The first day I first arrived in Yinchuan

        The natural scenery in Northwest China is the best in Greater China. After going to Qinghai and Gansu, Ningxia naturally became my next goal. Ningxia is not big. Starting from Yinchuan, the farthest scenic spot is only more than 200 kilometers away, which is very suitable for self-driving. After booking a car from Ctrip, you can go out for a leisurely stroll in the car as soon as you land at Yinchuan Hedong International Airport. We live in Impression Ningfeng International Hotel on Jiefang East Road near Gulou Pedestrian Street. This hotel has convenient parking and travel, and there are countless delicious food nearby!

        It was already past four o'clock in the afternoon when we arrived at the hotel, put down our luggage, and went straight to the famous "Old Mao Hand Catch". A group of four ordered grilled lamb chops, lamb skewers, stewed lamb chops in an iron pot, Xixia fried rice, fried pastry, etc., and they had a great time! It is worthy of being a famous restaurant in Yinchuan, and the dishes are still satisfactory.

 

 

 

 

 

        After dinner, the time is 7:30, just in time to go to Lanshan Park to watch the sunset. Lanshan Park is on a hillside in the northwest of Yinchuan, facing Yuehai Wetland Park. The outer wall of the park looks like the Colosseum in ancient Rome. This is a good place to take pictures and check in. Standing on the top of the mountain, there is an open water area in front of you. The afterglow of the setting sun sprinkles on Helan Mountain, which is extremely beautiful. When the night is dim and the lights are brilliant, the Tuanjie Road under the park is decorated with lights, and the China-Arab Friendship Tower witnesses every beautiful night in Yinchuan! Back at the hotel, go to the Drum Tower Pedestrian Street to see the prosperity that the capital city should have, and happily ended the first day of the trip.

 

 

 

                                                             Day 2 Western scenery

        In the morning, I drove 30 kilometers and came to the first stop of the day - Zhenbeibao West Film and Television City. A big story about Journey to the West made the Western Film and Television City famous all over the country, and countless people came to check in. The entire film city is divided into two parts, Mingcheng and Qingcheng, plus an old Yinchuan pedestrian street, and it takes half a day to go shopping. Walking in this film and television city, it seems to have seen a series of wonderful film and television replays: Journey to the West, Longmen Inn, Red Sorghum, Desert Wolf... The western scenery has a panoramic view: desert, yellow sand, cave dwellings, loess houses. The Zhizunbao and Zixia Fairy all over the street make you feel like you are at the scene of Journey to the West......

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

        The second stop came to the Xixia Royal Tombs Park, which is ten kilometers away from the Western Film and Television City. Xixia is a magical dynasty on the land of Ningxia. At that time, the land of China was separatist, with gold and iron horses, and the five powers of Tubo, Dali, Northern Song Dynasty, Daliao, and Xixia competed for hegemony. The Xixia Kingdom occupies the northwest, dominates the desert, resists the Daliao and the Northern Song Dynasty with a small body, has experienced ten emperors, and enjoyed the country for more than 200 years. Listening to the wonderful explanation of the young lady in the museum, my thoughts flew back to that era. However, in the real world, there are only round bumps left, and those emperors and generals have long been wiped out.

 

 

 

 

 

 

       Near the Western Xia Royal Mausoleum, there is also a Helan Mountain petroglyph scenic spot. When we rushed there, the scenic spot was already closed, leaving a little regret. In the evening, the family came to the Huaiyuan Night Market, which became popular on the Internet, looking for the snacks and delicacies of old Yinchuan. The streets are bustling with diners and food trucks one after another. I only hate that I only have one stomach!

 

 

 

 

 

                                                      Day 3 Shuidonggou

       There are four 5A-level scenic spots in Ningxia, the Western Film and Television City, Shapotou, Shahu Lake, and the Shuidonggou Scenic Area we went to today. Shuidonggou, located in the desert 35 kilometers southeast of Yinchuan, used to be the territory of Ordos, Inner Mongolia. Because a large area of ​​Paleolithic ruins was excavated here, a protected area was established, a museum was built, and then developed into a tourist area. First, visit the Shuidonggou Museum, listen to the stories of primitive humans, and then take the battery car in the scenic spot to the ruins of the Ming Great Wall. There are many desert projects here: horse riding, camel riding, karting, desert assault vehicle, etc. Those who are interested can play.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

