While Shanxi Province may be better known as the dusty, polluted coal-producing center of China, it is also one of the country’s oldest areas of civilization. The coal city of Datong in Shanxi was a former capital of the Northern Wei dynasty, a Xianbei (Mongolian) regime which ruled much of northern China from 386-535 AD and built the impressive Yungang Grottoes. Yungang is one of the three largest Buddhist grottoes in China. The others include the Longmen Grottoes in Luoyang, Henan, which I’ve also visited, and Dunhuang in Gansu. Datong also has a few ancient wooden temples, and a large city wall that is actually a recreation of the destroyed old city wall. Further away from Datong is the Hanging Temple, a wooden Buddhist temple built on a cliff, and Sakyamuni Wooden Pagoda. I wrote about these places for a newspaper feature about Datong.

Yungang features dozens of caves and countless stone carvings of Buddhas cut onto the cliff walls of a mountain stretching from west to east. There are gigantic towering Buddhas, human-sized ones and even tiny intricate carvings smaller than your hand. The most impressive are the number 7 and 8 caves, the entrances of which are enclosed by multi-story wooden structures. The caves feature giant Buddhas, walls filled with intricate stone Buddhist figures, and cave ceilings painted with colorful murals of scenes from Buddhist legends. There is also a museum at the end of the grottoes which features statues and sculpted blocks from the grottoes.

How to get there: The Yunggang Grottoes are located on the outskirts of Datong. Take the #3 bus from the city (check with your hotel/hostel for where the bus stop is) to the grottoes, which is about half an hour.
Datong can be reached by train from Beijing or Taiyuan, the capital of Shanxi.