GANSU Province, containing a key segment of the Silk Road, is an arid land of mystery, with temples, ruins, and the farthest western outpost of the Great Wall.

Apart from the famous Buddhist Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang, Gansu is little explored and is the perfect place for hikers who seek adventure and little-known ancient history and culture. The land is a nexus of cultures.

The 1,000-kilometer River West Corridor, also known as the Gansu Corridor, connects cities including Dunhuang and Wuwei, all to the west of the Yellow River. It borders the Tibetan Plateau, Mongolia, the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, as well as the provinces of Qinghai, Sichuan and Shaanxi.

Though less famous than Xi'an City in Shaanxi Province and Luoyang in Henan Province, Gansu is home to the Four Towns in the West Corridor, referring to Dunhuang, Jiuquan, Zhangye and Wuwei. It's a place of surprising natural beauty.

Few people know that China's tourism logo, the Galloping Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow ("Ma Ta Fei Yan") is a 1,800-year-old bronze unearthed in Wuwei. China Post's symbol, the Postal Messenger, is taken from a design painted on a brick in a tomb near Jiayuguan. This town contains what is regarded as the far western extremity of the Great Wall. The Gansu Museum, one of the most important museums in China, is in Lanzhou, the provincial capital.

Besides the national treasures of the Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang and Maijishan Grottoes in Tianshui (which Shanghai Daily has featured), Gansu contains other important, lesser known grottoes where seekers will be rewarded.

Tiantishan Grottoes near Wuwei is regarded as the original source of Buddhist sculpture art of Central China found in the grottoes of Yungang in Shanxi Province and Longmen of Henan Province. Bingling Temple in Yongjing is the only grotto in Gansu that bears clear year marks dating the Buddhist sculpture. It provides experts with tools and evidence to research the development and relationship among other grottoes in the region, including Mogao and Maijishan.

The roads from Lanzhou to Bingling and Wuwei to Tiantishan are beautiful and there are many photo opportunities along the way. There is an eight-kilometer section of unpaved roads on the way to Bingling Temple. It's best to hire a local driver/guide.

Gansu's location on the Silk Road and proximity to Tibet and other regions made it a natural place of exchange of trading goods, culture and art from as far away as India, Persia, Greece and Rome.

The province is preparing to apply to UNESCO for recognition of China's part of the Silk Road as a World Cultural Heritage.

Hua Pingning, director of the Maijishan Grottoes Research Institute in Tianshui City, was busy meeting with experts and artists from Beijing during Shanghai Daily's visit. Managers in Bingling plan to repave the roads in front of its gate to prepare for the application.

Visitors can expect more than archeological treasures in Gansu.

During a trip in April I explored the Confucian Temple in Wuwei on a snowy morning, and saw the peach and pear blossoms in Renshou Mountain in suburban Lanzhou. Tall cypress trees in Nanguo Temple in Tianshui are more than 2,500 years old.

Photography fans will savor western landscapes, deserts near Dunhuang, ancient walls in Jiayuguan, Tibetan-style stupas in Linxia, south of Lanzhou, and in Zhangye, the Danxia red cliff offering spectacular views at sunset.

Local food won't disappoint, since the area has what some consider the best lamb in China. A unique local wine made of broomcorn and rice is named after the most famous emperor in the Han Dynasty (202 BC-AD 220).

The best place to start exploring Gansu is the capital city of Lanzhou, which is connected by regular flights and train with Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou.

Jiayuguan has a small airport close to Dunhuang, which is convenient for those planning to visit the Mogao Grottoes.

The train system runs west to east, connecting cities and tourism sites such as Dunhuang, Jiayuguan, Zhangye, Wuwei, Lanzhou and Tianshui.

Lanzhou is also a good place to begin a trip to neighboring regions, such as Qinghai Province and the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

Jiayuguan

In northwestern Gansu, Jiayuguan is near a famous pass on the Silk Road and is known as China's No. 1 Pass. It's at the extreme western end of the Great Wall.

