Hubei, a province in central China and the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, has so many lakes that it has acquired the nickname, 'Province of a Thousand Lakes'. During the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods, Hubei was the territory of the State of Chu. Literature represented by the Songs of the South compiled by the patriotic poet Qu Yuan, and music composed for bell chimes unearthed from the tomb of Marquis of Zeng in 1978, are epitomes of the famed culture associated with the ancient state of Chu. During the Three Kingdoms. Period (220-280) Hubei became a major battlefield among warring strategists, major battles including the Battle of Yiling and the Battle of Chibi. During the Tang and Song (618-1279), part of Hubei fell under the jurisdiction of Ezhou Prefecture. Hence the abbreviation of Hubei: E.

Abbreviation:

Abbreviation: E
Area: 180,000 square km
Population: 57.19 million

THE PROVINCE'S MEAN TEMPERATURE ()

The Yangtze and Hanshui rivers converge at Hubei Province's capital, Wuhan, a tripartite city consisting of Wuchang, Hankou and Hanyang, and a major waterway, highway and airway transportation centre lauded as "Thoroughfare of nine Provinces". Traditional scenic spots mingle with newly built ones in the city, which include Yellow Crane Tower, East Lake, Hubei Museum, Guiyuan Temple, Wuhan Yangtze Bridge, Ancient Zither Terrace, and the former site of the military government of the Revolution of 1919.
Built in 223, Yellow Crane Tower is a famous south China tower where Li Bai, Cui Jing and other celebrated poets have left a wealth of literary creations. The tower's 51.4-metre-high five-storeyed structure with flying eaves was rebuilt in 1985, which provides a panoramic view of the city of Wuhan with the Yangtze Bridge sitting astride the mighty river that flows right cross the city. The 33-square-km East Lake in the eastern suburb of Wuchang is 6 times as large as West Lake of Hangzhou. The lake looks lovable with its bank camouflaged under a mantle of green trees and graced with pavilions and terraces.
Hubei Museum is in the possession of nearly 200,000 cultural treasures, most of them associated with local history and revolution. The better known of them include a group of Warring States bell chimes and the sword of Guo Jian, the king of the state of Yue. Concerts of bronze bell chimes and stone chimes are perennial shows in the museum's Bell Chimes Gallery.

Cruise on Three Gorges

The three gorges of Qutang, Wuxia and Xiling form one of the world's largest canyons which spans west Hubei and east Chongqing for a 193-km stretch from Fengjie, Chongqing, to Yichang, Hubei. Here, theYangtze cuts a ferocious course through mountains whose dangerous images are disguised in graceful forms. A foggy, rainy weather combines with the heroic shape of the Qutang Gorge, the elegance of the Wuxia Gorghe, and the stupendous Xiling Gorge to form a dainty landscape, and endow the place with the best scenery anywhere in the world. Among the sites of historical interest on the Three Gorges are Sanyou Cave, Huangling Temple, Xiangxi River, Jiuyuan River, Qu Yuan's Temple, Shennong River, Lesser Three Gorges of Wushan Mountain, Ghost City at Fengdu, Shibao Village, and Baidi City of Fengjie. Visitors also have the opportunity to see the well-known Gezhouba Water Conservancy Project and the ongoing construction of the Three Gorges Water Conservancy Project. About 40 luxury cruises are shutting on the Yangtze River; 20 of them wear star-rating insignias based on the equipped facilities and quality services offered. The Changjiang Tourist Boat Company is based on Wuhan and Yichang, and that is why Hubei is the best place for a cruise on the Yangtze River.

Wilderness of Shennongjia

Shennongjia has all the mysterious quality of a jungle in the eastern section of Daba Mountain in west Hubei Province. Covering an area of 3,250 square km that stretches north to Hanshui River and south to the Yangtze, it is a natural habitat of precious animals and plants, and it is said that occasionally a wild man or two could be spotted. A nice place for biotourists and nature explorers, indeed.

Rafting Shennong Stream

Shennong Stream is a 60-km tributary which empties itself into the Yangtze at a place 2,000 metres east of the Wuxia Gorge estuary. The cliffs on both banks squeeze the stream into a mere strip of water 5 metres at the narrowest point. A 20-km stretch of the river has been opened for rafting expeditions. Visitors may travel up the river for 9 km to Badong County and board tiny boats in the style of local tujia people for a ride

through a breathtaking landscape mystified by the quaint peculiarities of local folklore. Coffins are seen suspended on cliffs, made accessible on occasions by plank ways, and the journey is often enlivened by the emergence of monkeys, Mongolia gazelles and other wild animals, ancient-looking Tujia abodes, and boat-towing coolies.

