Self-driving tour in Ningxia, a six-day and five-night trip to the Northwest

【Preface】

Northwest may be a destination that many people have longed for but have not been to.
This is the first time I have come to Ningxia. Before I came, the desert solitary smoke and Danxia landforms in the northwest remained in my mind. Only when I arrived here did I realize that the desert, the Yellow River and lakes coexist here. This is a magical place!
Here, there are distant mountains beyond distant mountains, and deserts beyond deserts. This is a scenery that can only be found in the Northwest, and it is also a "different scenery" that you will never see in the city.
Post some beautiful trailers below!

【About this self-driving】

This self-driving trip is for four people traveling together. Let me briefly introduce our four-person team!

You Zou (a boy in a white T-shirt in the back row), a professional traveler, a contracted travel experiencer for many travel websites, loves traveling, photography, and sharing. If you read this travel note, I hope you can follow me on Weibo@游Traveling photographers, if we have the opportunity, we will travel together.

Miss-Shen Xiaoxian, beautiful photographer, veteran driver, guide author, Weibo vlog blogger, well-known travel blogger, this trip is with her husband. Her husband is a contracted photographer. He has climbed mountains and driven cars. Is a powerful person.

Hu Entai_7 (I am afraid of the boy on the left), a well-known travel blogger, Weibo story celebrity, Changzhou travel player, contracted traveler on various platforms, we slept together for five nights during this trip, boy, hahaha. He is also the driver of this self-driving tour, and the assistant V officer of the 2019 Red Man's Day Rural Tourism.

[About photography and post-production]

Mobile phone: Apple x
Stabilizer: Feiyu Vlog Pocket Stabilizer
Drone: DJI Mavic 2 Pro
Camera: Canon 5D3 (Canon EF 16-35mm f4 L, Canon EF 24-70mm f/2.8L IS II USM, Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS II USM)
Post software: lightroom
Other equipment: tripod, mobile phone holder, video shooting stabilizer, Apple notebook, mobile hard disk, card reader, charger, etc.

【schedule】

Day1: Zhengzhou—Yinchuan—China Wolfberry House—Stay in Jinjiang Inn
Day2: Drum Tower—South Gate Square—Lanshan Park—China-Arabia Axis—Stay at Restin Hotel
Day3: Tombs of Xixia Kings - Sand Lake - Mermaid Hotel
Day4: Qingtongxia 108 Tower - the most beautiful road in Zhongwei - North Long Beach - Shadu Hotel
Day5: Shapotou Scenic Area—Stay in Shadu Hotel
Day6: Beibao Film and Television City, Yinchuan Town—Return

[Practical strategy and preparation before departure]

1. Try to bring as little cash as possible, and keep valuables safe. Now the technology is very advanced, mobile payment is very convenient. Therefore, try to choose as little cash as possible when traveling abroad. At the same time, when traveling, try not to leave valuables such as cameras and computers, and keep them properly. You must bring your ID card with you. ID card verification is required for booking rooms and tickets when you go out.
2. Ticket category: Determine the travel time, choose the means of transportation in advance, whether it is a plane or a train, it is best to download a travel app, so that booking tickets is more convenient. It is best for students to bring their student ID cards, and there are corresponding discounts on scenic spot tickets and bus tickets.
3. Digital category: SLR cameras, mobile phones, laptops, mobile hard disks, chargers, mobile power supplies, power strips.
4. Regarding clothing: Ningxia has a relatively large temperature difference between day and night and radiation. Short-sleeved + sunscreen shirts or thin long-sleeved shirts are worn at noon, and a jacket is required in the morning and evening.
5. The mobile phone signal in Shapotou and North Long Beach is not very good. Sometimes there will be no signal. When traveling, follow the tour guide or friends closely, and don't get separated from the crowd.
6. About specialty products: The most famous specialty product in Ningxia is goji berries, and you can also buy eight-treasure tea. If you want to give it away, you can consider giving it the brand of Bairuiyuan. It is a high-end brand in Ningxia, and it is very suitable for eating by yourself. It is sold in specialty stores and airports, and the price is the same across the country.
7. Medication: This can’t be sloppy, but it’s not that exaggerated. Just bring some medicines for motion sickness, cold, fever, constipation, diarrhea, and headache.

