With the Yellow River to the north and Qinling Mountain Range at the back to the south,Mount Hua (2,160 meters above the sea level),one of the five best-known mountains in China,stands in the south of Huayin City,120 kilometers east of Xi'an ,and commands the gateway from Central China to the Northwest.It is well known for its precipitousness and picturesque beauty,acclaimed as" the first steep mountain in the world."
Mount Hua is a huge body of granite,its history can backdate to 120 million years ago.It boasts five imposing peaks with precipices and overhanging rocks:The east one
(the Sunrise Peak), which is the best location to view sunrising;The north one(the Clouds Terrace Peak),which is famous for vertical cliffs on its three sides;The west one(the LotusFlower Peak),and the south one(the Wild Goose- resting Peak) which are the main peaks and alsothe steepest of Mount Hua;And the central one(the Jade Maiden Peak),which links the east,west, and south peaks.Each presents a unique scenic beauty,surrounded by over 36 minor peaks."Flying outside the clouds and its reflection in the Yellow River",from a distance,
these five major peaks look like a lotus flower among the mountains,hence the name of
Mount Hua (Hua means flower in chinese). The changeable weather makes"Cloudy Mount Hua","Rainy Mount Hua", "Misty Mount Hua",and"Snowy
Mount Hua"on different season.Such special scenes make visitors feel as if they were in a fairland.
Mount Hua is the cradle of the chinese culture.According Zhang Taiyan,a noted scholar ofthe Qing Dynasty,"Zhonghua","Huaxia"all intitled its name from"Mount Hua".The Book of the Eastern Zhou Dynasty has a record of the mountain.The Records of the History of theWestern Han Dynasty carries the stories of the Yellow Emperor,King Yao and King Shunvisiting the mountain.Many emperors,including the First Emperor of the Qin,Emperor Wudiof the Han,Empress Wu Zetian and Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang,also came here to
hold sacrificial ce
remony in the past.Mount Hua is also "the Fourth Heaven"in Taoist
doctrine.Here and there are dotted with taoist temples,pavilions, scuptures and engravings.
Of the ruins,Jade Spring Garden ,Zhenyue Palace,and the Eastern Monastery are vey
famous. Famous scholars of various dynasties,such as Yang Zhen of the Han,Gu Yanwu
of the Qing,also stayed here and taught students.The legends such as" Chengxiang split the rock to save his mother","blowing the vertical bamboo flute to attract phoenix",all of
these make Mount Hua full of magical colour.There are over 210 scenic spots:the Thousand -Foot Precipice,the Hundred-Foot Crevice ,Laojun's Furrow ,the Sparrow Hawks' Cliff, and so on,visiters can not help but show great admiration.
In recent years,the tourism here has developed rapidly. Mount Hua has been listed as oneof the national AAAA scenic spots,one of the 10 famous mountains in China, and
awarded a golden medal" Top 50 Destinations in China for Foreigners" in 2006.Nowadays,Mount Hua has become a heat scenic spot for tourists all over the world.