Yaan Travel Guide

• Yaan Overview
• Yaan Hotels
• Yaan Maps
• Yaan Transport
• Yaan Weather
• Yaan Attraction
• Yaan Food
• Yaan Shopping
• Yaan Entertainment
• Yaan Miscellaneous

See Also

• Beijing overview
• Shanghai overview
• Xian overview
• Guilin overview
• more...

 

Yaan Overview

Located on the western edge of Sichuan Basin, the transitional zone between Chengdu Plain and Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, Yaan City was called Yazhou Prefecture in ancient China. Covering an area of 15.3 thousand square meters with a population of 1.47milloin, Yaan City governs the city proper and seven counties: Tianquan County, Lushan County, Baoxing County, Yingjing County, Hanyuan County and Shimian County. As a cultural city with a long history, Yaan was a territory of “the Prefecture of Yazhou” and then part of “Kingdom of Black-Dressed Qiang People”. As one of the silk production areas in ancient South China, Yaan was a regime capital of prefectures and circuits of the past dynasties. There are two national forest parks, six provincial scenic and historic interest areas, one provincial forest park, one national nature reserve, one provincial nature reserve, and two regional scenic and historical interest areas in Yaan City.

 As the world- famous hometown of giant pandas, Yaan is place where the 1^s panda was discovered. The number and density of the giant pandas in Yaan rank the 1^st over the world. After the founding of People’s Republic of China, Yaan offered the country 120 giant pandas, 16 of which were presented to 16 countries as gifts: the Soviet Union, America, the UK, France, Japan, North Korea, New Zealand and etc .The government has established a nature reserve in Baoxing County, which become a paradise for over 200 rare animals including giant pandas, snub-nosed monkeys, antelopes, and white-lipped deer to inhabit and multiply.

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Giant Pandas

The nature’s superlative craftsmanship not only created Yaan which lies between Chengdu Plain and Tibetan Plateau and is as beautiful as a potted landscape, but also the miraculous creature-----the giant pandas. At the highest altitude of 5356 meters and the lowest altitude of 1580 meters, the Jjajin mountain range in Yaan City is the living and breeding dense area of giant pandas, which is bidding to list its giant panda habitat as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Since Jiajin Mountain is located in the subtropical monsoon mountain climate zone, the areas at high elevation are full of rows of glacial trough valleys and cirques. Small and big rivers run through the areas at low elevation, which forms a well-developed river system with Qingyi River, the mainstream of Dadu River, as the center. There are 429 wild vertebrates and 3000 vascular plants. So Jiajin Mountain  is called“Natural Gene Pool of Biology”and “Museum of Plants and Animals”.

As the “Hometown of Giant Pandas”, Yaan is the place where the first panda was discovered and named. The number and density of wild giant pandas in Yaan rank the first in the world. Since the founding of People’s Republic of China, Yaan Region has offered the country 136 giant pandas 18 of which have settled down oversea as ambassadors of peace and friendship. No textual research showed how many giant panda were exported abroad. Since 1955 the People’s Republic China has received 136 pandas from Yaan, 18 of which were presented as “National Gifts” to America, Japan, Britain, the Soviet Union, France, Germany, North Korea and Mexico. In the early 70s of 20^th century, the frozen Sino-US relationship has been opened up by the“ping-pong diplomacy. Later on the US president Nixon visited Beijing , China on 21^st, Februrary, 1972.  At the end of his visit, Premier Zhou Enlai declared that the Chinese government agreed to send a pair of pandas named Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing to the USA as “National Gifts”. The two pandas finally settled down in Washington, D.C.'s National Zoo. Both Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing come from Baoxing County, Yanan City. Ling-Ling’s hometown is Mahuang Gorge of Qiaoqi Tibetan Village at the foot of snow-capped peak of Jiajin Mountain. Hsing-Hsing’s hometown is Huangdian Zi Hill of Yanjing Country, Baoxing County. Their arrival aroused a giant panda upsurge all over America. Three million people flocked to feasting their eyes on the adorable pandas every year. The giant pandas of Yaan are not regarded as the valuable treasure of the Chinese People but also the symbols of world peace and amity. As national gifts, went abroad and made everlasting contribution to enhance the Sino-US relationship.

  The other 16 pandas are: Ping-Ping and An-An presented to the Soviet Union; No.1, No.2, Lin-Lin, San-Hsing, and Dan-Dan presented to North Korea; Lan-Lan, Kang-Kang, and Hula-Hula presented to Japan; Li-Li presented to France; Jia-Jia presented to Britain; Ying-Ying presented to Mexico; Tian-Tian,Quan-Quan, and Bao-Bao presented to West Germany. Each panda is an envoy which represents a much-told tale of peace and friendship between China and foreign countries.

One thing worth mentioning is that the giant panda has been the symbol of the WWF in 1961. Over ten white marble carved giant pandas made in Baoxing County, Yaan were exported abroad and placed before the headquarter and branch departments of the WWF. And the “giant pandas” still stand before the gateways.