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SHOPPPING in LANZHOU |
Lanzhou, as the provincial capital, is a large city with many shopping options. The area is particularly good for cold weather gear, which can be bought at many of the shops that line the streets. Thick and warm army coats, and small, tough boots can be bought at bargain prices, ideal for those heading to the colder parts of Sichuan, Qinghai, Tibet and beyond.
The city is also a good place for those after handicrafts. Along with the products that are popular throughout the province, including the Yeguang Cup, jade carvings and silk carpets, Lanzhou has its own specialties that can be bought in many of the craft stores and stalls in the city. Particularly notable are the Jincheng Babao Melon-skin Carvings, the Pebble Carvings, and the Tao Inkstones. The city is good for its ancient memorabilia, and replicas of Silk Road paintings and murals, as well as beautiful copies of the Maiji Grottoes Buddha heads, abound.
Some of the better stores for handicrafts include the Gansu Cultural Relics Shop (3 Xijin xilu), the Provincial Arts and Crafts Shop (76 Dongang xilu), and the Cuibaozhai Shop (263 Dongang xilu). For carpets your best bet is to head to the Feitian Carpet Shop (140 Duanjiatan lu), and for Buddha heads the Le Seine Culture and Art World (45 Qinan lu) is good. For a more interesting experience the Dingxi Nanlu Market (Dingxi nanlu shichang) is worth visiting during weekdays, while on weekends the Huangmiao Market (Huangmiao shichang) has a large selection of curios. For everyday items, there are numerous department stores throughout the city. Near to the western train station is the Huangjin Shopping Centre (Huangjin dasha).
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Jincheng Babao Melon-skin Carving |
The Jincheng Babao Melon-skin Carved Bowls (Jincheng babao guadiao) are a traditional product of the Lanzhou people. Although the bowls are used by the locals to store a variety of goods (mainly canned fruits such as pineapple, orange, cherry, lichi and waxberry), they are really products of great craftsmanship. The bowls are made from a kind of melon native to Gansu province, the Golden Melon (Jingua). The pulp of the melon is first gouged out, then the skin is left to dry for several days until hard. Craftsmen then carve various pictures and patterns into the desiccated surface, from simple pentagons and triangles to goldfish and flowers. A worthy purchase!
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| Stone Carvings |
An interesting specialty to take away from Lanzhou are the colourful pebble carvings (Ruanshi diao) that can be found in art and craft stores throughout the city. The pebbles come from the bed of the Yellow River and are carved by local artists into characters from traditional Chinese legend. The characters selected are mainly dependant on the original shapes of the stones, a kind of quartzite, that make them up. Colours include red, orange, green, blue, purple and gray.
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| Tao Inkstone |
| you are fascinated with Chinese calligraphy, the Tao inkstone (Tao yan) of Lanzhou is not to be missed. It is acclaimed as one of the three most famous inkstones in China, along with the Duan inkstone of Guangdong Province and the Jiao inkstone of Anhui Province.
The inkstone's acclaim lies in its beauty and style and good quality versions are frequent gifts among wealthy Chinese. It was a Tao inkstone that was presented by the Gansu authorities to the SAR government when Hong Kong officially returned to China in 1998. The most famous aspect of the inkstones is that when its lid is on, the lines and patterns of the original stone merge with the lid line to give the impression that the stone is whole.
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| Self luminating" Cup |
The most famous of specialties here is the "Self-Illuminating" Cup (Yeguan bei) that is made of jade from the nearby Qilianshan Mountain. These translucent cups, immortalised in thousands of Chinese poems, are so named because when they are filled with wine and penetrated by the ghostly rays of the moon, it shines with luxuriant brightness.
The area around the city of Jiayuguan is filled with tombs from both the Wei (386-556 AD)and the Jin (265-420 AD)Dynasties, and many of these are home to numbers of colourful and vivid murals (Weijin bihua muhua tuopian). There is now a thriving trade in copies, usually Rubbings, of these original cultural pieces, and this is a good way to get some insight into those bygone days.
For those with interests in Chinese calligraphy, the Jiayu Inkstones (Jiayu shiyan) have a history of over 1,700 years. As with the "self-illuminating" cup, the inkstones are carved from stone taken from the nearby mountains. The stones normally have strips of different colours, from a range including blues, greens, reds and yellows.
This area is a stronghold on the new tourist Silk Road, and as such there are no lack of stores selling these handicrafts and more, at allegedly knock off prices. Since not always genuine, it is probably best to head to the more established stores, such as the state owned Jiayuguan Handicraft Shop on 8 Shibei lu.
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