Qinghai features ethnic custom tours unique to the plateau.

Rongwo Monastery

It is said that the Rongwo Monastery, whose name means "center of the Wheel of Time of Immense Joy", was first built in 1301, the fifth year of the Dade reign of the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368). There is something extremely solemn and awesome about the monastery, as is shown in the unique architectural styles of its Lhamo Hall, Hall of Stupas, Hall of Avalokitesvara, Hall of Manjusri, and Tnatric, Tuikor and Sutra seminaries. The 100-plus courtyards in the monastery are home to some 300 monks.

In the first month according to the Tibetan calendar, a Grand Summons Ceremony will be held between the 7th and the 16th, during which time a huge portrait of the Buddha will be taken out and sunbathed on the 14th, a statue of the Smiling Buddha paraded on the 15th, and religious dances held on the 16th. In the second moth: lectures on Buddhist scripture. In the third month: the Myidan Summons Ceremony. The fourth month is devoted entirely to debates and exams on sutras. The fifth month: all the monks of the monastery will attend recitations of Buddhist scriptures for 15 days.

From the 15th of the sixth month to the 1st of the eighth month, all the monks will spend 45 "confinement" days in the monastery. In the latter half of the eighth month: autumn seminar on Buddhist scriptures. In the ninth month, a ceremony will be held on the 22nd in commemoration of Sakyamuni. In the tenth month: a ceremony in memory of the death of Tsongkhaba, father of the Yellow Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In winter there will be two seminars, the first covering the entire eleventh month, the second from 7th to 21st of the twelfth month. Moreover, monks in the monastery are asked to recite sutras and confess on the 15th and 30th of every month.

Ta'er Monastery

Located 26 kilometers south of the city, the sacred Ta'er Monastery is the best of the sights in the Xining area.

The ancient Ta'er Monastery, center of the Yellow Sect of Lamaism, was built in 1397. The Lamasery is a complex of dozens of halls and towers built on sacred ground in both Tibetan and Han Chinese architectural style. The major attractions include the Great Temple of Golden Tile, the Lesser Temple of Golden Tile, the Great Meditation Hall, the Nine Room Hall, and the Hall of Butter Sculpture.

The Lamasery is also renowned for its "Three Wonders", the extraordinary sculptures of human figures, animals and landscape. In winter, frozen butter is sculptured into Buddhist scenes and displayed on the 15th day of the lunar New Year. It also has 20,000 religious paintings and embroideries. As one of China's six large lamaseries of the Yellow Sect, the Ta'er Monastery at Huangzhong county is the birthplace of Tsong Khapa, founder of the Yellow Sect.

Grand Gyegu Scenic Area

The Gyegu scenic area, located in the Gyegu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Qinghai Province, occupies a total area of 188, 794 square kilometers. Grand Kyegu Monastey, a Sakya cultural heritage site, attracts many domestic tourists every year.

Qinghai Lake

Qinghai Lake, 130 kilometers from Xining, is the largest salty water lake in China, covering an area of 4583 square kilometers. The lake sits at an altitude of 3266 meters and is called "Koko Nor" in Mongolian and "Tso Ngonpo" in Tibetan. Koko Nor means "blue lake"; its brackish waters are an extraordinary turquoise-blue. It is lined by a brilliant yellow algal bloom. Qinghai Lake was originally fresh water. It developed in the Early Pleistocene when tectonic movements blocked the course of the through-going ancestral Buh He, which now enters the northwest side of the lake. However, the water is now brackish. Rock steps and strand lines, features carved into the landscape when the lake was higher, document a long gradual decline in water level during the past 8000 years.

The lake has a number of attractions that draw travelers in this region in. Ornithologists, campers, hikers, botanists, swimmers, sailors, fishermen, loners and nomads all find areas of interest around the lake. The beauty here lies in its salty vastness and the remote peace that it instills. The colors that can be found around the lake are of purity and contrasts, from the deep yellows of oil seed rape against the cold blues of the lake to the dark greens of distant mountains against the fluffy white of bilious clouds.

The highlight of the lake is Bird Island, 350 kilometers away from Xining, a peninsular in the westernmost part of the lake and the most impressive sight, especially in season. This island attracts 100,000 migrating geese and gulls every year. The best time to watch the birds is May to June. For most of the summer rare species can be seen here in great multitude.

Caka Salt Lake

Caka ("the sea of salt" in Mongolian) Salt Lake covers an area of 105 square kilometers, and is a typical chloride salt lake. The salt from Caka is sold in 20 provinces and cities like Hong Kong, and Taiwan, as well as in Japan, Nepal, and the Middle East. There tourists can watch the mining of salt, and admire various salt crystals in the shape of pearls, corals, snowflakes, and mushrooms.

Riyue Mountain

Riyue Mountain (Sun-and-Moon Mountain), part of the Qilian Mountain Range, is located in the west of Huangyuan county, Qinghai Province. In the past, it was a vital communications center between central China and the southwest frontiers as well as the west regions. Later on, Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) passed Riyue Mountain when she was going to marry Songtsen Gampo, king of the Tubo tribe. To commemorate the princess, the mountain was renamed the Sun-and-Moon Mountain, and the Princess Wencheng Temple was built at the foot of the mountain.

qhnews.com