【About traffic】

The traffic in Ningxia is generally convenient;
【airplane】
Ningxia currently has three airports: Yinchuan Hedong International Airport, Zhongwei Xiangshan Airport, and Guyuan Liupanshan Airport; Yinchuan Hedong International Airport has many direct flights to all parts of the country. Most people will choose to fly to Yinchuan, but if you want to go to Guyuan , then it is strongly recommended to fly directly to Guyuan. After all, it takes more than 4 hours to travel from Yinchuan to Guyuan by car, or it is very cheap to buy a flight ticket from Yinchuan to Guyuan in advance;
【train】
The two sets of railways that cross Ningxia are the Baolan Railway and the Taizhongyin Railway. Yinchuan Station, Qingtongxia Station, Zhongning Station, Zhongwei Station, etc. can be directly reached by train. Children’s shoes that need to take the train only need to move on the 12306 railway network Check the ticket with your finger;
【car】
In Ningxia, where there is no high-speed rail, besides the train, the car is the primary transportation job. The car in Ningxia can reach all cities and counties in the region and Beijing, Shaanxi, Gansu, Mongolia, Zhejiang, Fujian and other places. The whole line is open to traffic at high speed, so there is no need to worry;

[Self-driving tour preparation and precautions]

1. Please calculate the fuel consumption of the vehicle.
2. Most of the roads are mountainous, so the speed of the vehicle should be controlled and attention should be paid to safety.
3. Please be sure to check the accompanying documents and personal documents before departure.
4. Ask the old driver or the Internet about the road conditions of the roads you will run, so that you know what you are going to do.
5. Water is essential, especially pure water, not only for people to drink, but also for cars sometimes. For example, the lack of engine cooling water, pure water can be emergency. If the brake is overheated on a long-distance downhill, you can use pure water to cool down.
6. If it is a fleet, it is best to buy a walkie-talkie, not only can save a lot of mobile phone costs, but also the walkie-talkie is particularly important in places where the mobile phone has no signal.
7. It is best to carry good money and ID cards, driver's licenses, driving licenses and other documents for people and vehicles.
8. Prepare enough change notes. When traveling by car in other places, it is necessary to buy tolls, bridge tolls, parking fees and other miscellaneous expenses anytime and anywhere. It is best to prepare enough change notes of less than 10 yuan, which is convenient for yourself and for others.
9. Driving in a self-driving tour is the most dangerous, so avoid driving while fatigued.
10. Do not take unfamiliar roads, especially in desert areas. Improper operation can easily get you stuck in the desert, so you must pay attention to safety.

【Accommodation recommendation】

【Yinchuan Shahu Mermaid Villa】
To visit Shahu Lake, Yinchuan Shahu Meryu Villa Hotel will be a good choice for accommodation. At that time, I chose this hotel because the hotel was very close to Shahu Lake, and the decoration was relatively high-end when I checked online.

The hotel is divided into two floors as a whole, the first floor is the Halal catering department, and the second floor is the guest room department. There are 13 duplex rooms with different styles.

The design of the lobby on the first floor is mainly in the loft style, with originality, which can be customized for birthday parts, outdoor weddings, private parties... It turns out that the cordial dining of friends can also become a kind of sentiment.

The room is designed in loft style, with small tables and chairs, and an independent platform. The whole room is filled with a warm atmosphere and the taste of home.
It can be seen that the owner of this restaurant is very attentive, and the design is very attentive. It is also very suitable for friends and family gatherings.

【Food recommendation】

There are countless delicacies in Ningxia. I have eaten a lot of delicacies in Ningxia in the past few days. Here are just a few of my favorite delicacies:
Stir-Fried Lamb
Stir-fried lamb is a traditional snack in Ningxia. Pingluo's production is unique and well-known, so it is also called Pingluo lamb.
The method is very particular, especially the high heat requirements. Start to stir-fry with high heat until the color turns yellow, add celery, vermicelli and other ingredients, change to medium heat and continue to stir-fry until the lamb meat is broken. The color is red and bright, the meat is soft and tender, and the taste is mellow.
Mutton
Lambs that are less than one year old are selected, especially lambs that have not eaten green grass. The meat is fat but not greasy, and it is refreshing and tender.

Shredded Chicken
Shredded chicken can be found in many places, but the taste here is different, it is worth recommending.

Salted Shallots

Zhongwei Artemisia Noodles
"Long-necked geese, pulled the red thread, and pulled it to Zhongwei County. Zhongwei County is unusual, and the girl can roll long noodles. The rolled noodles are thin and fanned, and the cut noodles are thin and threaded. Put a thread into the bowl..." This popular folk song in Zhongwei often refers to Zhongwei's Artemisia noodles.
Eight treasure tea
Babao tea, also called Babao health tea, is the most popular tea in Yinchuan. It is made from eight or more ingredients, the most common being red dates, wolfberry, rock sugar, walnuts, tea leaves, etc. wait. The taste is sweet and delicious.

