Travel

Purple Mountain 紫金山

The mountain is called Zijin Mountain or Purple Mountain or Zhong Mountain. The whole mountain area covers an area of 3100 hectares with the highest peak of 448 meters above sea level. It is a green oasis of hills, trees, forests and hiking and cycling paths with many scattered temples, relics and mausoleums. It does need at least a whole day visit.

Sun Yatsen Mausoleum 中山陵

An astonishing sight at the top of an enormous stone stairway (a breathless 392 steps), Sun Yatsen's tomb is a mandatory stop for most visitors. Reverentially referred to as guófù (国父, Father of the Nation), Dr Sun is esteemed by both communists and Kuomintang. He died in Beijing in 1925, and had wished to be buried in Nanjing, no doubt with far less pomp than the Ming-style tomb his successors fashioned for him.

Nanjing Museum 南京博物院

This fabulous museum has three dramatically modern exhibition blocks alongside a traditional, temple-style hall. Exhibits range from 20th-century brush-and-ink paintings to ancient calligraphy (including sutra scrolls from Dunhuang) and a magnificent Han-dynasty jade burial suit.

Jiming Temple 鸡鸣寺

The Jiming temple (temple of cock's crow in Chinese) is a very renowned Buddhist temple in Nanjing, a place of harmony and serenity. It was built along a hillock in the Ming Dynasty in 1387. The merging of the incense smell together with the calm and relaxing ambient and the bright yellow-orange color create a nice atmosphere.

Eight Famous Snacks of the Qinhuai River 秦淮八种名小吃

As early as during the six dynasties, there were many pavilions and restaurants along the Qinhuai River and the Qingxi River; and in the Ming and Qing dynasties, they became even more flourishing. Now in the Confucius Temple area, there are restaurants, tea houses, pubs, and snack shops everywhere. Just in the central area of the Confucius Temple, more than 200 snacks are served.

Salted Duck 盐水鸭

As a former imperial seat, prepared duck was seen as a tribute food of Nanjing. With a history reaching back some l,400 years several different duck dishes can be found in Nanjing including the milky-broth of old duck soup, Jinling roasted duck similar to Peking duck, braised duck, a boneless preparation called pearl duck, cluck gizzards, duck blood in noodle soup and savory duck oil pancakes. The most famous is saltwater duck.

Stinky Tofu 臭豆腐

The "stinky" connotation is more like the bouquet of a fancy French cheese but far less shy and takes a minute to overcome before you try the tofu. In all honesty it is really good and when served piping hot with a squirt of hot sauce over top it is a good cheap snack.

Tangbao 汤包

These steamed dumplings are sublime. Under an extremely thin layer of dough hides a bomb of delectable broth and a ball of tender pork.
To eat these jiggly meat pockets, bite a small "window" on the skin, drink up the broth, dip the rest in vinegar, then munch.