Maybe you remember me. Before the Chinese New Year, I asked for some information on the Stone and Bamboo Monastery in Fujian. Thanks to your precise information, I got there and had one of the most exalting experiences I have ever had in China. So, thanks a lot!

By the way, I wanted also to ask whether you had any other ideas of extraordinary places, especially monasteries (Taoist or Buddhist) like this one, which are not well known, and those, especially not too far from Shanghai.

I am looking forward to hearing from you and thank you in advance for your response.

Yours sincerely,

Michele

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Dear Michele,

Hi! Here, we provide some information on monasteries in Nanjiang, Jiangsu Province. They are near Shanghai too. Hope this is helpful for you.

Jiming Temple (The Cock Crowing Temple)

Jiming Temple is located in the northeast of Nanjing. It was first built in the Southern Tang (937-975) and then again in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The surviving temple was built in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). With Xuanwu Lake to the back, Jiming Temple faces Purple Mountain to the east. Inside the temple grounds are the Guanyin Building, Huomeng Building, Jingyang Building and the Rouge Well. Legend has it that when the emperor of the Southern Tang, and his concubines, hid themselves in the well, in order to escape the enemy, the stains of rouge were left on the wall of the well, and hence its name. Behind the temple, there still remains a section of the old palace wall called Taicheng.

Transport: Bus No's: 2, 3, 11, 15, 20, 24, 31, 48, 52, 70, 304 and Tour Bus 1.

Admission Price: 5 yuan (US$0.6)

Linggu Temple

The Linggu Temple (Lingu si), the Linggu Pagoda and the Beamless Hall are all situated on the eastern side of Purple Mountain. This area can be reached by taking the shuttle bus from the Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Mausoleum, but the best approach, if you can, is to take one of the many paths into the woods and head east from the Mausoleum. If you follow the signposts along the route, you will arrive at the Linggu Park containing many interesting buildings.

Opening Hours: 7:00 – 18:00

Transport: Tour Bus 3 & 9

Admission Price: 15 yuan (US$2)

Qixia Temple (The Temple for Lodging Rosy Clouds)

Qixia Temple, on Qixia Mountain, was originally built in the Southern Dynasties (420-589). It is one of the famous ancient temples in the area south of the Yangtze River. In the walls of 1,000 Buddha Mountain Ridge, a large number of niches can be found that contain 515 statues of Buddha. Inside the last niche is a statue of the mason. The pagoda for Buddhist relics was originally built in the Sui Dynasty (581-618). It is an imitation made of wood with five stories. There are eight sides on each floor. At the base of the pagoda is a relief sculpture of Buddha, while on the first floor are the sculptures of the four gods and flying apse.

Transportation: Nanlong Line Bus at Nanjing Railway Station

Admission Price: 10 yuan (US$1.2)

Confucius Temple (Fuzi Miao)

The Confucius Temple (Fuzimiao) was originally built during the Song Dynasty and is situated on the north bank of the Qinhuai River. Today, the entire area around the temple consists of a series of tourist shops, snack bars, restaurants and entertainment arcades, decorated in Ming and Qing Dynasty style architecture.

Transport: Bus No. 1 (RMB 1) from Xinjiekou roundabout, getting off at the last stop, or, take a taxi to "Fuzi Miao" (RMB 10-15), that should take about 10 minutes.

Admission Price: 10 yuan (US$1.2)

Tel: 025-2230238

Jinghai Temple

Before Zheng and his men set off, they would usually visit the Jinghai Temple in Taicang, to pray to the Taoist goddess known as “Tianfei” for protection of travel at sea. Thus spiritually fortified, they would board their ships, and heading down the Liu Creek to the Yangtze, would reach the open seas.

Transport: Bus No. 39

Admission Price: 4 yuan (US$0.5)

Tel: 025-8802973

As we are currently working hard on our “Travel” section, we value your request for information of this type. We have no doubt that soon you will be able to find all your travel information on our updated site. In the meantime, we suggest that you use a search engine to find out more about these enchanting places, or buy a book on temples and monasteries in Chinese history.

Hope you have a great trip.

The Editors

(China.org.cn February 24, 2003)