【Chinese Goji Berry House】

To say that the most worthwhile specialty in Ningxia is Ningxia wolfberry, which is famous all over the country. In order to have a more comprehensive understanding of Ningxia wolfberry, I came to Bairuiyuan China Wolfberry Museum.

The museum displays the regional culture of Chinese wolfberry in an all-round way, interprets the history and culture of Chinese wolfberry in multiple dimensions, and exhibits the health-preserving culture of Ningxia wolfberry in a deep level. platform for cultural exchange.

Here you can watch the history of the development of wolfberry, and at the same time, you can taste the taste of wolfberry, which is known as the best brand of wolfberry in China.

The Wolfberry Museum is of great significance to promoting the traditional history and culture of Chinese wolfberry and boosting the development of Ningxia's cultural industry.

This place focuses on the history and culture of Chinese and Ningxia wolfberry, industrial distribution, scientific research achievements, wolfberry farming tools and edible utensils, Ningxia wolfberry series products, and wolfberry gourmet dishes.

Shopping is not my hobby, but it's okay to learn knowledge. At the Goji Berry Museum, the guide introduced us how to choose goji berries and the classification of goji berries and so on. Although I can't write down all of them, the sporadic information is not in vain.

Here I also share with you what I can remember. Choose wolfberry: 1. You can’t choose bulk. Second, look at the color, a good wolfberry is dark red, not bright red. Third, pinch it to see if it is deformed. Then there is the classification of goji berries. The best goji berries are like snacks, which can be eaten directly. The kind of boiled water and soup are all inferior Ningxia goji berries.

After walking around the whole museum for more than an hour, there is also a shopping supermarket here, where you can choose to buy some Ningxia specialties, not only wolfberry, but also Babao tea, mushroom jujube and other products, which you can bring to your relatives and friends.

[Stroll around Yinchuan, check in coordinates]

Strolling around in the urban area of ​​Yinchuan and punching in the city landmarks, we first came to Yinchuan Cross Drum Tower, where the Drum Tower has the same name as the Beijing Drum Tower. This is a four-sided cross building, very majestic, and one of the few classical buildings in the ancient city outside the Great Wall.

The Drum Tower is located in the Bell and Drum Tower at the intersection of Jiefang East Street and Gulou South North Street in Yinchuan City, also known as "Cross Drum Tower" and "Four Drum Towers". This is an ancient building with revolutionary commemorative significance. Now, the Drum Tower is a key cultural relic protection unit in Ningxia and Yinchuan.

Driving in Yinchuan City is not particularly convenient, there are too many cars, one-way streets and a lack of parking spaces. We parked the car in the underground parking lot of SEG Digital Plaza, walked around outside and took photos, and then went to the next place——South Gate Plaza .
This is also a bustling place for culture, commerce and leisure in Yinchuan. Both foreigners and locals will come to Nanmen Plaza to eat and shop in Yinchuan.

Nanmen Square is a geographical name card of Yinchuan City. This square has a certain age. According to legend, it was built by Zhu Di in Ming Dynasty when he was in Lingzhou. It was built almost at the same time as Tiananmen Square in Beijing. It looks like Tiananmen Square from a distance, so it is known as Known as "Little Tiananmen".
Although it is still a small model compared to the capital Tiananmen.
But the red bricks and blue tiles look very majestic and solemn.

This is also a place for citizens to play and play. There are young people coming for dates, children chasing and playing, and some elderly people chatting about their daily life, and the crowd is bustling.

After visiting the South Gate Plaza, we went to the supermarket in the basement of the square to purchase some snacks and daily necessities for self-driving tours in the next few days. After shopping, we decided to drive to Lanshan Park.

It takes about 15 kilometers to drive from Nanmen Square, and it takes half an hour. Because it is the afternoon rush hour, we drove for 40 minutes to reach Lanshan Park.
Behind the gate is a huge square, which is Piedmont Square. We arrived early and there were not many tourists in the square. There are many play facilities for children in the square.

There are two mountain peaks behind the square, which is Lanshan, and the mountain is green. Between the two mountains is a wide step with hundreds of stone steps, from bottom to top, wide and spectacular. At the end of the stone steps, at the top of the high platform, there is another square, which is the platform on the top of the mountain.

