A Lively City

孫毓銘

Jinan， called “The City of Springs”， is the capital city of Shandong province. Due to its deep cultural and historic connotations， it was set as one of the famous historic and cultural cities. As the center of policy， economy， culture， technology， education as well as financial， Jinan takes a huge position in Shandong province even in China. Jinan， an old city， owes more than 4000-year cultural history and 2600-year city construction history， which had been praised by countless literati. However， the charm of Jinan exists not only in ancient poems， but also in our real life， which is touchable， visible and audible. In modern time， Jinan City has also been set up as a tie connecting Beijing and Yangtze River Economic Belt， which is the most economically developed and advanced area in current China. Therefore， this city gains joint support and plenty of policies from Chinese government.

The profound historic and cultural background as well as merging natural and human landscapes make Jinan unique among lots of historic and cultural cities. Jinan is the birthplace of the prehistoric culture， “Longshan Culture”.

Centering around springs， Baotu Spring Park is a natural rock and spring garden that is unique in ethnic style. Baotu Spring， the best one among the famous 72 springs in Jinan， is praised as “the first spring under the heaven”. It has witnessed more than 2700-year history. The spring water spurts out in three prongs， with water droplets falling around， just like three piles of snow， which is very spectacular. The spring water is very sweet， optimum for making tea， which is limpid in color， rich in aroma， and good in taste. Sitting under the “Watching Crane Pavilion” in the east side of the spring with a cup of tea in hand， ones mind will fly far away and hates to leave. The characteristics of Baotu Spring are spring-view， fish-appreciation， tea-tasting， rocks of mountain and unique culture.

The Black Tiger Spring is ranked as the second most famous spring among the 72 named springs in Jinan. The water of spring stems from moderately-deep circulation. It refers to a water-filled limestone cave， from whose mouth， the water is injected into three ornamental stone-carved tiger heads then a square-shaped spring pool is formed. From this pool， the water infuses into the old city moat， next to which the spring is located. Due to our tradition， there must be a black stone putting in front of the cave in ancient time. The name of the spring is based on the shape and color of the stone which seems like a black tiger. Besides， the sound of the water gushing past the stone being reminiscent of the roar of a tiger.

Thousand Buddha Mountain enjoys the exuberance and verdancy all the time. Legend links the Thousand Buddha Mountain to the sea， which means the mountain was originally located by the sea and the sea god had locked it to prevent the god who take charge of the mountains from moving it around. However， eventually the large lock was broken and the mountain was hurled through the air then moved to its present position. An artwork shaped like a large lock and a piece of chain has been placed on the summit of the mountain which can be regarded a reference of this legend.

Jinan also witnessed the historical hub of Buddhism in Shandong province， which still can be proved in lots of historic sites in some southern counties of Jinan. Buddhism turned to be popular in Jinan area during the reign of Emperor Wen， the founder of the Sui Dynasty. With Buddhism， monks came here and graved Buddha sculptures out of the flanks of the mountain， which was initially called Miji Hill or Li Hill. A temple， named Qianfosi which is known as the Thousand Buddha Temple was founded at the foot of the hill. At the end， this mountain was renamed after the temple was built. Due to the existence of those religious beliefs， people in this place have already possessed their spiritual belief since the ancient times， which becomes one of the most indispensable parts in the mind of Jinan residents.

The last one of “Three Greatest Attractions in Jinan”， Daming Lake is located in the northeast part of Jinan， which gathers numerous springs. In a prosperous city， its so scarce to boast such a peaceful and stunning natural lake. The most interesting thing for the young generation to realize It is a historic lake which is so huge that occupies almost a quarter of the old city. This lake is not simply a place where used to be a good place full of many peoples childhood memories， it is more than a symbol of their whole life as a local resident in Jinan. Somehow， Jinan is not only famous for its political and economic position， many historical sites and spiritual things also greatly contribute to its reputation in national wide.