The Yanmen Pass (Photo/GT)
"Where ever you go, go with all your heart" - This old Confucian proverb rings totally true for all travel aficionados and is probably the gospel truth for me, for I seek to discover and yearn to unravel, so that I might tell stories untold to the world.
Wherever you go nowadays, whenever "travel" in China is mentioned, all conversations almost always revolve around the Great Wall, the Terracotta Warriors, or the Forbidden City.
Cities mentioned will, with most likelihood, be Beijing and Shanghai.
These biggest cities of the Middle Kingdom are truly the epitome of what China stands for today, but what if, someone wanted to know what China stood for yesterday. Where was it yesterday? How did it get to where it is today? What was the in the past litany of this land that brought it to the present?
It was to seek the answers to these very questions that fleeted through my mind on and off that I chose to travel to Shanxi Province.
Cradle of Chinese civilization
Shanxi (not to be confused with the Shaanxi with that extra "a" ) is one of the lesser known places of China. Prior to my trip, everything I had heard mostly concerned its prime production capabilities in coal and the accompanying pollution that brought.
Those facts make Shanxi sound really dark and bleak, both metaphorically and literally!
Much to my surprise and relief, Shanxi is anything but dark and bleak. It sparkles with a historic cultural heritage that brightens its luster on the map of China.
Shanxi propagates the principle of "All religions in Harmony," as Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism all peacefully coexist there.
Shanxi chronicles within its chapters a history dating back more than 3,000 years, marking it as the birthplace of Chinese civilization.
Shan means "mountain" in Putonghua (Standard Chinese) and xi means "west," so Shanxi means "to the west of the mountains."
The province of Shanxi was formed on the banks of the Yellow River. This strategically important river also forms the western border of Shanxi with the other similar sounding province of Shaanxi.
With Henan to the south and Inner Mongolia to the north, Shanxi is surrounded by mountainous terrain in all four directions which bestows on it a varied climate, but beautiful frame worthy picturesque landscapes.
I delightfully relished these as I traveled from one point to another within the province.
Shanxi in focus
I started off with Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi. This province was an important base for the manufacturing industry in China. Shanxi still contributes through the coal and energy industries today. Over the years, nomadic culture fused with farming and commerce to create an economy that is now being further enhanced by tourism.
I had the opportunity to see, as well as sample, one of Shanxi's most famous traditional dishes - Shanxi hand-pulled noodles.
The name says it all. The pulling and stretching process turns out noodles that are as thin as a thread and easy to devour with the vinegar commonly used in Shanxi cuisine.
It was twilight when I set foot on the famous pedestrian bridge in Taiyuan that crosses the Fenhe River and the sunset was truly a marvel.
I felt like I could have stood there on the bridge transfixed by the amber skyline forever!
