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A. OVERVIEW

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Gansu is a province located in northwest of China. It lies between Qinghai, Inner Mongolia, and the Huangtu Plateaus, and borders Mongolia to the north. The Huang He river passes the southern part of the province. It has a population 25 million (1997) and has a large concentration of Hui Chinese people. The capital of the province is Lanzhou, located in the southeast.Gansu is abbreviated Gan or Long, and is also known as Long West or Long Right, in reference to the Long Mountain east of Gansu.

B. BACKGROUND

Throughout its history Gansu has been an important strategic outpost and communications link for the Chinese empire. Its frequent earthquakes, droughts and famines have slowed its economic progress. Recently however based on its abundant mineral resources it has begun developing into a vital industrial center.

The school situation in Gansu is very bad. Many people have never been to school due to the rising cost of education. Many inhabitants are pushing for free schooling for migrant children.

C. CURRENT SITUATION

In Gansu there is a lot of agricultural production including cotton, corn, melons , millet, and wheat. Gansu is known as a source for wild medicinal herbs which are used in Chinese medicine.

However, most of Gansu's economy is based on mining of a vast array of natural resources including antimony, chromium, coal, cobalt, copper, fluorite, gypsum, iron, lead, nickel, crude oil, platinum, tungsten, and zinc among others. The oil fields at Yumen and Changqing are considered significant.

Industries other than mining include electricity generation, petrochemicals, oil exploration machinery, and building materials.According to some sources, the province is also a center of China's nuclear industry.

Its GDP for 2004 was about 155.9 billion yuan (19.34 billion USD) and per capita of 5010 RMB (605 USD).

PART 2

SPECIAL FOCUS

My special focus is on the developing tourist industry in the Gansu province due to its unfortunate location Gansu has struggled to bring in tourists. However the province has four very significant tourist sites:

The Jiayuguan Pass

Jiayuguan Pass, in Jiayuguan city, is the largest and most intact entrance, of the Great Wall. Jiayuguan Pass was built in the Ming dynasty, somewhere around the year 1372. It was built on what was then the extreme western edge of China. Jiayuguan Pass was the first pass on the west end of the great wall so it earned the name “The First And Greatest Pass Under Heaven.” Legend says that the official asked the designer to calculate how many bricks would be used. The designer gave him the number and when the project was completed, only one brick was left. It was put on the top of the pass as a symbol of commemoration. This legend explained the reason for the extra brick at the top of the Jiayuguan Pass.

Silk Road

The historic Silk Road starts in Chang'an and goes to Constantinople. On the way merchants would go to Dunhaung in Gansu. In Dunhaung they would get fresh camels, supplies and bodyguards for the journey around the dangerous Takla Makan desert. Before departing Dunhaung they would pray to the Mogao Grottoes for a safe journey, if they came back alive they would thank the gods at the grottoes. Across the desert they would form a train of camels to protect themselves from thieving bandits.

Labrang Monastery

Labrang Monastery is located in the southern part of Gansu, and part of the traditional Tibetan province of Amdo. It is one of six major monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism and the most important one in Amdo. Built in 1710, it is headed by the Jamyang-zhaypa. It has 6 dratsang (colleges), and houses over 60,000 religious texts and other works of literature as well as other cultural artifacts.

Mogao Grottoes

The Mogao Grottoes represent an amazing collection of Buddhist art and religion. Originally there were 1,000 grottoes, but now only 492 cave temples remain. Each temple has a large statue of a buddha and paintings of various religious scenes. In the year 336 a monk named Le Zun came near Echoing Sand Mountain, when he had a vision of golden rays of light shining down on him like a thousand Buddhas. Le Zun started to create the first grotto to commemorate the incident. During the Five Dynasties period he ran out of room on the cliff and could not build anymore grottoes. Now they found old paintings that were painted over in the Five Dynasties period.

An interesting current news story in Gansu province involves the discovery of over 120 human skulls in the province. The tops of the skulls had been sawed of causing people to believe that the people were killed and had their brains removed. Authorities have since ruled out foul play and further testing is underway to determine who these people were. The current theory is that the skulls were part of the burial ground of a culture that lived in the Gansu area in the past. In the future this may be another tourist site somewhat similar to the ming tombs.

