Wuhan is the capital city of Hubei (which means "north of the lake", referring to Hubei's position north of Dongting Lake) Province and the most populous city in central China. It lies at the east of Jianghan Plain, and the intersection of the middle reaches of the Yangtze and Han River. Arising out of the conglomeration of three boroughs, Wuchang, Hankou, and Hanyang, Wuhan is known as the "thoroughfare of nine provinces"; it is a major transportation hub, with dozens of railways, roads and expressways passing through the city.

     Located at the confluence of the Changjiang and Hanjiang Rivers, Wuhan is most famous for its lakes.  In fact, it is called “the town of one thousand lakes" because once one reaches the east side of Wuhan, they may feel as if the lakes are endless.
     Wuhan has a subtropical climate with four distinct seasons: Winter (November to February), Spring (March to May), Summer (June to August) and Autumn (September to early November). The ideal travel months are March-June and September-November. Travelers are advised to avoid the scorching summer period of June to August, and the cold winter from November to late January.
      A popular unofficial name for Hubei is Chu, after the powerful state of Chu that existed here during the Eastern Zhou Dynasty

 

The long history and the brilliant Chu culture endow Hubei with numerous cultural relics. Ancient towers, grottoes, city remains, imperial mausoleums, temples and nobilities' native places can be found throughout the province.
     Wuhan is rich in culture and history. It's civilization began about 3,500 years ago, and is of great importance in Chinese culture, the military, economy and politics. Famous scenic spots in Wuhan include Yellow Crane Tower, East Lake, and Hubei Provincial Museum.
     - The Yellow Crane Tower sits on top of the Snake Hill at Wuchang. It enjoys the fame of "the best scene on earth" in ancient times, equally famous with Yueyang Tower in Hunan and Tengwang Tower in Jiangxi. It was originally built during the Three Kingdoms Period. It was first built as a watchtower for military use, developed into a gathering place for scholars to have farewell banquets to friends. Fires and wars had caused destruction to it time and again before it was once again burnt down in 1884. Taking in the view from the top of the grand tower, one can enjoy the beauty of Wuhan City as well as the remarkable Chang Jiang (Yangtze) River passing by.
       The Legend: there was once a young man named Xin who ran a wine shop at the site of Yellow Crane Tower. A Taoist priest asked for wine one day, and Xin served the priest for free. The grateful Taoist priest painted a crane on the wall, which would dance whenever people clapped. People were amazed by the supernatural crane, so they swarmed to the wine shop. Ten years later the Taoist priest revisited the shop and rode the crane off into the sky. In memory of the immortal Taoist priest, Xin built a tower named Yellow Crane Tower.

     - The East Lake scenic spot is the largest lake within a city in China. Situated in east suburb of Wuchang, the East Lake Scenic Spot occupies 78 sq. km with 33 sq. km covered by water.Along the west bank are Shuiyunxiang Building, Tingtaoxuan Pavilion, Xingyin Tower, Binhu Corridor, Qu Yuan Memorial Hall, Tianchang Tower and Lu Xun Square. Other places such as the pear and orange orchards, bamboo forest and lotus pool are dotted among the arms, adding more charms to the East Lake.
     - Hubei Provincial Museum was established in 1953 and covers an area of 2,400 sq meters (0.59 acres). The museum boasts great collections of musical instruments, bronze wares and lacquer wares. Chimes of Warring States Period The 64 chimes were excavated from a tomb of Zeng Houyi, which dates back to 430 BC in the Warring States period, at Suizhou in summer 1978. They were hanged on the chime-frame in 3 layers and 8 groups. The largest bell is 153.4 cm tall and weighs 203. 6 kg. And 2, 800 characters on music were engraved on it. The set of bells are 1, 800 years older than that found in Europe. The finding is significant to world music history and is very rare in world casting history as well. The performance by the chimes still sounds very accurate and graceful even today. Bronze Cold-Drink Pot was obtained from the Zeng Houyi Tomb that is 2,400 years old and is the earliest cold-drink pot ever discovered in China. The outer bronze basin is 61. 5 cm tall and weighs about 170 kg. Inside is a square bronze pot. Ice would be put in the basin just around the pot while icing the drink. It was a popular article for noble families to get cold drink in hot summer in ancient times
     This province is also boasts impressive natural scenerys. Wudang Mountain, which was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site is a sacred Taoist mountain with hundreds of temples and palaces. The Three Gorges offers an unmatched painting of water and mountains. And the world’s largest water conservation project Yangtze Three Gorges Dam Project is located just outside of Yichang City. The national reservation of Shennongjia is a dense wilderness in western Hubei province. It has always been a mysterious place, an enigma in Chinese geography.