On one side of the platform, there is a tall arched door, a majestic screen-style Roman building, resembling the Colosseum in ancient Rome, full of Ou Faner, very shocking. On both sides are open aisles. In addition to the aisle, there are nine arched aisles each.
This is the Lanshan Park Amphitheater. The main shape is in the style of the Roman Colosseum. The building is fan-shaped and consists of fixed stands and performance venues.

Standing under the tall arch, look at the continuous steps of the grandstand, which are stacked on top of each other. There should be thousands of seats. The bottom performance venue is a football field with green grass. If the big theater is empty because there are no performances, it is very large.

On the side of Lanshan Mountain is the West Lake of Yuehai Wetland. The water area here is vast and the scenery is beautiful. It is the largest ecological wetland in Yinchuan City with the most complete landform.
Slowly, a lot of tourists and citizens came here. This is a very suitable place to watch the sunset. Coupled with the Roman architecture here, it has attracted many photographers and handsome men and women to take pictures.

I always thought that Ningxia had a great northwest style. It seems that my hair is long and my knowledge is short. There are entertainment facilities and cruise ship docks near the lake. If you are interested, you can play.
After visiting Lanshan Park, I couldn't calm down for a long time. All in all, Yinchuan deserves to be called "a small south of the Yangtze River".

After coming down from Lanshan Park, it was getting late. We passed a beautiful street. It turns out that this is the axis of China and Arab states. It is a symbol of peace and beauty between China and Arabia, so it is worth visiting.

The China-Arabia Axis is located in the Yuehai Bay CBD of Yinchuan City, Ningxia, with a total length of 2.1 kilometers and a total width of 90 meters. The Sino-Arab axis consists of two parts, with a 58-meter-wide cultural and leisure area in the middle, and 16-meter-wide motorway and sidewalks on both sides.

From the perspective of landscape function, the China-Arab axis is divided into three relatively independent cultural landscape areas, namely the China-Arab friendship symbol landscape area, the Sino-Arab cultural blend landscape area, and the Chinese Hui cultural landscape area. The China-Arab axis shows the Arab countries It has a long history and culture and a long history of Sino-Arab friendship.
In the middle is a 2-kilometer-long tourist square composed of Islamic characteristic elements and water bodies, and the lighting effects are very eye-catching. The evening breeze is blowing, and most of the people who come here are citizens. The walk is very pleasant, and it is free.

【Western Xia Royal Tombs】

Today's destination is the Tomb of the Western Xia Dynasty. It takes 30 minutes to drive there from the hotel, and it is 28 kilometers away from the downtown area of ​​Yinchuan.
We took the tickets to enter the scenic spot, and the first thing we came to was the Xixia Museum, which was newly opened this year.
The Xixia Museum is located in the Xixia Mausoleum National Archaeological Site Park. It is the first special museum in China that takes the Xixia Mausoleum as the background and comprehensively introduces the history and culture of Xixia Mausoleum and the inheritance and protection of the Xixia Mausoleum.

A large number of cultural relics about the history of Xixia are stored and displayed inside, which are very precious. For tourists who like history, this must be a must-see place!
The museum is a two-story building. When visiting, the first thing you enter is the large preface hall. The main relief on the wall of the prologue hall is a highlight.

Continuing to go inside, in a showcase in one corner of the exhibition hall, there are displayed broken porcelain pieces unearthed in Yinchuan construction sites in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s, some of which used the "twisted tire" technique. This kind of craftsmanship is relatively rare. According to the director of the division, the twisted tires appeared in the Tang Dynasty. They were made by mixing two different kinds of tire mud together and then glazed and fired. It was rare after the Northern Song Dynasty. The warrior figurines displayed in this exhibition hall are also very eye-catching.

When it comes to text, we have to mention printing. Located in the same exhibition hall as the Xixia Characters Exhibition—the imitation scene of the Xixia Engraving Division in the Xixia Cultural History Exhibition Hall, vividly reflects the busy scene of the people in the Xixia Engraving Division. The Western Xia Lettering Department is a department in charge of printing. The earliest wooden movable type discovered in the world was invented by the Xixia people, so it is absolutely necessary to write a special book.

There are two major attractions in the Xixia Religious Art Exhibition Hall. The first attraction is the Dunhuang Xixia Grottoes that "fly away".

Dunhuang Grottoes include Mogao Grottoes, East Thousand Buddha Caves and Yulin Grottoes. The new Xixia Museum completely reproduces Cave 29 and Cave 2 of the Yulin Grottoes in a 1:1 ratio. These two caves are the original Xixia Grottoes.
Cave 2 is larger than Cave 29. On a picture of Avalokitesvara in the murals, there are images of Tang Monk clasping his hands and Monkey King leading a horse. Below the murals are portraits of supporters. The images of Xixia people that appear in our junior high school history textbooks are selected from the Xixia murals in Cave 2 of Yulin Grottoes.

