The Cultural Trip - Qixia Mountain
Qixia Mountain and Qixia Temple Qixia Mt lies 20 km northeast of Nanjing. It is 286 m high and has three peaks - Dragon Peak, Tiger Peak and Fengxiang Peak. The well-known Buddhist temple, Qixia Temple, is located on the mountain. It was built about 489 BC during the Southern Qi Dynasty and was enlarged in the Tang Dynasty. The temple was destroyed by fire during Qing Dynasty and reconstructed years later. The area has a number of significant historic relics such as the Thousand Buddha Cliff, the Royal Stele and the Sheli Pagoda. In modern times additional buildings have been built, including Lu Yu Teahouse (Chaguan) on Dragon Peak. In traditional Chinese culture, teahouses were places for people to gather to chat, socialize, and enjoy tea. In some teahouses, in order to attract customers, stages were built for storytelling (Pinghua) and Beijing opera, turning tea houses into entertainment venues. The drama Tea House, written by famous Chinese writer Lao She, reveals vividly the unstable society of the last phase of the Qing Dynasty through various dialogues and behavior in a tea house. In contrast to the serenity and peacefulness of Dragon peak and the Lu Yu teahouse, Tiger Peak provides a view of the hustle and bustle of the key waterway in China, The Yangtze River, in both historical and modern times. From here you can see the new Nanjing number four Yangtze Bridge and associated freeways, all of which contribute in their own way to the new China and the demise of the traditional Chinese teahouse and the social interaction which took place in them.
Times have certainly changed in China.
Times have certainly changed in China.