Wudang is all over China Daily today. Here are 3 of 6 articles from CD today
Interesting tourist stats...
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Wudang Mountains receive 4.26m tourists in 2012
( chinadaily.com.cn )
Updated: 2013-01-30
The Wudang Mountains received 4.26 million tourists in 2012 and realized tourism revenue of 2.26 billion yuan ($363 million), up 20 percent and 21 percent from the same period last year, respectively.
The Wudang Mountains launched year-round advertising campaigns on various media outlets, including CCTV-1, CCTV-4, China Comment and China Tourism News. Ads were also placed on vehicles like airplanes, high-speed trains and buses. The scenic spot also invited mainstream industries and media from home and abroad to shoot interviews and films in the region. Films such as The Karate Kid, Wudang and The Assassin were shot in Wudang and contributed to publicizing the area. It also offered ticket discounts and chartered airplane and train service to expand tourism.
The Wudang Mountains held events including the Taiji Lake Forum, the 12th National Village Heads Forum, the Wudang 600 Years Centennial Celebration, the World Health Assembly and Tai Chi International Fellowship Competition, and the Luotian Sacrificial Ceremony in 2012, attracting the attention of Chinese leaders and celebrities from all walks of life.
Tourists from Beijing, Nanjing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan and foreign countries increased significantly, up 62 percent from the same period last year.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...1273216401.jpg
Wudang Mountains receive 4.26m tourists in 2012
I've touched those balustrades...:o They told me it would bring me luck.
Quote:
Wudang Golden Hall reinforces copper balustrades
( chinadaily.com.cn )
Updated: 2013-01-30
Technical workers reinforced 148 copper balustrades in Wudang Golden Hall on the afternoon of July 19. The balustrades were originally built using funds donated by Yunnan people in the 19th year of Wanli Emperor (1591) in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).
The Golden Hall is the most important stop for tourists to Wudang. The copper balustrades have become loose due to wear-and-tear and frequent touching by tourists. Wudang has reinforced the balustrades and is warning visitors not to throw coins in the hall or touch the balustrades.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...1273239b03.jpg
Wudang Golden Hall reinforces copper balustrades
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...1273239d04.jpg
Wudang Golden Hall reinforces copper balustrades
Follow up on Yuzhen
Quote:
Elevation of Yuzhen Palace breaks world record
( chinadaily.com.cn )
Updated: 2013-01-30
The elevation project of Yuzhen Palace on the Wudang Mountains was completed on the afternoon of July 16. The gate of the palace reached a height of 15 meters, an elevation height four times higher than the world record.
Dai Zhanbiao, head of the project, noted that the elevation of the east and west gates were completed on July 9 and 13, respectively. The following work will require pouring concrete into the steel piers, weighing 80 kilograms each, to take the place of the dozen dismantled jacks. The pouring work is expected to finish at the end of February.
According to Dai, the elevation project of Yuzhen Palace began on August 1, 2012. The palace gates and mountain gates will be elevated one after another. The 1.5-meter elevation of the east and west palace gates can be done within two days. It only took one day to elevate the mountain gates. The gates can be lifted 0.5 meters every day on average.
Yuzhen Palace was built by the Emperor Yongle in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in 1412 in honor of the Taoist Zhang Sanfeng. After the elevation of the Danjiangkou reservoir dam, which serves as a water source for the Middle Route Project of the South - North Water Diversion plan, Yuzhen Palace was in danger of being submerged. As a result, the mountain gates, the glazed walls and the east and west palace gates of Yuzhen Palace are being elevated to keep the ancient cultural relics intact.
The restoration project of Yuzhen Palace will begin after completion of the elevation project and water storage tests. Yuzhen Palace will be surrounded by water on three sides when construction finishes. It will cost about 200 million yuan ($32.1 million).
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...1273233e02.jpg
Elevation of Yuzhen Palace breaks world record
Talk about your photo ops
Some PRC tourist press loved this one for sure. More pix if you follow the link.
Quote:
Foreign twin sisters learn Wudang kung fu
By Han Shuya ( chinadaily.com.cn )
Updated: 2013-03-14
Twin sisters from Canada, Brandy and Melonie, came to the Wudang Mountains to study Wudang kung fu for over three years after watching the film The Karate Kid.
The mysterious and elegant Wudang kung fu performed by Jackie Chan in the film has aroused a lot of foreigner interest. Some even came to Wudang to learn more about it.
The twins learned kung fu from Yuan Xiugang, a 15th-generation disciple of the Sanfeng School in Wudang. Yuan opened a kung fu school next to Yuxu Palace on the Wudang Mountains and has received more than 20 foreign students.
It was the second time the elder sister Brandy has come here to study. In 2008, she came to Yuan Xiugang for the first time at the invitation of her friends and studied kung fu for four months. After she went back to Canada, her friends and relatives were all interested in her experience, so she took her twin sister Melonie to Wudang again in September 2009.
They learned kung fu at school every day except Christmas over the course of three years. They got up at dawn and practiced techniques during the day. At night, they would do seated meditation. What attracted them most was Wudang tai chi shadowboxing.
Brandy said she became much healthier after practicing tai chi shadowing. What surprised her was how she has been able to avoid fever and cold since her training. The sisters plan to open a kung fu school in Canada after their five-year studies to spread the martial art into Canada. They hope to be ambassadors for Chinese and foreign culture exchange.
According to Yuan Xiugang, over 300 foreigners have come to learn Wudang kung fu since the school opened to the public. One of them has studied here for more than six years. He hoped more and more foreigners could come to learn kung fu to further promote Wudang kung fu around the world.
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Yuan guides Brandy (right) and Melonie (left) in the practice of Wudang tai chi shadowboxing.
Wudang trains cool hairdos
'Get a haircut!' sez the Shaoliner to the Wudanger. ;)
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Foreigners keen to learn Wudang kungfu
By Li Hongyi ( chinadaily.com.cn )
Updated: 2013-07-15
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...134deb9e01.jpg
Foreigners keen to learn more about Wudang kungfu.
Wudang kungfu made it onto the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2006, and it attracts the interest of martial arts enthusiasts around the world.
Also in 2006, a total of 60 coaches, led by Yuan Xiugang, went on an international tour that included the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Singapore, and won several martial arts competitions.
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A trainee practices Wudang kungfu.
Wudang Mountains receives more than 1,000 overseas students annually, and Yuan has coached more than 2,000of these students.
“They are crazy about the spirit rooted in Taoist kungfu, and their interest is strong evidence that Taoist culture remains vibrant and attractive, with its more than 1,800 years of history,” said Yuan.
Wudang Wushu Association has 12 branches abroad, with more than 6,700 registered members.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/m/wudan...134dec7f11.jpg
Foreigners keen to learn more about Wudang kungfu.
Edited by Niva Whyman and Le Qin