The most famous site is the Jiayuguan Pass, with the Great Wall on both sides surrounded by the Gobi Desert. Many structures near the pass are being renovated. The walls, with snow-capped Mt Qilian to the south, are spectacular at sunset. The Great Wall Museum on the site is informative, explaining the buildings of the pass constructed during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

Another highlights of the journey is the Mural Painting Tomb of the Wei (AD 220-265) and Jin (AD 265-420) dynasties in Xincheng suburb of Jiayuguan. In the No. 6 tomb, the only one open to the public, around 600 murals adorning the brick walls depict daily life, farming, hunting and socializing.

The most famous brick bears the image of an ancient postman, discovered in No. 5 tomb and is displayed in the Gansu Museum. It is the symbol of China Post.

Flashlights and additional jackets are recommended in the dark and cold tomb rooms. Gatekeepers tell interesting stories about break-ins, theft and several lost painted bricks.

The city culture is a combination of Great Wall and Silk Road and features many relics relating to the two wonders. They include the Overhanging Great Wall and the First Fire Tower of the Great Wall.

Wuwei

Wuwei retains an ancient gate in its downtown area, bearing the name Liangzhou, which dates back more than 1,000 years.

In the downtown area, the Confucian Temple, Leitai and Haizang Temple are worth visiting.

The famous Galloping Horse Treading a Flying Swallow and Honored Guard of Horsemen and Chariots, now displayed in Lanzhou's Gansu Museum, were originally unearthed from a tomb in Leitai. It dates back to the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220). Today Letai is a public park with a tiny but elegant museum displaying other relics from the tomb.

The Confucian Temple, also known as Wuwei Museum, features traditional Chinese architecture, notably in the Wenchang Building and Lingxing Gate. The tiled roof is intricately decorated with little statues of animals, birds and dragons from legends. The museum also includes stone towers and displays sculptures dating back to the Northern Liang Dynasty (397 or 401-439 AD). During my visit in April, the buildings and flowers were covered with snow to form a dramatic landscape.

The most exciting part of a trip to Wuwei is the Tiantishan Grottoes, an hour's drive from downtown. Tiantishan Grottoes, literally meaning Sky Ladder Mountain, is also called the Big Buddha Temple. The big Buddha sculpture is the only remaining relic in Tiantishan, which was damaged by earthquakes and floods throughout history.

Because of the construction of a new dam, starting in 1959, part of the sculptures and murals is relocated to the Gansu Museum and Dunhuang Museum. The Buddha was too large to move and now stands beside the dam. It is believed to have influenced the carvings in Yungang and Longmen.

On the way to Tiantishan, photographers can shoot grassland, sheep, forests, rivers, villages and snowy mountains.

On the way visitors can stop by Baita Temple. Bones of revered Tibetan lamas are said to be buried inside the towers or stupas similar to those in Katmandu, Nepal, and other Ti

betan regions.Lanzhou

To most people, Lanzhou is just a transit hub to Dunhuang in the west, Ningxia in the north or Linxia in the south. Experienced travelers will spend more time there, however, visiting the provincial museum, a steel bridge across the Yellow River and tasting famous hand-pulled noodles with beef. Bingling Temple is the best one-day trip from Lanzhou.

The free museum features national treasures such as the bronze "Galloping Horse Treading on Flying Swallow," which stands 34.5 centimeters high, with a length of 45 centimeters.

The 18,000-square-meter space features regular exhibitions on the Silk Road, Buddhist art and ancient painted pottery from the Neolithic Age. It contains ancient silk and textiles, wooden and bronze vessels and well-preserved Buddhist sculptures from Tiantishan.

It takes at least three hours to see the three major exhibitions. Other halls contain a four-meter-tall mammoth fossil replica and exhibits of dead and stuffed pandas, golden monkeys and red-crowned cranes. Children enjoy it.

The 1,800 year-old Galloping Horse, renowned for its grace and dynamism, was excavated in 1969 in Wuwei County. It appears to be flying, with three hooves in the air, its head perked up and its long tail flowing. One hoof lands on the back of a small, flying bird. The horse is considered the epitome of ancient people's imagination and craftsmanship. It's the logo of the China National Tourism Bureau.