 

Hubei has been said to be one of the originating places of the Chinese people. Today many minority ethnic groups live in this area including: Miao, Tujia, Dong and some others while the majority today is still Han people.
     With a history stretching back some 3,500 years and a vibrant local culture, Wuhan is the place to enjoy unique, age-old art forms such as Chuju Opera, and storytelling in the Hubei dialect with a drum accompaniment. In addition to a fascinating calendar of year-round events and festivals, Wuhan offers a multi-sensory voyage of discovery for the young and old alike. You could expierience an exhibition of the colors and diversities of the Chu- entertainment: Huiju Opera, Chuju opera, Storytelling in Hubei dialect with a drum accompaniment, storytelling and so on.

 

Hubei food is famous for its freshwater fish dishes since almost every fish available in Hubei can be prepared into different dishes. There are all-fish, bream, Mandarin fish, eel, turtle, giant salamander, crab, shrimp, clam, water chestnut, lotus root, wild duck, and preserved – duck – egg dinners. Among the dishes, steamed bream without soy sauce, turtle with wax gourd, instant – boiled fish with tangerine pulp, and braised chicken with chestnuts are all well – known.
     Apart from fish, you can also enjoy local snacks such as：Hot and Dry Noodles consists of long freshly boiled noodles mixed with sesame paste. The Chinese word re means hot and gan means dry. It is considered to be the most typical local food for breakfast. Duck's Neck is a local version of this popular Chinese dish, made of duck necks and spices. Bean Pan is a popular local dish with a filling of egg, rice, beef, mushrooms and beans cooked between two large round soybean skins and cut into pieces, structurally like a stuffed pizza without enclosing edges.

 

Jianghan Road Commercial District
The district, just like Wangfujing of Bejing or Nanjing Road of Shanghai, is the Busiest commercial district in Wuhan. The older Scattered around are big-scale department store such as Zhongxin Department Store, shops, specialized stores and fast food restaurants of all sorts, post offices, banks and other financial institutions. At the join of Zhongshan Avenue and bookstore-Wuhan Books Shopping Town. At night, illuminated brilliantly and crowded with people.
     Enamel Golden Chime They are copies of ancient bronze chimes with new production techniques such as pierced work and bas-relief. The entire article embraces grace of ancient relics and modern charms as well.
     Honghu Lake Feather Fan A traditional handicraft product made of feathers of various birds and fowls living in Honghu Lake. Bamboo, ox bone and ivory are used in making the ribs and a fan pendant is tied with a silk thread for decoration.

 

 

Wuhan can be reached from anywhere in China by plane, train, bus and ferry; and from some international destinations as well. Wuhan also maintains a reliable urban transportation system. A visitor can reach any corner of the city without wasting much time.
     - Public Bus: Finding your way around Wuhan itself is fairly easy. The city has an excellent bus system and plenty of buses run between Hankou, Wuchang and Hanyang. However, like every big city in China, traffic can become quite slow and crowded during rush hours.  A trip costs 1.2 Yuan for non-air conditioned buses and 2 Yuan for air-conditioned buses.
     - Taxis: Taxis in Wuhan are fairly cheap. A trip from Hankou to Wuchang will cost about 35 to 40 Yuan. The first 3 kilometers cost 3 Yuan and each additional km costs 1.4 Yuan. Most of the taxis drivers know the popular places and their names.
     - Metro: The light metro in Wuhan operates from 6:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. The ticket price is 1.5 Yuan if you travel a distance of six stops or less.  You will be charged 2 Yuan for trips longer than 6 stops. Trains arrive once every 3 minutes.
     - Bicycle: Bicycles are available for rent in some hotels. Visitors can navigate Wuhan safely with bicycles. The East Lake scenic spot is ideal for this kind of activity