If the Xixia Grottoes reproduced in original proportions are amazing, then when you come to the Xixia Social and Economic Exhibition Hall and face the huge Xixia Mantou Kiln Site, you can only be amazed.

Xixia Mantou Kiln occupies an exhibition area of ​​about 200 square meters. For the convenience of visiting, a two-meter-high glass corridor was built around the kiln body. Overlooking the kiln site, a large number of broken porcelain pieces are distributed on the ground, as if in Tell people about the prosperity of firing in those years.

"Look at the big mound from a distance, look at a pile of soil up close", this is not the original appearance of the royal tomb
In the past, visitors’ impression of the Xixia Mausoleum was “a large mound of earth seen from a distance, and a pile of soil close up.” However, the earliest architectural style of the Xixia Mausoleum was very solemn and magnificent, with rammed earth accounting for about 65% and a wooden structure on the outside. And the decoration of brick and tile building components, the wall base is covered with bricks, and the wall is painted with red paint. The representative dripping tiles, Miaoyinniao, and set beasts unearthed from the Xixia Mausoleum are all proof.

In the exhibition hall of the Xixia Mausoleum, the architectural model of No. 3 Mausoleum and the section model of No. 6 Mausoleum intuitively show the initial appearance of the Mausoleum.

In the last exhibition hall of the Xixia Museum - Xixia Mausoleum Inheritance and Protection Exhibition Hall, you can see some overseas Tibetan Xixia cultural relics, which should be of interest to academic researchers.

After visiting the museum, we took a sightseeing bus to the mausoleum area. There are 9 imperial mausoleums in total in the Western Xia Mausoleum, and currently there are 3 imperial mausoleums. The currently open royal mausoleums are No. 1, 2, and 3. Mausoleum No. 3 is separate, and No. 1.2 Mausoleum is next to each other, which is the so-called Shuangling! The owners of these three tombs are No. 1 Li Jiqian (grandfather of Li Yuanhao), No. 2 Li Deming (father of Li Yuanhao), and No. 3 Li Yuanhao. The first thing we came to was Tomb No. 3, which was also the first Xixia King's Tomb to be opened to the world.

In fact, the current royal tombs are a pile of loess, but they are called the pyramids of the East, which shows that they are quite mysterious. When I came to Yuanhao's tomb, the most surprising thing was that there was a cave about 5 meters deep in front of the tomb. This action, at a glance, is known to be left by the tomb robber, but what we don't understand is why he didn't dig the mound directly, but chose to dig about 10 meters in front of the mound? According to the explanation, the burial customs of the Xixia people are different from those of the Han people. They will not be buried directly in the mausoleum, but in front of the mausoleum. So judging from the location of the tomb robber, this tomb robber is familiar with the burial customs of Xixia.

Walking in the mausoleum area, you can see large and small mounds, they are distributed in a patchwork pattern on this land, and their momentum is the same as that of the Egyptian pyramids, but there is a slight difference in shape and scale. But the tombs of the Western Xia Dynasty still have many mysteries of their own. For example, grass never grows on the mound, and birds never stay on the mound. These phenomena have cast a veil of mystery on the Xixia Royal Tomb.

Time is ruthless, whether it is the Three Emperors and Five Emperors, or the pawns, in the end it is a pile of loess. However, the fun of history lies in savoring the bits and pieces of the time through these gone elements. Whether it is joy, sorrow, success, failure, dominion over the world, winner or loser, they are all laughed at.
Xixia, a dynasty silent in the yellow sand, its story has echoed in the hearts of many people for a long time!

【Sand Lake Tourist Scenic Spot】

Shahu takes the natural landscape as the main body, and the five sources of sand, water, reeds, birds and mountains are organically combined to form a unique and beautiful landscape. , has both the majesty of the Gobi Desert and the beauty of the Jiangnan water town, and is known as a "rare in the world" cultural tourist attraction.

We first came to the 10,000-acre lotus garden. The lotus is in full bloom. The scenery here is so beautiful and moving. The pink lotus stands on the green lotus leaves, like a shy and soft fairy. A kind of pure and beautiful graceful beauty.

There is an exquisite viewing path built here, which allows tourists to have a close contact with the lotus at zero distance. When they are in it, they will become a charming, fresh and elegant flower fairy by accident.

