Madame Tussauds of Wuhan

Madame Tussauds Wuhan is located on Han Street, which runs along the south bank of the Chu River, and is part of Wuhan’s central cultural zone. Opened to the public on September 28, 2013, it’s the 3rd Madame Tussauds in China, following Madame Tussauds Hong Kong, which was opened in 2000, and Madame Tussauds Shanghai, which was opened in 2006.

The Wuhan exhibition venue is divided into two parts over an area of about 1,551 square meters. It offers the ultimate celebrity experience, displaying over 50 lifelike waxworks of music stars, Hollywood film legends, sporting greats, historical icons, famous politicians and local heroes. The currently 50 wax figures include Crystal Liu (an actress from Wuhan), Albert Einstein, Jackie Chan, Jay Chou (a singer from Taiwan), Johnny Depp, Kate Winslet, Li Na (a professional tennis player from Wuhan), Michael Jackson, Rihanna, Sandra Ng (an actress from Hong Kong). They are either local celebrities or foreign celebrities most likely to be recognized by local people.

Costing over one million Chinese yuan each, the wax figures are so vivid that they even have freckles and pores. To make such lifelike figures, the celebrities themselves need to be accurately measured. Over 250 items of data of the specific celebrity is collected and 180 photos are taken from each perspective, which usually takes about 2 hours. Then all this material is taken back to Madame Tussauds in London, where the wax figure is to be made.

The whole process to make a pair of artificial eyes takes up to fifteen hours. The process of making a set of teeth is more complicated. From molding to coloring, it is like tailor-making a set of false teeth for the celebrity him/her self. The hair for the head is real, collected from people with hair similar to that of the celebrity. Each hair is planted individually into the wax head by hand. It is then cut and styled to match that of the celebrity.

Arms and legs are moulded in the same way as the head. A stand of metal tubes, wires and fiber glass is made to support the wax figure much like the bones of a human body and the body is formed in the same way as the head.

Visitors can get close enough to hug their heroes and take the perfect photo with wax figures of the world’s most famous faces.

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Hubei Provincial Museum

Located in the Wuchang District of Wuhan, Hubei Province, Hubei Provincial Museum is one of the best-known museums in China, with a large amount of State-level historic and cultural relics. Established in 1953, the museum moved to its present location in 1960 and gained its present name in 1963. Since 1999 a number of new buildings have been added.

It has a collection of over 200,000 objects, including the Sword of Goujian, an ancient set of bronze bells (Bianzhong) and extensive artifacts from the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng and the tombs at Baoshan. The particular importance of several of the archaeological items in the museum's collection has been recognized by the national government by including them into the short list of Chinese cultural relics forbidden to be exhibited abroad. This museum is divided into three parts: the Chime Bells Exhibition Hall, the Chu (a state in the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC)) Culture Exhibition Hall, and the Comprehensive Exhibition Building. The Comprehensive Exhibition is still under construction at the present time.

The Chime Bells Exhibition Hall contains two parts: the Exhibition Hall and the Music Hall. In the Exhibition Hall, you can see many cultural relics that have been unearthed from the tomb of Yi (the king of the Zeng Sate in the Warring States Period (476 BC - 221 BC), such as the exquisite bronze vessel known as 'Crane Standing on the Antler', ancient halberds, triangle-shaped swords called Shu, and the bamboo slips that were used for writing on in ancient times.

The most famous treasure is the Chime Bells, which is the largest bronze musical instrument ever discovered. With a set of bells of different sizes, it can play various tones of the musical scale, and the timbre is quite beautiful. There are about 3,000 ancient Chinese characters on the bells, describing the music and the owner of this instrument. In the Music Hall, musicians wearing ancient clothes play a replica of the Chime Bells two times a day, at 11:00 and 16:00. You will surely be enchanted by the ancient beautiful music, which has been played overseas on many occasions.

 

The Chu Culture Exhibition Hall features the regional culture of the Chu State. Most of the cultural relics displayed here are bronze vessels, lacquer works, bamboo and wooden artifacts, and silk knitted products. You can also see various ancient weapons of the Chu State such as the sword of Gou Jian (the king of the Yue State in the Spring and Autumn Period) and the shaft of Fu Chai (the king of the Wu State in the Spring and Autumn Period). In 2002, archaeologists discovered pieces of chariots and horses of the Chu State. After careful restoration, some of the chariots and horses are now displayed in this hall. In addition to the unearthed cultural relics, some restored models of the houses in which Chu people lived are shown to the visitors to give them more direct impression of the ancient Chu people's lives. 