THE FUTURE

Although Gansu has not historically been a thriving economy, it seems poised to spring into the 21st century. Since it is key in much of the nuclear resources of China, it is not hard to forsee development in Gansu like the east of China has seen. The beautiful scenery along with tourist destinations I have discussed should result in more foreigners coming to Gansu. This will further boost the economy. In the next 25 years I predict the same exponential growth as the Jiangshu and Hebei provinces have experienced. Look out for the Gansu Province in the newspaper, because you'll see it there more and more in the coming years.我要去甘肃省旅行！

GANSU PROVINCE QUESTIONS

question 1

True or __False__? The province of Gansu depends mainly on agriculture.

question 2

Which of the following is a problem for Gansu province?

A. Lack of resources

B. Lack of tourist attractions

C. Schools

D. Too much Diversity

Travel and Culture

你好！我叫潘马为。欢迎你们到甘肃去。你应该去甘肃看很多美丽的风景。甘肃的景点有沙漠，佛庙，嘉峪关。 甘肃有很多人和很多古老的中国文化。甘肃的人很友好也喜欢外国人。到甘肃你应该看看莫高窟。莫高窟有很多的有名的壁画儿。他们是很少见的。你还应该去嘉峪关。嘉峪关是长城的终点。那里的风景真是太漂亮了 甘肃的天气也很好。吃的也很好。我很喜欢兰州的拉面。我想你会很喜欢兰州拉面。甘肃的风格根北京不一样，甘肃东西比北京的便宜。

Can you imagine walking along the most famous road in history, a road that extends 5,000 miles and has existed for thousands of years? Then while you are at the 2008 Olympics take the fabulous opportunity to come to the exceptional province of Gansu. Take a trip to Gansu and discover the wonders that this remarkable province has to offer. Located near the Yellow River in northwest China, Gansu is a melting pot of Chinese cultures. With a population of 23.7 million, Gansu has an interesting and diverse population which includes Kazak, Mongolian, Tibetan, Hui, Dongxiang, Tu and Manchu people. The various ethnic groups and diverse cultural heritage found in Gansu indicate the origins of the Chinese nation. While you are in Gansu make sure you visit Lanzhou, an ancient city in China, and the capital of Gansu. It is the second largest city in northwest China, and also has dramatic political, economic and cultural influence. In addition it features the best shopping in the Western half of China. Lanzhou has the only shopping centers where you can by goods from all of the aforementioned people. With a long history and brilliant cultures; Gansu has an abundance of cultural relics and natural scenery that you should see. Vast natural scenery like endless desert and glacial landscape presents an impressive image before your eyes. An example of this is the world-famous Mogao Grottoes. They are the most vast and well-preserved Buddhist art palace and also an important post on the ancient Silk Road. The grottoes are caves where Buddhists monks sequestered themselves in order to aid their quest for enlightenment. While there the monks painted some of the most beautiful religious art ever which still exists today. The Jiayuguan Pass, an important location in ancient China, is the westernmost end of the Great Wall. The Labrang Monastery in Xiahe is one of the largest Tibetan Buddhist temples in China and the Bingling Thousand Buddha Caves in Lanzhou is an important place for Han Buddhism. All of these are excellent scenic spots for your tour of Gansu. The weather in Gansu is also excellent. During the Olympic Games the average temperature will be around 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Gansu is an excellent destination for anyone who enjoys the outdoors. While here you can take advantage of the great weather to hike along the Great Wall or swim in the River. No matter what you decide to do here in Gansu you will have fun in this beautiful area. Gansu is also famous for its food; it showcases homegrown ingredients and spices and exports its ingredients and meals throughout China. Lanzhou Beef Noodles is the most famous local dish in Lanzhou. It was first created during the reign of Emperor Guangxu during the Qing Dynasty (1616 - 1911) and it is now popular all over China. This dish has five main features: clear soup, white radish, red pepper, green caraway and yellow noodles. Overall Gansu is an excellent destination for all connoisseurs of Chinese food, culture and fun.

甘肃很有意思，你一定会喜欢甘肃的。