A Pearl Beyond the Great Wall Datong

李萌

My beloved hometown Datong is a city famous for its history and culture. It is entitled the Jiang Nan beyond the Great Wall. Located at the northern part of Shanxi Province， Datong is 380 km west of Beijing and 352 km north of Taiyuan， the capital of Shanxi. And with steep mount Heng surrounding it， Datong is military strategists battleground since the ancient time.

There is also abundant mineral resource of which the coal mine is the most famous， which gives Datong the title Capital of Coal， so Datong has got this “black” cup.

Datong enjoys the continental monsoon climate， which means the winter is extremely cold and dry， while the spring and fall are cool but the temperature varies sharply between day and night. During the summer， Datong is a natural summer resort because the average temperature is around 19～21 degree Celsius. You can go there to spend a cool summer！

There are many scenic spots and historical sites， such as the world cultural heritage -- Yungang Grottoes. Built in northern Wei kingdom， it boasts a history of 1500 years with 53 caves and over 1100 Buddhist niches. Astonishing lifelike Nine Dragon Screen is the most prestigious. Hanging temple is definitely a wonderful workmanship excelling nature， let alone one of the five great mountains in China – Heng Shan. It also has a lot of local specialties such as Clay oven rolls，Laojingzi Hemp flowers， sirloin of Yingzhou style， pea noodles and sliced noodles.

Datong is reputed with its brilliant civilization and culture. As early as Palaeolithic age， there were ancient people living. During the long history， Datong region belonged to the Yanmen County of Zhao Kingdom and once settled as the capital of Northern Wei Kingdom for 96 years. Datong got the name Pingcheng County， which means peaceful city in Chinese because of years of harsh battle with the Hun. It became an important strategic county during Sui （581-618）， Tang （618-907） and Five Dynasties （907-979）. During the Yuan Dynasty （1271-1368）， Datong belonged to Zhongshu Province and had become a grandiose and beautiful city according to the description of the Italian traveler Marco Polo. In Qing Dynasty （1644-1911）， Datong belonged to Shanxi Province and became Datong County during the domination of Republic of China. Datong was invaded by Japanese army in 1937 and became the capital of the so-called Northern Shanxi Self-Government. Finally in 1949， Datong was peacefully liberated.

Since the reform and opening up Datong has transformed into a modern city. Peoples life has experienced earth-shaking change. I cant help closing my eyes fantasying the future of Datong， at that time an absolutely international metropolis. Foreigners all come to witness its awe inspiring wonders. Although now I have gone to the senior school in Tianjin， I have been constantly reminding of past years spent in Datong. I am proud to be a Datonger， no matter where I am， or who I am going to be. I believe that my beloved hometown， this pearl beyond the Great Wall be more dazzling and shine with greater lights in the near future.