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Liangzi Lake and Lotus Mountain in Ezhou

Liangzi Lake

Liangzi Lake is a winding freshwater lake located in southeast Hubei province, in the southern bank of the middle reaches of Yangtze River. Liangzi Lake is the largest fresh-water lake in Ezhou City and second largest in Hubei Province. It measures 51 miles from east to west and 14 miles from north to south, with the water maintaining a depth of 9.8 feet all year round.

Nestled serenely like a blue stone inlaid upon the surrounding land, Liangzi Lake is famous for the unpolluted water and its beautiful landscape, the gentle wind blowing in from the mountains not far away ripples this azure lake in the sunlight, creating spectacular scenery among the many islets featured around the lake.

The crystal clear water also has a large breeding population of Wuchang Fish, which are renowned at home and abroad. Lying in the middle of Liangzi Lake and covering an area of 200 hectares, Liangzi Islet is an ecotourism resort that embraces Kuixing Tower, Liangzi Gate, Siguan Hall, Xianren (Immortal) Cave and a professional Golf Club. Due to its pleasant environment, this islet is also called Changshou (Longevity) Islet, which is the home for senior citizens who wish to enjoy their twilight years amid this tranquil setting.

Through years of modern development, Liangzi Lake has become a famous tourist resort in Hubei Province, which combines sightseeing, summer recreation, and entertainment.

Lotus Mountain

Lotus Mountain is located on the shore of Yanglan Lake in the southern suburb of Ezhou City. Verdant mountains and clear waters complete this beautiful landscape. With the Lotus Mountain as the main peak, there are nine other mountains, blooming like nine lotus flowers in the water. This is how the mountain’s name originated. The Lotus Mountain scenic area is blessed with both the beauty of grandness and elegance. The main tourist resorts are Yuanming Pagoda, Forest of Steles, Liuhe Garden and Jiulong Altar.

Yuanming Pagoda is famed as "the first pagoda in the south of the Yangtze River area". Measuring 262 feet tall, it is a white pagoda with golden upturned eaves. Covering an area of three hectares, the Forest of Steles keeps over 10,000 elaborate stele works of all ages and for many countries. As such, it is regarded as a treasure house of culture containing an ocean of wisdom.

Liuhe Garden lies in the north slope of Lotus Mountain. It is home to many precious animals such as deer, monkey, tortoise, and golden carp and beaver. The Jiulong Altar can also be seen at the entrance to the scenic area. "Jiulong" means nine dragons. The Altar is composed of nine dragons coiling with each other, among which the biggest two lift a lotus ball. The altar is carved with dragons because the dragon represents the Chinese totem, symbolizing Chinese spirit where constant self-improvement and effort help one to achieve success.

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Tenglong Cave

Tenglong Cave, literally means "soaring dragon cave", is a cave located 6.8 km (4.2 mi) from Lichuan City, Hubei, China. It is believed to be the longest monomer karst cave system in the world. The Dry Cave and Water Cave are its main scenes. The Dry Cave is about 52 kilometers’ long, and its mouth is 74 meters in height and 64 meters in width, entitled as the largest dry cave in Asia. As to the water cave, it sucks in the water from Qingjiang River, which forms a waterfall like a crouching dragon swallowing all the water and makes the river become a 16.8 km-long underground stream. What is really amazing is that there is only a wall between the two caves.

After field investigations and demonstrations, now the Tenglong Cave is confirmed by domestic and foreign experts as the biggest water-eroded cave in China and one of the special-class caves in the world. The cave is 52.8 kilometers in length with 16.8 kilometers in the Water Cave.

The scenic spots are distributed on an area of 2,000,000 sq.m., mainly including the White Jade Stone Forest, Thousand Buddha Palace, Dragon Palace, Pearl Blanket, Flower Spring Water and the “Crouching Dragon Swallowing the River ”Waterfall in the Falling Water Cave which is 75 meters away from the Tenglong cave. At the waterfall, the river becomes an underground stream on which visitors can view the sights on boat. As the whole cave system is very complex, the total volume is the first in the world, is China’s best tourism caves, in October 2005 awarded by the China national geographic magazine as “the most beautiful place in China”.