        When you come down from the Ming Great Wall, you will pass through a dense sea of ​​reeds. Shuidonggou is a magical place. It is located in the desert, but there are rivers like Jiangnan water towns, green river water, dense reeds, green river banks, and high loess mounds beside it. When I got here, I took a boat instead. On the boat, you can see the spectacular scene of the Great Wall on the water. There are ziplines and bumper cars on the shore for leisure and entertainment. When we landed, we changed to another means of transportation: a carriage, and the horses moved forward with the cheerful singing of the coachman, and carried us to the ostrich garden. After seeing the ostriches, we got on a camel cart and arrived at another mysterious place: the Tibetan Soldiers Cave. I thought it was just a cave dwelling, but I didn’t expect there to be a hole in it: there is a winding tunnel that can’t be seen at a glance. There is no staff to guide the way, and you may get lost. In the tunnel, there are all organs, granaries, bedrooms, armory, and meeting halls. It is said that tens of thousands of people can be accommodated at one time! What a marvel of ancient engineering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       After leaving the Cangbing Cave, there is a long canyon at the entrance, and the Great Wall is next to the canyon. This place is easy to defend and difficult to attack, located on the frontier at that time, it is a real military fortress. After leaving the canyon, we got on the luxury tractor and returned to the parking lot. Shuidonggou has water, holes, ditches, historical stories, and natural scenery. The means of transportation are also very interesting: battery cars, boats, horse-drawn carriages, camel carts, and tractors. It is really a unique place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       Get out of Shuidonggou and drive to the next stop: Qingtongxia Yellow River Grand Canyon. Unexpectedly, Shuidonggou played for too long and missed the time. It was already five o'clock in the afternoon when we arrived at Qingtongxia scenic spot. When it arrived, I had no choice but to continue on my way and go to Zhongwei City to rest. Staying at the Shadu Hotel in Zhongwei, it is quiet, comfortable, and close to the scenic spot, which is very good.

 

 

 

                                                  Day 4 Shapotou Tonghu Grassland

       Today, the highlight of this trip - Shapotou is here. There are not only desert scenery, but also a lot of entertainment items. We bought a package ticket: 80 yuan for tickets, 375 yuan for entertainment items, and we are going to play him all day.

 

       The first is to surf along the Yellow River in a speedboat, get off the boat to the bottom of the desert, then take the cable car up the sand dunes, slide down the sand along the longest slide in Asia, then take the cable car up, take the zip line to the opposite bank, and sit on the slide again Cable back (you can also take a hang glider to cross the river and zipline back). Flying over the Yellow River, what you play is your heartbeat. There is also the Yellow River bungee jumping here, this is only for viewing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       After playing the project by the Yellow River (southern area), take the desert escalator up to explore the depths of the desert (northern area). Stepping out of the escalator, you can have a panoramic view of the Yellow River below the mountain: the desert is solitary and the smoke is straight, and the long river is setting in the sun. This is the place where Wang Wei, the great poet of the Tang Dynasty, recited poems. The deep yellow water of the Yellow River turns a corner at Shapotou, and the riverside has dense vegetation, a piece of verdant green. There is a vast desert on one side and a green oasis on the other. This kind of scene may only be seen in Shapotou.

 

 

 

 

       Take the shuttle bus into the North District, which is already deep in the Tengger Desert. The vast sand hills, one after another, are all golden at a glance. First camel riding. In a group of four, the camels paced leisurely along the sand hills, and the sound of camel bells was tinkling, long and distant. It took more than 20 minutes for a lap, and everyone was reluctant to come down. Then there's desert surfing. A caravan that can seat 20 people, fasten the seat belt, and run in the sea of ​​sand. The sand hills are undulating, and the car bumps up and down, up and down, just like surfing on the sea. A car of people sometimes screams, sometimes laughs, what a joy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

       At four o'clock in the afternoon, after playing all the items on the package. We rushed to the next stop: Tonghu Grassland in Alxa Left Banner, Inner Mongolia. Tonghu Grassland is only 20 kilometers away from Shapotou. There are not only deserts, grasslands, and many entertainment items, but what attracted us the most was a Mongolian-style bonfire party ----- Shenyou Tonghu. Here, we watched the wonderful horse performance of the prairie warriors, witnessed the lively Mongolian wedding, watched the solemn sacrificial performance, and finally gathered around the red bonfire, everyone held hands and sang and danced together. What a night! After the performance, drive back to Zhongwei's hotel to rest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                                         Day 5 Ningxia wolfberry

        The plan couldn't keep up with the changes. We were going to return to Yinchuan today, and then go to the Shahu and Huangsha Ancient Ferry in the north to continue to play for two days. However, the domestic epidemic situation suddenly became serious, so we had to end the trip early. When you go home, bring some souvenirs. Ningxia wolfberry is the best in the world, and Zhongning wolfberry is the best in Ningxia. Zhongning is a subordinate county of Zhongwei, so Zhongwei can buy high-quality Zhongning goji berries. We came to the Yonglou Market on Zhongwei Pedestrian Street. It is said that this is a trading market for local people. Goji berries are cheap and good, and there are many varieties. Medium wolfberry, 32 yuan a catty, I bought more than 10 catties, and packed it home.

 

 

       At 2 o'clock in the afternoon, I returned the rented car at Yinchuan Hedong International Airport and went home. Plug in Jiangnan, see you next time!