Historically Important, the Two Archways Capture China’s History
If you are in Yunnan, then the best place to study or do gap year jobs is its capital city, Kunming. Kunming has the best climate in almost all of China, and it is the cultural hub of the country as well. It has many places to visit which can give a student a complete overview of what Chinese culture is all about. There are places within the city that show the might of the Chinese dynasties that ruled the place centuries back. The Jade Rooster and the Golden Horse Archways are two of the monuments that are suggestive of the life and times all those centuries ago.
The Importance of the Golden Horse and the Jade Rooster
Kunming has a rich cultural heritage. The city is not only the capital city of Yunnan Province but also is the largest. The cultural heritage bestowed on the city is an amalgamation of multiple ethnicities which now reside in the city. It has been the seat of the Ming and the Qing Dynasties. This is also where some of the oldest fossils have been found which provided the missing links between animal species during evolution. Modern day Kunming has 51 out of the 52 ethnic minorities living here.
If you plan to study overseas or learn to speak Chinese in China, then Kunming will be the ideal destination. It gives you an insight into the country like no other destination. It is the cultural hub that is located at an elevation of 1890 meters and has one of the mildest climates in the country. Short cool dry winters and long humid warm summers make it the ideal spot for anytime of the year. There are many attractions inside and outside of the city which can offer a student a packed itinerary that keeps the weekdays and weekends full of enjoyment. One gets to visit someplace almost every day, a scenario that holds true especially for summer programs for high school students. But if you are doing gap year jobs in Kunming over a longer period of time, you get the opportunity to participate in even more diverse tours which involve many South Asian countries like Myanmar, Laos and many more.
However the highlights of any China tour to Yunnan are the places that are in the vicinity of the city. Take the example of the Golden Horse and the Jade Rooster. These are seemingly the minor stops within the city during your China travel; however, their importance in Chinese history makes them two of the important landmarks in Yunnan. Built during the Ming Dynasty, these sites have a history of almost 400 years.
The area where these arches stand has been the old Kunming City. The older buildings are being renovated using new material but care has been taken to preserve the old architectural style and design. What you see now in this area is just the way it looked hundreds of years back. But the enigma of the area lies in the two archways.
The Golden Horse Archway is in the east and the Green Rooster Archway is in the West against the Green Chicken Mountain. They have been built close to each other and coupled with the third one called the Loyalty Archway, and they render an oriental mystique to the modern cityscape. It is said that once every 60 years, on a particular time during the fall season, the shadow of the Green Rooster Archway from the sun and the shadow of the Golden Horse Archway from the moon merge together to form a single shadow.
While visiting Kunming, the Golden Horse and the Jade Rooster has to be marked as a must-visit place.