Tenglong Cave park has a total area of 69 square kilometers, the southwest derives from the entrance Tenglong cave, connected with Mingyan gorge canyon scenic spot; Northwest to the black hole, connect with Xuezhao river canyon scenic spot, on the whole it distribute from southwest to northeast, is an extension along Qingjiang river valley of long and narrow area. Areas are in the 1000 meters above sea level. The developed main scenic spots are two: one is Tenglong dry cave scenic area; another is water cave scenic spot. The cavern group of Tenglong Cave has a total of five layers from top to bottom, the number of cave is more than 300. There are five peaks in the cave, 10 halls, more than 10 underground waterfalls, no poison air, no snakes and scorpions, no pollution, with a constant temperature 14 to 18 ℃.

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National Stone Museum

Close to the Guiyuan Buddhist Temple in the Cuiwei Road of the Hanyang District, the National Stone Museum of Wuhan City is a good place to appreciate the rare rocks and the exquisite bonsais. Occupying an area of about 6,700 square meters (1.7 acres) and a floor area of 2,500 square meters (0.6 acre), the museum is in the garden style of the Ming (1368 - 1644) and Qing (1644 - 1911) Dynasties which impress you as an ancient royal sense. At present, it has been receiving a large scale of visitors both domestic and foreign. Wuhan will let you know how enchanting unique stones would be and you will attracted by it.

There are eight indoor exhibition halls displaying more than 3,000 samples of rocks of a wide variety of kinds. Fancy rocks such as chrysanthemum, Peony, Lingbi and crystal stones, fossils and many others will satisfy your curiosity. All the rare rocks have been collected from all over China, except for one piece that is said to be from Malaysia. The effort that has gone into collecting the rocks and stones ensure the museum has a wealth of fancy and valuable exhibits to challenge your view and imagination. Almost all existing types of rock can be found in the museum. The National Stone Museum has taken part in many studies in the rock-appreciation field at both home and abroad.

The National Stone Museum also has plenty of cool fossils on display. There also are some commemorative stones, which hold some importance to historical events. Some of these have English explanations, while others don’t so you might have to simply admire the view (which is pretty easy to do). Another hall at the museum holds stones that formed into shapes representing animals and people.

In China, the appreciation of stones dates back to the Jin Dynasty (265-420) and was popular all over the country until the Tang (618-907) and Song (960-1279) Dynasties. With a thousand-year history, Chinese have developed their particular interest in searching, collecting, and appreciating stones. This tendency gradually spread into Southeast Asia and Europe and has developed to one of international fashion. Statistics shows that there are at least 2000 stones aficionados all over the world.

An outdoor garden displaying root carvings and bonsais next to the Muoshui Lake presents another perceptive view of nature. It also displays a harmony between water and stone. More than sixty bonsais dotted around mini scenic spots provide a background for relaxation and contemplation. After seeing various kinds of stones, visitors can go to Guiyuan Temple which is just opposite the museum, on the other side of the road.

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Yangtze River Bridge-----"First Bridge of the Yangtze"

The Wuhan Yangtze Great Bridge, commonly known as Wuhan First Yangtze Bridge, is a double-deck road and rail bridge across the Yangtze River in Wuhan, in Central China. On the mighty Yangtze with a length of 6,300 kilometers (3,915 miles), there was no bridge for thousands of years. This river seemed an obstacle set by nature, separating Hanyang, Hankou and Wuchang, namely the three towns of Wuhan. Moreover, it blocked the transportation between the north and the south China. Only ship can be used. However, the natural obstacle became accessible for various vehicles due to the finish of the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge in 1957.                                                          

The bridge extends 1.6 kilometers (1 mile) from Turtle Hill in Hanyang, on the northern bank of the Yangtze, to Snake Hill in Wuchang, on the southern bank of the Yangtze. Plans for the bridge's construction were first made in 1910. A total of four exploratory surveys were made between 1913 and 1948 to identify a suitable site, but economic limitations and the combination of World War II and the Chinese Civil War prevented the bridge's building until the 1950s. Actual construction began in September 1955 and was completed in October 1957.

