M OUNTAIN OF E MPERORS
Q INGDAO C ITY C ENTER
Badaguan 7 Governor’s Residence 3 Huashi Lou 6 Protestant Church 4 Qingdao Museum 5 St. Michael’s Church 2 Zhanqiao Pier 1
Tsingtao beer can
VISITORS’ CHECKLIST
200 miles (330 km) E of Ji’nan.* 1,860,000. k £ Train Station.
c Long Distance Bus Station, CAAC (buses to airport). g Pas-senger Ferry Terminal, Local Ferry Terminal. n 9 Nanhai Lu, (0532) 389 3062. _ Beer Festival (Aug).
n
S HANGHAIGUAN LU WUSH
waterfront past its many beaches. No. 1 beach is the longest and busiest, while farther east, No. 2 beach is more attractive.
Its clean stretch of sand leads to Huashi Lou, a stone mansion with a turret, that was once the residence of a Russian aristocrat. The genteel Badaguan area to the north is known for its villas and sanatoriums set amidst charming tree-lined streets.
5 St Michael’s Church 15 Zhejiang Lu. # 8am–5pm daily;
services 6am, 8am, 6pm Sun.
5 Protestant Church 15 Jiangsu Lu.# 8:30am–5pm daily;
services on Sun.
E Qingdao Museum 27 Meiling Lu.# daily. &
ENVIRONS: An easy 25-mile (40-km) bus ride from Qingdao, the vast moun-tainous region of Lao Shan is steeped in Daoist lore. It is known for its mineral water, an essential ingredient of Tsingtao beer. The Song-era Great Purity Palace was built to perform Daoist rituals for the dead. From here, paths lead to the summit.
Visitors can either climb the stairs located half-way up, or take the cable car for dra-matic views. Earlier, Lao Shan was dotted with Daoist tem-ples, but only a few survive today. The most famous is the Song-dynasty Taiqing Temple near the coast, not far from where the Shandong writer Pu Songling (1640–
1715) lived. Many more tem-ples survive on Lao Shan’s slopes, along with caves, waterfalls, and hiking trails.
Qingdao’s skyline, similar to the modern architecture of Pudong, Shanghai Qingdao Museum is worth
exploring for its collection of relics, including several huge stone Buddha statues dating to AD 500, and paintings from the Yuan and Ming eras. Visitors can stroll down Qingdao’s
KEY
£ Train station c Long distance bus station g Ferry terminal n Tourist information N Post office t Temple An expanse of sand on one of
Qingdao’s many beaches
sailors and merchants, the museum’s exhibits pale by comparison to the building’s elaborate architectural detail and wood and stone carvings.
The impressive main hall, known as the Palace of the Empress of Heaven, was dedicated to Tianhou, the Empress of Heaven and
Protector of Seafarers, by sailors from Fujian, who had taken shelter in Yantai during a fierce storm. All the component parts of the hall were designed by craftsmen from the southern provinces of Fujian and Guangdong, and shipped to Yantai where it was assembled in 1864. It is a fine example of the southern style, with a double roof decorated in mythical ceramic, stone, and wood figures. The entrance hall to the guild hall is elaborately carved with parables and episodes from Chinese literature and mythology,
Yantai
5149 miles (240 km) NE of Qingdao.
* 920,000. ~ £ c g to Shanghai, Dalian & Tianjin. n 180 Jiefang Lu, (0535) 623 4144.
F
ORMERLY KNOWNas Chefoo and overshadowed by the dynamic port ofQingdao to the south, Yantai is a deepwater harbor town situated on the north coast of the Shandong Peninsula, famous for its clocks, fruit, and locally produced wine.
The name Yantai, meaning “Smoke Terrace,” refers to the wolf-dung-burning beacons
erected along the coast in the Ming dynasty to warn of sudden raids by pirates or the Japanese. In 1863, the city became a British treaty port and a substantial number of foreign merchants moved here, although its rise was eclipsed by the development of Qingdao at the end of the 1900s. The British were followed by the Germans, the Americans, and finally the Japanese. Despite its history as a treaty port, very little foreign architecture survives here, as the town never had a foreign concession.
Most travelers pass through en route to Penglai to the west, but the Yantai Museum is definitely worth a visit.
Housed in a splendid Qing dynasty guild hall built for
Gateway to the Yantai Museum, housed in a fine Qing-era guild hall
Weihai
637 miles (60 km) E of Yantai.
* 2,500,000. £ c to Yantai, Qingdao, Beijing & Shanghai. n CITS 96 Guzhai Dong Lu, (0631) 589 2269.
g daily to Dalian, three times a week to Inchon (South Korea).
T
HE PORT CITYof Weihai was the site of the mauling of China’s European-built North Sea (Beiyang) Fleet by a Japanese flotilla during the 1894–5 Sino-Japanese War.Museum of the 1895 Sino-Japanese War, Weihai Ornate Qing dynasty
doors, Yantai Museum
including the Eight Immortals who Crossed the Sea, battle scenes, figures, fabulous creatures, and several scenes from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms (see p29).
Arab figures playing musical instruments lie beneath the eaves, while the beams take the shape of a woman with her infant child. The temple has a garden and is equip-ped with a stage, employed for performances and events celebrating the Goddess Tianhou.
Yantai also has several parks, including the small and cen-tral Yuhuangding Park, and Yantai Shan Park, a hillside haven above the sea. East of here are Yantai’s two rather forlorn beaches. Both are a bit of a disappointment, and are surrounded by buildings and construction. The town’s waterfront, however, is a pleasant place for a leisurely stroll. Toward the eastern headland, fishermen can be seen repairing their nets or simply relaxing.
E Yantai Museum Nan Dajie. # 8:30am–11:30am, 1pm–4:30pm daily. &
The Penglai Pavilion, mythical abode of the Eight Immortals