Not expecting snow on the top of Qilian Mountains, mistaking Zhangye for Jiangnan

Heading west from Wuwei towards the Western Regions, the Hexi Corridor gradually narrows, with the narrowest point being only about 50 kilometers wide. This is where Zhangye Commandery is located. It’s easy to imagine that whoever controls Zhangye essentially holds the throat of the Hexi Corridor. Zhangye Commandery was established in 111 BC, meaning "to sever the arm of the Xiongnu and extend the arm of the Han Dynasty." The momentum from Wuwei hasn’t faded yet, and a new journey is about to begin~ Among the bold and heroic songs of the Hexi Corridor, the Seven-Color Danxia is one of the earliest scenic notes to gain fame. It redefines your imagination of mountains with seven colors, showing that mountains can have so many hues. This is not a canvas, yet it surpasses any artist’s dream. Billions of years of geological epic unfold before your eyes, with wind and rain carving the earth’s ribs. Iron-rich rock layers collide with time to create seven color spectrums: red, yellow, orange, green, white, gray, and black. At sunrise, the knife-edged ridges flow with honey-like golden light. At sunset, the rolling hills melt into a rainbow sinking into the dusk. Every turn is a code of Earth’s annual rings, every mountain line a lyrical poem of geological movement. The northwest wind is usually rough, but in the Pingshan Lake Grand Canyon, it shows a touch of gentleness. The Pingshan Lake Grand Canyon mainly overlooks the magnificent mountain ranges and the canyon floor. It is known as China’s version of the Colorado Grand Canyon! This place was once a vast sea; the ancient ocean rose to land, and floods tore through the rock layers, carving out this "Eastern Colorado." The rock strata are signatures of Cambrian waves, wind-eroded holes record the breath of the Triassic, and the jagged red rocks are 500 million years of solidified time. Walking among the canyon folds feels like flipping through a living geology textbook. (P.S. You must go down to the canyon floor at Pingshan Lake Grand Canyon to explore more scenery; it’s the biggest surprise of the trip.) Hidden in the folds of the Qilian Mountains is a seriously underrated grotto art secret—Mati Temple. Over 1,600 years, it has been both a Chan meditation holy site of Han Buddhism and a faith center of Tibetan Buddhism. Han-style flying eaves coexist with Tibetan white pagodas, flying Apsaras murals intertwine with Thangka colors. One grotto, two faiths, making it a "cultural fusion specimen on the Silk Road." Seeing it up close, you’ll truly be amazed by the craftsmanship of the ancients! The Hexi Corridor is famous for its many grottoes, and if counting wooden structures, the Great Buddha Temple likely takes the crown. This royal temple, built during the Western Xia dynasty, has been damaged and rebuilt many times, enduring the relentless tides of history. The Great Buddha Hall, with 11 bays and a double-eaved Xieshan roof, follows the same design as the Hall of Supreme Harmony in the Forbidden City (it is currently the only surviving Western Xia official wooden structure). The over 30-meter-long reclining Buddha depicts the scene of Shakyamuni’s parinirvana, with each disciple showing distinct thoughts and expressions. The wind chimes at the eaves ring in the breeze, pigeons rest on the roof, and looking at the well-preserved building, the feeling is simply wonderful. This is what was seen in Zhangye. There are many more beautiful things that words and pictures can’t capture, so I’ll just lightly record them and keep more of the emotions in my heart~