The distant mountains are like Daisy, the sand and the water meet, the green reeds are swaying, and the birds are flocking. There is a good saying: If you come to Ningxia and don't visit Shahu, you have never been to Ningxia, so Shahu is a must-see place. Because there are not only misty lakes, golden and picturesque sand mountains, graceful reeds, thousands of birds, ten thousand acres of lotus gardens covering the sky with endless green lotus leaves, but also the Helan Mountain Sleeping Buddha that breaks through the gap in Helan Mountain. And the long aftertaste of the big fish head in the sand lake.
Clusters of emerald green reeds, a scene of Jiangnan water town.

Take a cruise to enjoy the beautiful scenery of the lake and watch the birds fly across the sky. We passed Bird Island and came to the pier on the beach.

While watching the scenery, enjoy playing in the sand and water. Sandboarding, karts, hot air balloons, etc. in the desert, and jet skiing and parasailing on the lake. Modern sand sports and water sports have added youthful vitality to the sand lake.

The jet ski coach is responsible for taking you out and bringing you back to the shore. When you are in the middle of the lake, you will let go of your hands, giving you enough freedom to drive and be happy by yourself, and satisfy your desire to master the speed to the greatest extent. According to your needs, the water paraglider can let you fly to the highest altitude or let you float on the water, which are very exciting projects.

Playing water sports is to go to the desert to surf the sand, which is exciting. Each desert off-road vehicle can hold more than a dozen people. Because you have to drive up and down in the desert, you must put your camera and mobile phone away, so as not to be thrown out if you are not careful, and you have to wear it yourself. Seat belts, hold on to the armrests.

The slopes in the desert are really strange, bumping back and forth in the desert, the car exclaimed from time to time, the tension soaring into the air makes the adrenaline rise rapidly, and the dopamine produced makes people feel extremely happy. This is the charm of off-roading in the desert.

I hope that one day, you can also set foot on this magical land and feel the passion and excitement here!

【Qingtongxia Tower 108】

Ningxia Qingtongxia 108 Pagoda is the only large-scale pagoda group seen in ancient pagoda buildings in China. It is located at the last gorge of the upper reaches of the Yellow River in central Ningxia.

The 108 Pagoda is one of the existing large-scale ancient pagoda groups in my country. The pagodas are arranged in odd numbers of 1, 3, 3, 5, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, and 19 from top to bottom according to the mountain situation. In twelve rows, a total of 108 towers form a large equilateral triangle tower group. Of these 108 towers, except for the first tower at the top, which is larger, the rest are small towers.

Buddhism believes that people have 108 kinds of troubles. In order to get rid of the many troubles in life, good men and women should wear 108 beads and recite sutras 108 times. It is said that one pagoda of the number of people who come here can eliminate a kind of trouble, and if they can count all the pagodas in one breath, they can eliminate all troubles in life. Of course, the Buddha also said that everything depends on fate.

The structure of each tower is generally similar from a distance, but upon closer inspection, the tower body of each floor is slightly different.

The 108 Tower was first built in Xixia, and has been repaired several times in Yuan, Ming, Qing and other dynasties. When the state built the Qingtongxia Hydropower Plant in 1963, it demolished the ruins of an ancient temple and two bowl-covered brick pagodas. The cultural relics department cleared out two colorful pictures of walking Buddha, brick Buddha statues and fragments of Buddhist scriptures, and unearthed them. Xixia cultural relics such as stone inscriptions canopy were collected. In 1988, the relevant departments carried out comprehensive maintenance on the buildings in the tower area, and unearthed cultural relics of Xixia such as the pottery Tiangong and Tasha. These historical relics and relics have witnessed the strong incense of the Buddhist Tantric sect around the tower area.

[The most beautiful road in Zhongwei by car]

The country road from Zhongwei to the ancient village of North Changtan passes through undulating valleys and runs along the Yellow River. In some places, the straight road extends to the distance. It is known as "Route 66" in Zhongwei, which attracts people Countless self-driving enthusiasts go there.

Route 66 in the United States has a long history. When driving on the road, you can see cornfields, Indian reservations and endless deserts. On the vast loess, cacti are scattered sporadically, full of western cowboy style. And Zhongwei's "Route 66" also has the unique scenery of Northwest China.
The terrain of Zhongwei is complex and changeable, with loess hills and gullies in the south, and low mountains and deserts in the north. Weining Plain, the alluvial plain of the Yellow River in the central part, enjoys the benefits of irrigation from the Yellow River. The land is fertile and the products are abundant. It is known as the "Land of Fish and Rice".

