
May through October.
In the depths of Inland China, Dunhuang has a very dry climate.
It has three special characteristics. The first is lots of direct
sunshine. The second is little rainfall. The annual average rainfall
here is only 39.9 mm. The rainfall in summer is 63.9 percent of
annual rainfall while winter rainfall is only 7.5 percent. Therefore,
evaporation can be a problem in this climate. The third is the climate's
four distinct seasons. Winter and summer have huge temperature differences
(annual temperature difference reaches 34 degrees). Lastly, sand
storms can be a problem in the Dunhuang, with the wind sometimes
reaching speeds of 3m/sec.
| Dunhuang Weather |
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Average High
Temperature (Celsius) |
-1.7 |
4.3 |
13.3 |
21.1 |
26.7 |
31.0 |
32.8 |
32.0 |
26.5 |
18.8 |
8.1 |
0.2 |
Average Low
Temperature (Celsius) |
-15.6 |
-11.3 |
-3.4 |
3.9 |
9.3 |
13.5 |
16.1 |
14.8 |
8.2 |
0.4 |
-6.0 |
-12.9 |
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Dining
Overview |
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As the main staple of the local diet, it revolves
around wheat flour noodles. Noodles are served with lamb, chicken,
or beef. On the other hand, Dunhuang Rang Pizi (a special food
in the western area) has long been one of the most popular dishes
in the city. These noodles are actually made from pea flour and
are clear, white, cool and slippery. The noodles are seasoned
with hot peppers for a cool, yet spicy feel that is just perfect
for desert weather (as least that's what the locals would say!).
Shazhou Night Market is one of the best places in Dunhuang to
try authentic Dunhuang specialties. Virtually all of the very
best of Dunhuang's northwestern cuisine can be found here: Saozi
Noodle, stuffed bread and even mutton kebabs. In addition, you
will also have opportunity to sample Huanghe sweet melons, grapes
and Hami melons.
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Entertainment
Overview |
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| During the peak tourist season (from June to October) the Dunhuang
Hotel arranges performances of song and dances from 6pm to 8pm every
evening, known as the "Summer of Dunhuang". This show
means to be a complete reflection of the culture of Silk Road. You
can see examples of the folk art of the Muslim, Tibetan, Uigur and
Mongolian peoples of China's "wild west". Part of the
show's repertoire is an interpretation of a dance depicted in the
frescoes of the Mogao Grottoes! |
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Shopping
Overview |
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| The Shazhou Night Market is the largest outdoor market in Dunhuang.
The entire market is unofficially divided into separate specialty
areas such as handicrafts, antiques, tea and local products. The
road in front of the market is lined with over 100 stalls specializing
in selling handicrafts and other cultural odds and ends like crystal,
jade, Dunhuang silk carpets and "glow in the dark" stone
cups made from local materials. However, the vendors drive hard
bargains and it may be difficult to drive down prices. |
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Transportation |
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To travel to Dunhuang, you can fly from Beijing, Lanzhou (Gansu),
and Urumqi (Xinjiang), or you can take a train from Urumqi or
Lanzhou to Liuyuan and then take a bus to Dunhuang. Liuyuan is
130km from Dunhuang.
By plane:
Dunhuang Airport is 13km east of the city. It has direct flights
from Lanzhou, Xi'an, Beijing, Urumqi and other cities, although
there are not many flights each week. Buses from the CAAC offices
(09473-22389) on East Street near the Dunhuang Hotel.
By train:
Dunhuang City has had its own railway station now. And there are
many lines have been run between Dunhuang and Lanzhou, xi’an
and other areas. Meanwhile, you also can arrive in Dunhuang through
getting down Liuyuan Train Station 130km to the north for its
rail traffic; all that is required catching a bus from Liuyuan
to Dunhuang. Daily, 16 trains stop at the Liuyuan Station and
connect Liuyuan (and Dunhuang) with Shanghai, Beijing West Station,
Xi'an, Chengdu, Lanzhou, Urumqi and many other destinations can
be reached from Liuyuan.
By road:
Buses to and from Lanzhou, Xi'an, Hami, Turpan, Urumqi and other
cities can be taken in Dunhuang. The bus station is on T-shaped
road in central south Dunhuang.
City transport:
Minibuses run along fixed routes throughout Dunhuang. Taxis are
also quite available and convenient. If you'd like to rent or
hire vehicles for traveling around the area, then ask at your
hotel or a local travel agency for options.
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Throughout
Dunhuang's history over two thousand years, it has always served
as a critical gateway to the west, because of its unique geographical
location——at the juncture of Gansu, Qinghai and Xinjiang.
As a result, throughout the Chinese long history, several emperors
have made improvements of these western fortifications.
