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The Glossary

menlou - "gateways, pathways, or narrow streets that may serve as footpaths or traveling routes for people and small vehicles."

From China Glossary

The Peking man, the Chinese "Pompeii" and the sunken side of the Great Wall are the bragging rights of Hebei, a Han Dynasty province that first entered into the world's consciousness during the ‘20s as the excavation site of the 700,000-year-old Peking man or Homo erectus, whose bones were first thought to be that of the mythical dragon. The discovery of the Peking man led to a theory that Hebei was a cradle of civilization. Although this has been disproved, Hebei remains as Beijing's "countryside cousin" that offers great hiking, beaches, traditional entertainment, and historical sites that enable tourists to step back into antiquity.

Many railway lines pass through Hebei from Beijing. Hebei's modern, skyscraper-dotted capital, Shijiazhuang, is home to Zhaozhou Bridge, the world's oldest single arch bridge and a Sui dynasty masterpiece that demonstrates the ingenuity of Chinese civil engineering. Shijiazhuang also has the Hebei Provincial Museum, which displays the tombs of 2nd to 4th century royals.

Contrasting to Shijiazhuang's modernity are wheat and corn fields punctuated with historical nuggets such as Pilu and Bolin monasteries from the Tang dynasty; and the postcard-worthy temples of Cangyan Mountain, where parts of the Oscar-winning flick, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, were filmed.

In Shijiazhuang's outskirts are rustic villages such as Shitou, famous for its Ming and Qing dynasty peasant stone architecture; and Zhengding, known for its Longxing Temple that has a 66-foot bronze Buddha and four Tang dynasty pagodas. A village built on a stream is Niangzi Guan, unique for its private watermills fronting a part of the Great Wall.

The beginning of the Great Wall or the "First Pass Under Heaven" is the Shanhai Pass in Shanhaiguan. A Ming general, Wu Sangui, began the nearly 300 years of Manchu occupation by opening the gates of the Pass to the Manchus. The Pass' ancient entrance, called "Old Dragon's Head," is submerged underwater.

China's largest royal garden is Chengde's 18th-century Mountain Resort, a million-hectare complex of temples and palaces that used to be the summer getaway of Qing Dynasty emperors. Another World Heritage Site is Zunhua and Yixian's Qing Tombs, the resting places of over 200 emperors and their families. A 700-year-old buried Song dynasty settlement, considered the Chinese version of Italy's Pompeii, was also unearthed in Cang County.

Famous for its Dingzhou porcelain is central Hebei, which is also a hub of the traditional pingju opera. Beidaihe, a favorite summer retreat among Chinese officials, has restaurants that sample Heibei's traditional recipes based on mutton, wheat and beans.

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