Bengbu (bèng bù 蚌埠), located in the the middle-lower reaches of Huaihe River (huái hé 淮河), facing the Yangtze River Delta (cháng jiāng sān jiǎo zhōu 长江三角洲), is one of the biggest cities as well as the first prefecture-level city in Anhui Province (ān huī shěng 安徽省). With a wide economic hinterland, it has become the economic lifeblood in the province and an important transport hub in China. As a result it has been always regarded as the stronghold for Huainan (huái nán 淮南) and Huaibei (huái běi 淮北).

Overview

Bengbu, also called "Pearl City (zhū chéng 珠城)", is the largest harbour in Huaihe River which is also the largest surface water in that area. Located in the northeast of Anhui Province where two important railroads meet, Bengbu has become an industrial and commercial city of great significance. It is the trade center, manufacturing and milling center and the communication center in the north of Anhui. After Hefei (hé féi shì 合肥市), it is also anthe second important center for culture, science and education.

Most disdricts of Bengbu are located on the south bank of Huaihe River. Huaiyuan County (huaí yuǎn xiàn 怀远县), Wuhe County (wǔ hé xiàn 五河县) and Guzhen County (gǔ zhèn xiàn 固镇县) are located òn the north bank, making up an beautiful scenery like a mussel with a pearl.

There are many firsts all over the world in Bengbu, for instance: it is the birth place of China's First Jade, Heshibi (hé shì bì 和氏璧); it is one of the seven famous ancient battlefields, Gaixia (gāi xià 垓下) where a romantic tragedy between Ba Wang (bà wáng 霸王) and Yu Ji (yú jī 虞姬) took place; it is one of the cradles of Huaxia Civilization (huá xià wén míng 华夏文明). Most important of all, it is just in this place that Da Yu (dà yǔ 大禹) controled the flood. Subsequently, there are many scenic spots in Bengbu.

History

The history of Bengbu goes back Shuangdun Culture (shuāng dūn 双墩文明) more than 7000 years ago where early Neolithic sites have been excavated. In prehistoric times, the people lived in Bengbu are Huaiyi Clan (huái yí shì zú 淮夷氏族) who lived only on farming, fishing and hunting. It is said that two ancient countries had been found up here, one is in the north of Bengbu, named Zhongli (zhōng lí guó 钟离国), the other is in the south of it named Tushan (tú shān guó 涂山国) at the time towards the end of primitive society. In the Spring and Autumn Period (chūn qiū zhán guó shí qī 春秋战国时期) this area was successively ruled by the king of the state of Lu (lǔ guó 鲁国), Wu (wú guó 吴国), Yue (yuè guó 越国) and Chu (chǔ guó 楚国). In 1947, it became a city directly under Anhui Province. There are many historical figures in this area, such as Da Yu (dà yǔ 大禹), one of the five emperors in ancient China; Qi (qǐ 启), a son of Da Yu, the father of Xia Dynasty (xià cháo 夏朝); Chen Sheng (chén shèng 陈胜), a well-known insurgent in Qin Dynasty (qín cháo 秦朝).

Climate

Lying between the subtropical humid monsoon climatic zone and temperate semi-humid monsoon climatic zone, Bengbu is featured four distinct seasons and humid climate. It is also situated on the Qinling-Huaihe Boundary Line (qín lǐng huái hé xiàn 秦岭淮河线). Although it is not the capital of the province, there is a provincial meteorological center in this city. The weather in spring is changeable while in winter it is dry and cold. It is suggested that visitors travel there in Spring and Summer.

Attracions

Longzihu Lake Scenic Area

It is located in the east of Bengbu. As a national 4A level scenic spot, Longzi Lake Scenic Area (lóng zǐ hú fēng jǐng qū 龙子湖风景区) bonds beautiful natural environment ranges from castle peak, clear and open water, twisting lakeshores, steep cliffs and strange rocks to charming human landscapes and unthreatened sites such as Water Park, Huaihe Style Park (huái hé fēng qíng yuán 淮河风情园)，Ming Tombs (míng huáng líng 明皇陵), Zhongdu City (zhōng dū chéng 中都城), Longxing Temple (lóng xīng sì 龙兴寺), Baishi Mountain Forest Park (bái shí shān sēn lín gōng yuán 白石山森林公园). The lake and the hills are always adding radiance and beauty to each other. Nearby Longzi Lake (lóng zǐ hú 龙子湖), Cemetery of Revolutionary Martyrs and Tanghe Tomb (tāng hé mù 汤和墓) are two important bases for patriotic education of young people. On the east of the lake lie two famous rolling mountains, Cao Mountain (cáo shān 曹山) and Zhuizi Mountain (zhuī zǐ shān 锥子山), which are also called "Double Dragon Mountains (shuāng lóng shān 双龙山)" while on the west lie Xuehua Mountain (xuě huá shān 雪华山) and Meihua Mountain (méi huá shān 梅花山) with lush vegetation.

