Endless Fun in Jiangjin! Five Must-Try Travel Routes for Breathtaking Mountain and River Scenery

In recent years, I’ve traveled far and wide,

but this place strikes me as one where you can never run out of things to do or scenes to capture.

It boasts a long history, a wealth of cultural heritage, enchanting scenery, and a perfect blend of livability and travel appeal…

This is Jiangjin District, Chongqing, known as the 'First Ferry on the Yangtze'.

Located in the southwest, it borders Banan to the east, Guizhou to the south, Yongchuan to the west, and leans against Bishan in the north.

Traveling from Liangping to Jiangjin is like moving from a refreshing natural landscape of 'terraced fields climbing like stairs and flat fields unfolding like chessboards' to a realm where 'clouds drift among emerald peaks, layer upon layer of light and deep green stretching for miles'... Every brick and tile, every blade of grass in Jiangjin tells a story of its splendor and grandeur.

Jiangjin earned its name from its position as a strategic ferry crossing on the Yangtze, and it has long been a shipping hub and commodity distribution center on the upper Yangtze.

Recognized as a 'China Ecological Selenium City,' it has also received honors such as 'National Model City for Mutual Support between the People and the Military' and 'National Model Area for Economical and Intensive Land Use.'

In December 2019, it was designated a pilot unit for the national system of rural governance.

On December 6, 2019, it was selected as a pilot county for nationwide farmers' cooperative quality improvement.

Day1: Jiangjin Museum – Nie Rongzhen Marshal Exhibition Hall – Simian Wonder Light Show

Day2: Simian Mountain Scenic Area – Huilong Manor – Love Ladder – Simian Mountain Shaolin Temple – Zhongshan Ancient Town

Day3: Jukui Middle School – Jiangji Winery – Old Chongqing Film Base (Baisha) – Baisha Ancient Town – 1880 Cultural and Creative Bookstore – Wutan Town – Nie Family Banquet

Day4: Shisun Mountain Yunwu Ping Scenic Area

When you come to Jiangjin, don't miss the Jiangjin Museum to fully immerse yourself in the area's history, culture, and treasures.

Jiangjin has a recorded history dating back to the Eastern Han dynasty, when it was already established as a county, making it over 1,800 years old. Consequently, Jiangjin is one of the districts with the richest collections of cultural relics in the western Chongqing region.

Nie Rongzhen Marshal Exhibition Hall

The Nie Rongzhen Marshal Exhibition Hall leans against majestic green mountains and faces the mighty Yangtze, offering beautiful and pleasant scenery. The complex consists of the main hall, a bronze statue square, a military weapons square, the garden of Marshal Nie and his wife, an ironwood garden, a maple garden, a cherry blossom garden, a pine and cypress garden, and a lake.

The exhibition hall features an innovative architectural design that integrates a monument with the museum itself, achieving a harmonious unity of form, meaning, and spirit. The central monument stands 36 meters tall, majestic and grand, with a satellite sculpture at its peak, symbolizing Marshal Nie Rongzhen’s immortal contributions to the Chinese revolution and the nation's scientific and technological advancement.

The permanent exhibition 'Life and Deeds of Marshal Nie' is presented through cultural relics and photographs, with supplementary displays including artworks, interactive touch screens, and oral history micro-documentaries.

Utilizing large-scale landscape models and sound, light, and electrical technologies, the exhibition vividly recounts Marshal Nie Rongzhen’s indelible contributions over his 70-year revolutionary career to national independence, the founding of New China, and the development of cutting-edge weaponry and aerospace programs. It highlights his noble character and profound spiritual legacy, bringing his illustrious life to life.

Simian Mountain Scenic Area – 'Simian Wonder'

Stretching over 1.5 kilometers, this immersive light space features seven dazzling interactive installations, advanced holographic projection technology, and a romantic journey of light and shadow. 'Simian Wonder' light park adds a dreamlike beauty to the majestic Simian Mountain.

