Nanjing Travel Guide, Attractions, Transportation and Accommodation

Nanjing is located in eastern China, close to rivers and seas. It has an advantageous geographical location and many scenic spots. The transportation within the territory is convenient and travel is very convenient, and you can directly reach various scenic spots. When coming to Nanjing, the must-visit attractions are Confucius Temple, Zhongshan Scenic Area, Qixia Temple, Presidential Palace, etc. The history of Nanjing's capital building

The history of Nanjing's capital building began during the Three Kingdoms period. In 229 AD, Sun Quan proclaimed himself emperor in Wuchang, and soon after moved the capital to Jianye (the ancient name of Nanjing City). After that, the Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Southern Dynasties (Song, Qi, Liang and Chen) all established their capitals here, and Nanjing gained the reputation of "the ancient capital of the Six Dynasties".

After the establishment of the Sui Dynasty, the ancient city declined. In the Five Dynasties, when Yang Wu established the country, Jiankang was rebuilt and renamed Jinling Prefecture. In the Southern Tang Dynasty, it was changed to Jiangning Prefecture.

In 1368, Zhu Yuanzhang proclaimed himself emperor and changed its name to Nanjing. During the Qing Dynasty, Nanjing was the capital of Jiangnan Province, named Jiangning Prefecture. When the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom was established, it was renamed Tianjing.

When the Republic of China was established in 1912, Sun Yat-sen became the provisional president, and Nanjing became the provisional capital. About transportation

1. The scenic spots in Nanjing are relatively concentrated, and the subway is basically covered. It is very convenient, but the ticket purchase machine does not support mobile payment, so you need to prepare change of less than 10 yuan. Before going there, I checked online that the bus card can be refunded, but I consulted customer service at the airport subway station and was told that refunds were not accepted for stored-value cards, and there were no day cards or sub-cards for tourists. You need to buy a separate ticket for each ride.

2. There is a subway connection from Lukou Airport to the city, but it takes a long time. On our return trip, we took Line 1 and got off at Nanjing South Railway Station and transferred to Line S1. It takes an hour to arrive at Lukou Airport, so if you are flying, you need to allow more time on the way.

3. To go to the main attractions in Zhongshan Scenic Area, such as Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, Meiling Palace, Linggu Temple, etc., you can take the subway to Alfalfa Park Station and transfer to the sightseeing bus, between the attractions. There are also sightseeing buses to connect you to save energy. 10 yuan for one way, 50 yuan for unlimited trips. It is not recommended to buy unlimited tickets. We bought unlimited tickets but actually only took three journeys and lost 20 yuan. I left Linggu Temple at close to six o'clock. The sightseeing buses were all off duty. I could only wait for bus 202 to go to the subway station or take a taxi.

4. Qixia Mountain is relatively far from the city. You can take the subway to the surrounding subway stations, and then transfer to the bus or take a taxi. About accommodation

The main way to travel in Nanjing is by subway. It is best to choose accommodation close to the subway station to save time and effort. When booking, it was found that the Confucius Temple area was the most popular choice among tourists, followed by Xinjiekou. This time, two hotels have chosen Atour, one is Confucius Temple Jinlun Atour, and the other is Atour Xuanwu Lake Store. Atour is known as a humanistic hotel, with photography of Nanjing’s beautiful scenery hanging in the rooms and corridors. The hotel also has a small library where guests can borrow books and return them at any Atour hotel. For a chain hotel, the service quality is still very reliable. Comparing the two hotels, Jinlun Atour is better. It is newly renovated, with relatively new facilities and convenient transportation. The Confucius Temple subway station is downstairs. About the attractions

Confucius Temple

Confucius Temple is a must-visit place for tourists, such as the Shanghai City God Temple, which is bustling no matter day or night. There are many attractions in Confucius Temple, all of which are sold separately. If time and budget are limited, pick a few favorite attractions to buy tickets and visit the rest, and check out the appearance.

Confucius Temple has a long history. It is a place where prominent families gather, merchants and literati gather together. Almost every place is mentioned in poetry. After visiting, you can review many ancient poems.

Jiangnan Gongyuan was the largest imperial examination room in ancient times. Chen Duxiu, Fang Bao, and Tang Bohu once took the imperial examination here. Lin Zexu, Zeng Guofan and other important officials of the Qing Dynasty served as examiners here. The number one scholars who came out of Jiangnan Gongyuan accounted for half of the number of number one scholars in the country. It can be said to be the cradle of talents. The Imperial Examination Museum is a new building that only opened in 2017. It has a novel layout and rich exhibits and is worth visiting.

The entrance to the Imperial Examination Museum, where you can take photos of Mingyuan Tower.

Zhongshan Scenic Area

The official name of Meiling Palace is the official residence of the Chairman of the National Government and is known as the first villa in the Far East. Chiang Kai-shek and Soong Meiling lived here and received distinguished guests. The underground floor was originally a place where servants and guard soldiers lived, and now houses an exhibition of Soong Meiling's paintings and calligraphy.

The entrance to Meiling Palace is not far from the Golden Gate entrance of Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum. Entering the entrance is the most beautiful stone statue shrine. The Shinto shrine in autumn is crowded with photographers. If you want to take pictures of quieter scenery, you must come early in the morning.

On both sides of the Shinto, there are 6 kinds of stone animals: lions, scorpions, camels, elephants, unicorns and horses. There are 2 pairs of each kind, 12 pairs and 24 pieces. Each kind of stone animals kneels and stands on both sides to welcome the attendants.

Qixia Temple

"In spring, the cow heads, and in autumn, Qixia Mountain is a good place to appreciate the red leaves in Nanjing. It is also a famous maple viewing resort in the country." Qixia has beautiful mountains and rivers. Emperor Qianlong stayed at Qixia Palace five times during his six visits to the south of the Yangtze River. Thousand Buddha Rock is located in the rock behind the stupa. There is also a group of grottoes excavated during the Southern Dynasties, which contain more than 500 Buddha statues. It is called Thousand Buddha Cliff. The largest Buddha statue is Amitayus, which is 10 meters high.

Presidential Palace

In the Qing Dynasty, the Presidential Palace was the governor-general of Liangjiang. The Taiping Heavenly Kingdom expanded the Tianwang Palace on this basis. In 1912, it became the Presidential Palace. There are both ancient Chinese traditional buildings in the park. Jiangnan gardens also have modern Western-style buildings, a combination of Chinese and Western styles.

The Zichao Building is located at the northern end of the central axis of the Presidential Palace. It was built when Lin Sen, Chairman of the National Government, was in office. Lin Sen's courtesy name was Zichao and he served as Chairman of the National Government for the longest time, so people used to call it " "Zi Chao Lou". Zichao Building is China's new national architecture, also known as modern architecture. It is a typical official administrative building of the Republic of China.