Mount Wudang Scenic Zone

Situated in Danjiangkou, northwest Hubei, Mount Wudang is one of the famous mountains in China. The major peak, Tianzhu (Heavenly Pillar), stands 1,612 meters high, and within an area of 30 square km there are 72 peaks which make this part of the world exceptionally beautiful. Mount Wudang is also a famed Taoist sanctuary and the cradle of the Wudang school of Chinese martial arts. The mountain slopes used to be strung with majestic Taoist buildings, and the 36 of those still there were mostly built during the Ming, forming the best-preserved and largest cluster of ancient Taoist structures in the county. The statues, religious instruments and scriptures housed in these buildings are of high cultural and artistic value. Mount Wudang and its Taoist buildings have been listed as world cultural heritage sites.

Ancient City of Jingzhou

The ancient city is enclosed in a 9.3-km-long city wall in Jiangling District of Jingzhou. A famous historical and cultural city today, Jingzhou was part of the state of Chu during the Spring and Autumn Period and a bone of contention between warring strategists of various dynasties. That is why the city boasts so many historical artifacts and sites. In close proximity of Jingzhou is the ancient city of Jinan, which had served as capital of the state of Chu for 20 generations in 400 years; today, the rammed-earth city wall of the capital is still there, and large amounts of cultural relics have been unearthed.

Jingzhou Museum

The museum, situated in Jiangling District in west Jingzhou, is in the possession of 100,000 cultural artifacts, including 100 or so national first-class ones, and the museum has the largest collection of ancient silk fabrics in China. Among the other treasures are Neolithic jade carvings, well-polished lacquer ware of Chu, precious Chu and Han documents written on bamboo slips, and mummified corpses dating back to Western Han. To the delight of its visitors, the Jingzhou Museum also stages concerts featuring bell chimes and other ancient musical instruments.

Yichang

Situated at the breakpoint of upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze in west Hubei, Yichang is a major tourist city with the splendid Three Gorges up the river. The land of Yichang itself is studded with tourist attractions, including Gezhouba Water Conservancy Project in northwest Yichang, Sanyou Cave, and the battlefield of Yiling during the Three Kingdoms Period. The famous Gezhouba Water Conservancy Project is on the trunk section of the Yangtze in northwest Yichang. Visitors also have the chance to see Chinese sturgeons, an endangered species contemporised with dinosaurs. A grownup sturgeon can grow to 4 metres in length and 500 kg in weight. Sailing upstream the river, one arrives in Zigui county for a visit to the tomb of the great poet Qu Yuan and the temple dedicated to him. The birthplace of Wang Zhaojun, a Western Han beauty, lies by the picturesque Xiangxi River, where dragon-boat cruises are available.

Festivals

Wuhan Plum Flower Festival. The event takes place in February every year. The nation's plum flower research center is in Wuhan, where large tracks of land is devoted to a good variety of plum trees with long blooming periods. Visitors to the festival may also take part in a series of tourist programs with the East Lake as the center, to have a look at the culture of the ancient state of Chu.
Central China Tourist Exhibition. The exhibition, which is held in march every year, is the most important comprehensive travel trade fair for the entire central China. Participants include travel services, hotels, air companies, tourist bus and cruise companies, scenic resorts, recreational centers, and souvenir companies.
China Jingzhou Dragon Boat Festival. The largest dragon boat race in China takes place during the festival, which is held on the 5th day of the 5th lunar month every year. Other major events during the festival: full-length folk-lore celebration and folk art performances, an exhibition of cultural artifacts dating back to the state of Chu, inspection tours of local tourist programs, and trde talks.
Three Gorges Tourist Festival. During this festival, which takes place every June, there are cruises on the gorgeous Three Gorges of the Yangtze, inspection tours of local tourist attractions (Yangtze Three Gorges, the scenic resorts around the two great dams, Shennongjia Scenic Zone, Ruins of the Three Kingdoms, Qingjiang Folklore and Scenic Zone, etc.), gala folklore celebrations, night cruise on board luxury cruises, and business talks.
Int'l Mount Wudan Tourist Festival. On the agenda of this festival, which takes place on the 9th day of the 9th lunar month every year, are the largest Taoist summons ceremony in china, performances of the Wudang school of martial arts, mountaineering, exhibition of selected Taoist artifacts, folklore performances, and sightseeing tours.
Shennongjia Int'l Bio-tourist Festival. In every October, the place is the site of tours of the local ecological system and the local folklore, and folk art performances.
Other Events. There are some other festivals in Hubei Province, such as the Mount Jiugongshan Summering Festival held in July and August, the Rapid Rafting festival on Qingjiang River in Enshi in August, and the Yingshan Tea Festival in April.

SOUVENIRS

Hubei Province abounds in natural resources, and local artisans produce a good variety of arts and crafts in superb workmanship. Enamel bell chimes duplicated from authentic Warring States models are ideal souvenirs. Multi-hued palaeontological fossils are a specialty of the area around the Three Gorges. The brocade made in Jingzhou incorporates cultural elements of the state of Chu and local ethnical style. Other famous souvenirs include feather fans from Honghu, copper gongs from Wuhan, painted pottery and miniature landscapes from Yichang, "eight treasures" from Jinzhou, and sesame candy from Xiaogan.