Qinzhou District 秦州区

History

The district government counts Qinzhou among the earliest commanderies and counties set up in China and describes it as a gateway to Longyou (陇右), a strategic pass and a trading centre since ancient times, and as a "pearl" of the Silk Road. The present district was called Qincheng District (秦城区) until 1 January 2005.

In the autumn of 759 the poet Du Fu (杜甫) brought his family to Qinzhou after leaving his post during the unrest that followed the An Lushan rebellion. He first lived inside the city, visited Nanguo Temple (南郭寺) and the Maijishan cave temples, and went out to the countryside to see his friend, the exiled monk Zangong (赞公), writing five poems about their meetings.

What to see

The district has five national 4A scenic areas. Its best-known old buildings are the Fuxi Temple (伏羲庙), a Ming-dynasty complex; Yuquan Guan (玉泉观), which the government calls the foremost Taoist temple of south-eastern Gansu; and the thousand-year-old Nanguo Temple. The government groups the district's attractions under five themes: Fuxi culture, early Qin culture, the Three Kingdoms, Ming and Qing architecture, and folk customs.

Setting and landscape

Qinzhou straddles the Yangtze and Yellow River basins. The climate is described as mild, with no severe winter cold or summer heat and 493.6 millimetres of rain in an average year, and it has long been called the "Jiangnan of Gansu" (陇上江南). National Road 310, expressways to Baoji, Dingxi and Shiyan, and the Baoji–Lanzhou high-speed railway pass through the district.

Food and local products

Jiangshui noodles (浆水面) are everyday food in Qinzhou and are also served to guests. The sour jiangshui base is made by boiling shredded lettuce stem, alfalfa, shepherd's purse or the outer leaves of celery or cabbage, thickening boiling water with a little wheat or maize flour, adding a fermentation starter and leaving it in a jar for a day or two. Hand-rolled noodles are cut very fine, dressed with hot oil and topped with the jiangshui fried with spring onion and garlic.

Qinzhou cherries (秦州大樱桃) and Tianshui forsythia (天水连翘) are registered as national geographical-indication farm products.

Highlights

• Fuxi Temple 伏羲庙: A Ming-dynasty temple in the district that calls itself Fuxi's home town.
• Yuquan Guan 玉泉观: Called the foremost Taoist temple of south-eastern Gansu by the district government.
• Nanguo Temple 南郭寺: A temple more than a thousand years old that Du Fu visited in 759.
• Jiangshui noodles 浆水面: Hand-cut noodles in a fermented vegetable broth, eaten daily in Qinzhou.