Fengqiao Scenic Area (Hanshan Temple)

From Tang poet Zhang Ji's 'A Night Mooring by Fengqiao': 'Beyond Gusu city lies Hanshan Temple; the sound of its midnight bell reaches the traveler's boat'; Hanshan Temple (built in the Liang dynasty of the Southern Dynasties; Hanshan and Shide, the 'Two Immortals of Harmony'); stone inscriptions (Yu Yue's poem stele / Hanshanzi's poems); Tieling Pass (Ming Jiajing-era stronghold against Japanese pirates). In the Tang Tianbao era, Zhang Ji failed the imperial exam and moored for the night at Fengqiao; that one poem, 'A Night Mooring by Fengqiao,' made Hanshan Temple and this bridge famous for a thousand years. Its lines 'The moon sets, crows cry, frost fills the sky; by river maples and fishing lights I lie wakeful in sorrow' became required Tang poetry in Japanese textbooks, making Hanshan Temple an iconic destination for Japanese visitors to China. Founded in the Liang dynasty of the Southern Dynasties, the temple is named after the eminent monks Hanshan and Shide, who resided here and are venerated by common folk as the 'Two Immortals of Harmony.' The stele corridor holds Yu Yue's handwritten stele of 'A Night Mooring by Fengqiao' and carvings of Hanshanzi's poems; every New Year's Eve, tens of thousands of visitors pack the temple for the 'listening to the bell' event to hear the 108 tolls that ring in the new year. Beside the temple stands Tieling Pass, built in the Ming Jiajing era against Japanese pirates; Jiangfengzhou Park strings poem, bridge, temple, and pass into one route.

Getting there: Bus / by taxi (Fengqiao Road)