My car is driving on this road leading to the ancient village. With the fast rolling wheels, our body and mind temporarily leave the modern society, leave the concrete forest, and even the mobile phone has no signal. Surrounded by the Yellow River and mountains, it seems to have traveled to an ancient and silent era.

This road leads to ancient villages along the Yellow River, sometimes bends, sometimes goes straight, sometimes goes uphill, sometimes goes downhill, and in some places the road is straight, as if extending to the end of the sky.

The ancient villages of North Changtan are concentrated in Beishan. They are built along the mountain. Due to the different situation, the houses are scattered at different heights. The courtyard layout and house structure of each household are made of stones.

The left-behind elderly in the ancient village saw the tourists coming, so they took out the tomatoes and red dates they had grown and sold them in bags for five yuan a bag, which was very cheap.

Now there are only more than 10 elderly people in this village, the younger ones are in their 50s and the older ones are in their 80s. The young people have all moved to the city, and some of them only come back once a year. It’s really not easy. I suddenly thought of home Parents, you must go back and see them when you have time.

Self-driving guide:
This is a country road, the destination is North Long Beach, where there are several old villages. After starting from Zhongwei, go west along Provincial Highway 201, pass Shapotou Scenic Area, and drive to Mengjiawan Expressway intersection. There is a fork in the south (don’t go to the expressway), and the sign at the intersection indicates the direction of North Long Beach. Traveling along this road, you will drive to the north bank of the Yellow River, and you will arrive at North Changtan (Xiatan Village, Yingpan Town) after driving 29 kilometers.
There are very few cars passing by on this road, with the vast Gobi on both sides and high and low barren hills in the distance. It is often said that the journey is the best scenery. Presumably this is what road trips are about.

[Must play in Ningxia - Shapotou]

Compared with looking at mountains and rivers, deserts give people a more special experience, such as distant mirages, moving camel peaks, the excitement of surfing in the desert, and the tranquility of the sunset. Surrounded by yellow sand at your feet, take a desert boat, and the desert scenery is all in Shapotou.

Shapotou is located on the southeastern edge of the Tengger Desert in the west of Zhongwei City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. Starting from Erdaoshagou South Forest House in the east, Toudaodun in the west, Tengger Desert in the north, and the Yellow River in the south, it is one of the 20 key areas for sand control in the country.

The desert, of course, is a must-visit here.
You can experience the passion and fun of sand washing and sand boarding. Sand buggies are big open-top off-road vehicles that zip down with sand brushing against your face.

Camel riding and sand motorcycles are also classic projects to experience the desert. Four or five camels are walking on the yellow sand, moving forward together, like a caravan on the Silk Road.
If being in the boundless sand sea brings you a kind of bleakness and nostalgia, you might as well ride a camel and walk slowly, and experience another feeling that the desert brings you here.

What I am most looking forward to is the desert speeder. These tall desert warriors are neatly parked next to the camels.
Each desert off-road vehicle can hold more than a dozen people. Because you have to drive up and down in the desert, you must put your camera and mobile phone away, so as not to be thrown out if you are not careful, and you have to wear it yourself. Seat belts, hold on to the armrests.

The slopes in the desert are really strange, bumping back and forth in the desert, the car exclaimed from time to time, the tension soaring into the air makes the adrenaline rise rapidly, and the dopamine produced makes people feel extremely happy. This is the charm of off-roading in the desert.

The International Sand Skiing Center, with a good name, mainly carries out sand skiing and other recreational projects, and children play with sand under the shade of trees.
Here, you can sit on a skateboard and fly from high to low, feeling the fun of desert surfing; you can also walk in the fine sand with bare feet, feeling the golden sand scratching you The softness and delicacy of the soles of your feet and into the crevices of your toes.

After sandboarding, if you still feel that it is not enjoyable enough, then sit on the zipline and fly from north to south at an altitude of nearly a thousand meters, and then fly back. This is a paradise for the brave.

The Yellow River forms a unique 290 here. The big turn constitutes a wonderful shape of Tai Chi Yin Yang Eight Diagrams. Standing on the top of the mountain, facing the Yellow River in front, overlooking the mountains and overlooking the plains, the natural scenery is extremely peculiar, majestic and grand in scale.

