The first stop in Zhangye, Gansu - Matisi (Horse Hoof Temple)

Matisi is 60 kilometers away from Zhangye city. Our group of seven chartered a car to go there, expecting it to take half a day. Matisi Grottoes are named after the legend of a celestial horse leaving its hoof prints while drinking water here, and one such hoof print is preserved in the Hall of the Horse King. The exact founding date of the Matisi Grottoes is still a matter of debate. According to the 'Book of Jin' and the biography of Guo Xu, an Eastern Jin Dynasty figure, Guo Xu once 'traveled to Zhangye... and secluded himself in Lin Song Xie Valley, where he carved out grottoes to reside in.' The 'Ganzhou Prefecture Records' also mention that 'the stone caves were carved by Guo Xu and his disciples, and later generations expanded them and added Buddhist statues.' Along with the Mogao Caves in Dunhuang and the Yulin Caves in Anxi, they are collectively known as the three great art treasure caves of the Buddhist pagoda holy land in the Hexi Corridor. The grotto complex consists of numerous caves, including the Thirty-Three Heavens Grottoes, the Treasury of Buddha, the Hall of the Horse Hoof, the Hall of the Horse King, and the Hall of the Medicine Buddha, among other cultural landscapes. We focused on climbing the 'Thirty-Three Heavens' grottoes at the northern temple of Matisi. They are distributed on a cliff face 2 to 40 meters high, with a total of 7 levels and 21 niches. The scale of the excavation is grand, making it a landmark construction among the Matisi Grottoes. The marvel and exquisite craftsmanship are breathtaking. I climbed the Hall of the Medicine Buddha alone, which was even more challenging than the 'Thirty-Three Heavens.' Using hands and feet in places that only one person could pass through, I felt a deep reverence for the ancient wisdom, as if it were embodied in my very actions at that moment. We heard that the flying Apsaras at Jinta Temple are the most beautiful, but it was still 24 kilometers away, and everyone was tired, so we decided to head back to Zhangye. We still had to visit the Rainbow Danxia in the afternoon. The entrance fee for Matisi is 75 yuan, with half price for those over 60. At the 'Thirty-Three Heavens' grottoes, they check tickets separately. Luckily, we had the tickets with our driver, and fortunately, the scenic area was very accommodating, allowing us to video call with our driver for ticket verification before letting us through.