Extending from Tortoise Hill (Gui Shan) in Hanyang to Snake Hill (She Shan) in Wuchang, the bridge has not only improved the transportation in Wuhan City, but also enhanced the communication between the north and the south of the river. To fully view the splendid bridge and the marvelous river, you can climb up the 7-story tower at either end of the bridge by elevator or staircases. The attached buildings and decorations are harmonious and exquisite, reflecting rich Chinese architectural features. The theme of sculptures on the 143 panes along each side of the bridge is from some Chinese folk stories such as the peacock showing its fine feathers, carp playing among lotus, a magpie singing on blossom tree.

At each end of the bridge, there is a tower of 35 meters, installed with a lift. The towers are constructed in a quintessentially Chinese fashion, exuding exquisite balance and harmony. The tower buildings as well as the 143 panes along each side of the bridge are decorated in traditional Chinese folkloric themes, such as the strutting peacock showing off its fine feathers, the blissful carp cavorting among lotus plants or the magpie singing at full throat on the branch of a plum tree in blossom.

 

From the bridge, you can see the rolling water run to the east with ships coming and going; on the bank, Hubei TV Tower stands tall on Tortoise Hill (Gui Shan) in Hanyang, while the first tower in southern China, the Yellow Crane Tower (Huang He Lou), stands on Snake Hill (She Shan) in Wuchang.

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Mo Hill

Situated at southeast of East Lake, Mo Hill, also name Millstone Hill, is a very important part of East Lake. Surrounded by water in three parts, the area has natural sceneries as beautiful as pictures, and also man-made landscapes rich in culture from the Chu Dynasty. The graceful east peak that looks like a millstone gave the hill its present name, Millstone Hill. Covering a total area of about 5 square kilometers, it boasts abundant plants and unique gardens, amid the biggest culture area of the State of Chu (one of the seven warring states before Qin (221BC - 206BC) in China's first feudal dynasty). Chu Culture Area and the Botanical Garden are the most famous in Mo Hill.

On the first peak of the Mo Hill stands the pavilion called Zhu De's Stele Pavilion. Two stories high, it is famous for a red stele lying in front on which is carved the epigraph of Zhu De (an important leader of the Chinese revolutionary period), and an attached horizontal board inscribed 'Zhu De's Stele Pavilion' by Guo Moruo (a famous Chinese author). The second floor of the pavilion affords an excellent view of the beautiful lake.

Fans of Chu culture will particularly enjoy the State of Chu culture theme park. Many historical places such as the City Wall of the State of Chu, the Chu Market, the Chu Talent Garden, the Chu Heaven Platform, etc., introduce the current State of Chu in this area.

At the entrance to the State of Chu's cultural sightseeing area is the City Wall at 23.4 meters (77 feet) tall and 11 meters (36 feet) wide. Chu people prefer the color red. The surrounding wall made of reddish-brown stones is magnificent in its primitive simplicity. The street of the Chu Market with special craftworks and distinctive local foods exemplifies Chu architectural styles. Not far from the Chu Market is the Chu Talent Garden, where over a hundred statues in the garden depict outstanding Chu litterateurs, scientists, myths characters and so on.

 

The Chu Heaven Platform affords clear views of Chu relics, great paintings, calligraphy, and waxworks of famous persons. Thirty-six meters (118 feet) tall and with an area of 2260 meters (7415 feet), it has 345 steps in front, culminating in the soul part of Mo Hill - the four-floor Chu Heaven Platform. Wearing classic Chu costumes, bandsmen play upbeat ancient music. Lifelike waxworks of eminent persons are displayed on the second floor, while Chu relics are exhibited on the third floor. A panoramic view of the entire East Lake Scenic Area is available from the summit.

The Botanical Viewing Garden on the south side of Mo Hill has 13 special gardens and 360 kinds of plants. Mo Hill's cherry garden is 25 acres, and it is known as one of the best in the country. You'll enjoy the fresh air and the park scenery in the middle of the park on Mo Hill. The hill is bounded on three sides by lake.

As the most beautiful tourism resort in Wuhan City, it receives about one million tourists from home and abroad every year. The four special characteristics of Mo Hill Area are splendid mountains and rivers, abundant plants, unique garden parks and the rich Chu culture.

What's more, the area is also called the sea of flowers, with thousands of flower species. Among them, plums, azaleas, cherries, orchids, lotuses, sweet scented osmanthuses, Chinese roses, begonias and peach blossoms are the representative ones. The plum blossoms have as many as 206 varieties of about 20,000 plum trees and plants.

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