The most classic ones are sheepskin rafts, sheepskin rafts: commonly known as Paizi, an ancient ferry tool preserved by the people along the Yellow River, which consists of a dozen bulging goatskin "huntuo". There are different types of rafts, the largest sheepskin raft is made of more than 600 sheepskin bags, and the small one is made of 14 sheepskin bags, suitable for short-distance transportation.
The sheepskin raft is the last experience item. After the experience, we will return to the hotel to rest.

【Zhenbeibao Film and Television City】

Zhenbeibao Northwest Film and Television City, the cradle of early Chinese movies, is famous all over the world for the nonsensical masterpiece "Journey to the West". Chinese movies go to the world from here, "Red Sorghum", "Journey to the West", "A Chinese Journey to the West", "The Old Man and the Dog" and many other movies were shot here.

Among the many film and television cities in China, Xibeibao Western Film and Television City is characterized by simplicity, primitiveness, roughness, desolation and folk. It is one of the three major film and television cities in China and the only famous film and television city in western China.

Here are the signatures of famous directors and actors here, as a souvenir!

More than 140 film and television dramas have been filmed here. When I saw familiar scenes in the studio, the movie images and dialogues came to my mind.
Here I will explain to you the general route that I think is more important. Qingcheng is a must, because this is the main location for filming Westward Journey, which includes the Mansion of the Bull Demon King, the city wall, etc., and it is a very good place to shoot portraits. Then there is Mingcheng, where the New Dragon Gate Inn was filmed. Among them, the Moon Gate is an Internet celebrity attraction, and many film and television dramas have borrowed this place. These two places are recommended by me, and the Old Yinchuan Street on the upper left is a retro street. Although its charm is not bad, there are more shops selling things in it. If you don’t have enough time, you can choose to give up!

Then let’s talk about Mingcheng, which is the shooting location of the New Dragon Gate Inn. Red Sorghum is also filmed here, and the most famous moon gate is located here! The door is made of stones, shaped like a crescent moon. This is obviously an internet celebrity attraction, and many people will stop here to take pictures!

In Ming City, there are Heifeng Village, Moon Gate, Escort Bureau, dungeons, as well as antique Ming city walls and military fortresses. The ruins, the vicissitudes of the loess, and the desert border, the customs are still there. It seems that the buildings in Mingcheng are mostly related to the plot of martial arts.

On the inner city wall of Qingcheng, you will see that familiar figure. That's right, the part where Stephen Chow and Athena Chu kiss on the city wall is definitely one of the classic scenes in movie history. I once read a movie review, which was touching: "If you don't wear a golden hoop, you can't save her, and if you wear a golden hoop, you can't love her. We finally understand that once a person who was one step away from us misses it, even if he becomes a hero in the world, wearing Dressed in brocade armor, stepping on colorful auspicious clouds, leaping a hundred and eight thousand miles, I'm afraid I won't be able to catch up."

In the Mansion of the Bull Demon King, tourists can rent clothes and take pictures in the back garden. This is where Zhizunbao uttered that classic line. I think this is the most familiar line of our generation. The interior decoration also simply restores the scene when Westward Journey was filmed at that time, and tourists can travel here. The price of renting clothes here is only 20 yuan for activities in Niufu, 40 yuan for activities in Qingcheng, and 60 yuan for the entire film and television city. Personally, I think it is necessary to change clothes to experience, after all, everyone has their own Supreme Treasure or Zixia in their hearts!

There are still a lot of people who come here to rent clothes. After all, the fee is not expensive. In just over ten minutes, I saw eight or nine Zixia fairies. But there are very few Supreme Treasures!

Famous films such as "The Wrangler", "Red Sorghum", "The Ballad of the Yellow River", "Unrequited Love on the Yellow River", "The Old Man and the Dog", as well as films such as "A Chinese Journey to the West", "New Dragon Inn", "The Cold Against the Water" and "The Lone Guard" , "Great Dunhuang", "Fire Dancing in Yellow Sand", "Qiao Family Courtyard", "Old Persimmon Tree" and nearly a hundred film and television dramas were filmed here.

Zhenbeibao Western Film City, from here Chinese movies go to the world, and even enter people's hearts. The classic works, the beautiful scenes, and the classic lines are treasures that cannot be erased.
When are you coming? Be a Zixia Fairy or Supreme Treasure once!

【postscript】

The six-day and five-night free travel in Ningxia came to an end here. There are too many beautiful scenery worth remembering, too much joy worth freezing, there are laughter along the way, and there is also the confusion of getting lost, but all these will become memories. Although there are also regrets staying here, maybe this is the reason for coming next time.
The end of the trip is also the beginning of the next trip. I hope we can meet each other during the trip!