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Simian Mountain Scenic Area – Wangxiangtai Waterfall

In addition to the naturally formed 'Number One Heart in the World,' Huilong Manor, one of the best-preserved pseudo-palace-style ancient estates in Chongqing, exudes antique charm and showcases the wisdom of Eastern aesthetics—elegant and graceful.

At the gate and outer walls of Huilong Manor, some vertical columns coated with cement stand out in color from the walls; in fact, each is a single solid stone.

Address: Fengchang Road, Shuangfeng Village, Simian Mountain Town, Jiangjin District, Chongqing

In the 1950s, a 20-year-old young man from Zhongshan Ancient Town in Jiangjin, Liu Guojiang, fell in love with Xu Chaoqing, who was ten years his senior. To escape gossip, they eloped into the deep mountains. To make it safer for Xu Chaoqing to travel, Liu spent his entire life chiseling stone steps into the cliffs, creating a path to the outside world.

Simian Mountain Shaolin Temple

Simian Mountain Shaolin Temple lies at the junction of Chongqing, Sichuan, and Guizhou, nestled in the foothills of Simian Mountain. It was expanded from the original Shuangfeng Temple, formerly known as Jingde Temple, one of the rare ancient Chan Buddhist temples in southwestern China.

Historical records show that at its peak, the temple housed over five hundred monks and owned extensive property, with temple fields stretching for miles. It was destroyed by war and fire during the Ming and Qing dynasties but was rebuilt twice during the Kangxi and Guangxu periods of the Qing dynasty.

Address: Heishi Mountain, Baisha Town, Jiangjin District, Chongqing

Chongqing Film City (Jiangjin Baisha)

This film base is even older than the Liangjiang Film City in the urban area. Themed around old Chongqing and the War of Resistance against Japan, it consists of the Old Chongqing Republican-era film shooting area, Chaotianzui Pier outdoor shooting area, Heishi Mountain Scenic Area, and old mansions, Western-style buildings, and courtyard houses.

Key attractions at Baisha Film Base include the Monument to the Victory of the War of Resistance, the Republican-era Government Building, Cathay Theatre, No. 0043 steam locomotive, industrial factory zone, Dongshuimen Gate, and barracks, with over 50 reconstructed historical sites from the war period.

Address: Sugar Factory Shooting Area, Baisha Film Base, Yongkang Road, Baisha Town, Jiangjin District, Chongqing

Donghua Old Street in Baisha Ancient Town

Baisha Town in Jiangjin District lies on the southern bank of the Yangtze in southwestern Chongqing. The riverbank is flat, and the sand glistens white under the sun, giving Baisha its name (literally 'White Sand').

Baisha is an ancient town with a long history. Human settlement dates back 5,000 years. By the late Eastern Han dynasty, the area where the Lüxi River joins the Yangtze had become a populous village.

With its gatehouses, flagstone paths, mortise-and-tenon wooden houses, and covered wind-and-rain bridges, the town is ingeniously laid out and retains its ancient charm, offering a classic vista of old Chongqing’s mountainous cityscape.

1880 Cultural and Creative Bookstore

If you want to take something home, you can also explore the 1880 Cultural and Creative Bookstore. This bookstore embodies the passion for Baisha of Yu Chunxi, an entrepreneur who returned from overseas.

Shisun Mountain Yunwu Ping Scenic Area

Shisun Mountain belongs to the Yunwu mountain system and sits at the border of Hegeng Town in Yongchuan District and Shimen Town in Jiangjin District, about 34 kilometers from the center of Jiangjin. The mountain features the Male Shisun Peak in Jiangjin and the Female Shisun Peak in Yongchuan, the two highest points at around 700 meters above sea level. The area is perpetually green and misty, with dense vegetation, rugged paths, and enchanting scenery.

The scenic area is rich in religious culture, with thriving worship sites including Sanjiao Hall, Yuhuang Temple, Laojun Temple, Guanyin Hall, and Mituo Temple, which house deities of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism, making it a gathering place for all three traditions.

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