Bingling Temple is hidden in the mountains, 35 kilometers west of Yongjing County in Lanzhou City. Bingling means "ten thousand Buddhas" in the Tibetan language. Most 183 niches, 694 stone statues, 82 clay sculptures and some 900 square meters' of murals are well preserved, probably because of their remote location. To get there from Lanzhou requires a two-hour bus trip and an hour's journey by boat.

The highlight of the temple is the No. 169 cave, where experts found a clear mark of the date, AD 420. This makes the temple one of the most important stone caves in China along with the Mogao Grottoes. The sculpted figures wear facial expressions of harmony and mystery, prompting visitors to pause and reflect.

The influence of Tibetan culture is evident in Bingling Temple with its sculptures and paintings featuring the image of Nandikesvara, also known as Ganesh, the elephant god.

After arriving Liujiaba in Yongjing County, visitors can get to Bingling by boat or car on a new paved road. I saw a flock of pheasants along the way.

In April and May, don't miss the opportunity to visit the annual peach blossom festival at Renshou Mountain in suburban Lanzhou.

Tianshui

The Maijishan Grottoes is the reason most people visit Tianshui. It's absolutely worth visiting because of the Eastern Venus sculpture and stone steles. Other places to visit are Nanguo Temple and the Temple of Fu Xi, a cultural hero said to be the inventor of writing, fishing and trapping in Chinese legends.

Experts recommend different "best" caves. My favorites are the No. 44 cave of the Eastern Venus and the No. 133 cave with stone steles. The cliff murals with 3D effects are praised by experts.

The sculpture in No. 44, probably modeled on a queen in the Eastern Wei Dynasty (AD 535-557), wears an elegant facial expression and garments like like flowing water. She is considered the most beautiful woman in Maijishan.

In Cave No. 133, several steles describe Buddha's life from birth, preaching to nirvana. A statue of a boy monk is famous for its sweet expression. The profile has been compared with that of former premier Zhu Rongji.

Nanguo Temple, located on a hill in suburban Tianshui, attracts trekkers on the weekends. After a 30- to 45-minute trek, you can see two 2,500-year-old cypress trees and walk in several gardens filled with bamboo and peach blossoms in spring. Newly married couples often have their photos taken in this setting, Zhou Fatian, a man over 80 years old, is a famous guide who charges 200 yuan (US$32) for a tour.

The Tianshui railway station in Maiji District is fairly near the Maijishan Grottoes. Other sites including Fu Xi Temple and Nanguo Temple are in Qinzhou District, 40 minutes' drive from the railway station.

If you go What to have:

Santaoche or troika: A three-part meal in Wuwei that includes a cup of red jujube tea stewed with brown sugar or rock sugar, a plate of marinated pork with coriander and a bowl of hand-made noodles.

Stewed lamb: Lamb in Gansu Province is juicy, sometimes a bit spicy and often served with garlic.

Hanwuyu liquor: A famous Gansu distilled liquor produced in Jiuquan, literally meaning liquor spring. The name comes from Liu Che, known as the Emperor Wu in the Han Dynasty. Liu conquered neighboring countries, expanded China's borders and was one of the most successful emperors in history. The liquor is said to have been a reward from Emperor Wu to his general, who poured it into a spring in today's Jiuquan and shared with his soldiers to celebrate victory.

If you go

Where to stay:

The overnight train is strongly recommended within Gansu, since it's fast and inexpensive, saving trouble in finding accommodation outside Lanzhou.

In Lanzhou there's a wide choice of accommodation, including 10-yuan dormitory beds in Lanzhou University, chain hotels such as Home Inn (one near Lanzhou Museum and Qilihe District) and luxury hotels such as the Lanzhou Hotel.

Tips:

The best time to visit Gansu is from May to October. Remember that it's hot, windy and dusty, so cover up and dress appropriately. Sunglasses, head scarves, and sunscreen are a must.

It gets cold at night and in caves, so take an extra jacket. Flashlights are essential.

It's safe to travel in Gansu. Remember to respect the customs of ethnic minorities such as the Hui people in Lanzhou and Tibetan people in Linxia.