Sitting at the East gate of the Qinghai-Tibet plateau, Xining is a bustling metropolis filled with constant development and modern age shopping malls.
But if you venture a little deeper and off-the-beaten-path while in the city you can find a plethora of beautiful monasteries, temples, street vendors and, of course, signs of Tibetan Buddhism embedded deep into the day to day lives of nearly every local.
One of those spots is the Beichan Daoist Temple.
Come walk with me as I tour just one of the many temples in the surrounding area while awaiting my departure aboard the highest train in the world in route from Xining to Lhasa where I’ll be taking a cultural 9 day budget tour of Tibet!
Exploring the Beichan Daoist Temple
After exploring the front of the temple, I found a small pathway leading to a nice vantage point at the top of the mountain. Not only did it offer fantastic views, but there was an ancient temple currently undergoing renovation.
Unfortunately, it was off limits to travelers at the time but the view from outside was still remarkable.
After a good day of exploring, it was time to head back to the hostel. It’s always a pleasure getting acquainted with a cities heritage. 🙂
Have you ever been to China?
Wow – I love the pops of colour in each of these photos! Looks like a place more off the beaten path, it must have been so neat wandering around this beautiful area!
It was very neat Alli! When I arrived there, there wasn’t any tourist to be seen…must say it was nice. No one asking for donations, no entry fee…just the authentic feel of a real temple. It was nice making a donation of my own volition for once! lol 🙂
Looks like a beautiful, undiscovered little corner of China. I can’t wait reading about your Tibet adventures now!
That it was Margherita! It was nice getting away from the tourist areas most people typically travel to and actually visit remote towns. Was fun! 🙂
Great pics! I’ve never been to china but I’m obsessed with pandas so going to the chengdu sanctuary is top of my priority list! I’m also intrigued by this worlds highest train- way cool!
The train ride was long but really neat and comfy. Extremely scenic and great for photography. I didn’t get the chance to see that many pandas, only at the zoo. Hopefully you’ll get the opportunity to see them at the sanctuary!
The view is beautiful! We were just in China but we only stayed two days at the airport soo it wasn’t much of a trip haha. I’d love to go back and explore more, it’s such a huge country with tons to do and see!
Oh that sucks! haha Hopefully you’ll get back there soon to explore more of the country. I only got to the Western side myself, next time it’s farther East! 😉
Pity the temple at the top of the mountain was closed – still cool to be right there next to it though. And the views aren’t bad at all! I really have to get to China soon!!
It was a pity but still cool. Hopefully you can make it out there soon; there’s just so much to see!