Admission fee: Free

Jingtu Mountain

Jingtu Mountain (jīng tú shān 荆涂山) located in Huaiyuan county which is called the “Pearl on Huaihe River”, is famous for Da Yu Flood Control (dà yǔ zhì shuǐ 大禹治水). There are more than 100 scenic spots around the mountains. The Palace of Yu the Great (yǔ wáng gōng 禹王宫), the most famous one, was set up in AD 195 for sacrificial purpose to Da Yu and his wife. Bairu Spring (bái rǔ quán 白乳泉), the seventh-greatest spring, the water of which is just like mike. It is said that, in Tang Dynasty (táng cháo 唐朝), there are white turtles living here because of which, it is also called "White Turtle Spring (bái guī quán 白龟泉)". Bianhe Hole (biàn hé dòng 卞和洞) is another charming spot there. There is an enormous oval stone on the hole with a large part high up in the air. Mosses and roominess are two well known features of the stone. If you want to find a place with a relaxing atmosphere, Hequan Farm (hé quán nóng zhuāng 禾泉农庄) is a better choice. There are a great number of different kinds of botanic gardens as well as a famous cervine field. This area is well developed and is equipped with completed infrastractural facilities. What's more, since 1999, there has begun to hold Flower-drum Lanterns Arts Festival (huā gǔ dēng yì shù jié 花鼓灯艺术节) when many magnificent performances will be widely shown.

Admission fee: Free

Zhuizi Mountain Forest Park

Zhuizi Mountain Forest Park (zhuī zǐ shān sēn lín gōng yuán 锥子山森林公园) is located in the east of Bengbu. Some one says that the name is derived from a huge stone on the east peak while some says that it is derived from a nine-storey Linglong Tower (líng lóng tǎ 玲珑塔) stiking highly in the sky. This area can be devided into eight large secneries: Linglong Tower, Stone House (shí wū 石屋), Longfeng Bridge (lóng fèng qiáo 龙凤桥), Ginkgo Trees (yín xìng shù 银杏树), Ru Spring (rǔ quán 乳泉), Stone Gate (shí mén 石门), Dianjiang Terrace (diǎn jiàng tái 点将台), Fairy Bed (xiān rén chuáng 仙人床) and eight small spots.

Location: on the south of Hefei (hé féi 合肥) - Bengbu expressway in the eastern suburbs.
Admission fee: Free

Food

Huaiyuan Pomegranate

Huaiyuan Pomegranate (huái yuǎn shí liú 怀远石榴) in Huaiyuan one of the famous specialties in Bengbu. It was planted in Tang Dynasty and in Qing Dynasty (qīng cháo 清朝), it even went down in official history. Its bright color, regular fruit shape, crystal-clear kernels and juicy taste have gained it widespread praise.

Hugou Sesame Seed Cake and Hugou Oil Tea

In Bengbu, Hugou Sesame Seed Cake (hú gōu shāo bǐng 湖沟烧饼) is the number one all over China and it has been already included in the national protection lists of non-material cultural heritage. You'd better eat it with Hugou Oil Tea (hú gōu yóu chá 湖沟油茶) which is not real tea but a kind of soup made of gluten, bean curd sheets, black gingili, peanuts and many other ingredients.

Tuohu Crab

One of the first three kinds of crabs, Tuohu Crab (tuó hú xiè 沱湖蟹), is also bred in Bengbu. It is just as famous as YangCheng Crab (yáng chéng hú 阳澄蟹) with many years of histories. Its flesh is fat, delicious and nutritious. In Ming dynasty (míng cháo 明朝), Zhu Yuanzhang (zhū yuán zhāng 朱元璋) had praised it as China's Tastiest Dish.

Transportation

Waterway
Bengbu has the largest harbour in Huaihe River. It is also one of the 28 main inland ports in China. The annual throughput is more than 100 million tons and there are several kiloton class berthes. It is navigable all the year round to many cities such as Jiangsu Province (jiāng sū shěng 江苏省), Zhejiang Province (zhè jiāng shěng 浙江省), Shanghai (shàng hǎi shì 上海市) and foreign countries.

Air
The airport now in Bengbu is for dual use. There will be a Regional Airport soon in near future. It is 80 miles from Hefei Luogang International Airport (hé féi luò gāng guó jì jī chǎng 合肥骆岗国际机场).

Railway
Bengbu is the earliest station on the Jinghu Railway (jīng hù tiě lù 京沪铁路), with hourly direct trains to Beijing (běi jīng 北京), Shanghai and other large cities.

Bus
Since Bengbu is an important transport node in China, the highways through it ramify all over the country and High standardized urban roads' entrances have been already linked with national and provincial roads.

The urban transit system is very convenient in Bengbu. The bus fare is usually CNY 1. Visitors can get to most of the sight spots by bus.

Taxi
The taxi starts at CNY 5 for 2.5 kilometers at first and from then on it is CNY 1.2 per kilometer. In the evening, it starts at CNY 5.5 for the first 2.5 kilometers, and then CNY 1.4 per kilometer. The waiting fee is CNY 0.01 per minute. A single journey out of the town more than 8 kilometers need fees for returning empty.