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Xining, population about a million, is the capital of Qinghai Province. Located on the edge of the Tibetan Plateau at an altitude of 7358 feet, it is considered the northern gateway to Tibet. Many of the people here are Huis, or Chinese Moslems, the men clearly identifiable by their white skull caps (and some with beards, unusual for Chinese) and the women by their black veils which cover their hair and necks but not their faces. Their restaurants and food stalls almost invariably serve excellent food. For more on the Huis see Here. |
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Like in most Chinese cities sky-scapers are going up everywhere |
Looking north from the main square |
Young English-language student who volunteered to be my translator when I visited the Beishan Temple in the mountains just to the north of the city. |
Main Temple at Beishan. These Temples are apparently dedicated to Ch'an Buddhism and not Tibetan Buddhism |
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Looking up from the main temple to the cave temples in the cliffs above |
Staircase leading to the cave temples |
Cave temples and hermitages in the cliffs to the north of Xining city |
More cave temples and hermitages |
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More cave temples and hermitages |
View from the ridge above Beishan. A cable car (not working when I was there) leads from the edge of the city to the top of this ridge. |
Tower at the top of the ridge. This is either new or heavily restored. |
Temple at the top of the ridge. It is now being restored and not open to the public. It is apparently intended as a tourist attraction for people coming up on the cable car |
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