Zhangye City – A Rose in the Desert

We eventually tore our eyes from the imposing figure that dominates the hall, and turned to inspect the murals that adorn its walls. One depicts the story of Chinese classic Journey to the West. It shows Pigsy (a disciple of Monk Xuanzang) carrying luggage and fighting demons bravely, taking difficult tasks and hardships without complaints. The characterization contradicts traditional depictions of the Pigsy as a lazy and careless character with a voracious appetite. This departure from tradition may be attributable to the local belief that Zhangye’s Gaolaozhuang Village was where Pigsy was said to have been married, so locals have a fondness for the character, as well as a little pride.

The temple is also home to some very important Buddhist scriptures written with gold dust. They can be found in the Buddhist Scriptures Hall, where rows of red wooden cabinets are filled with the precious writings. It is thought that part of the scriptures, beautifully written and laid out, was copied by a eunuch during the Ming Dynasty, and that their survival into the present day is down to the dedication of the local people.

Over the past six centures, the temple has gone through the test of wars. Locals have done all they could to protect those scriptures. According to our guide, when the Japanese bombed Lanzhou in 1937 China’s Kuomintang troops used the temple for operations. To avoid any risk of damaging the scriptures the president of the Buddhist Association of Zhangye and the then abbot Miaoxian of the temple together arranged the transfer of the scriptures deep into the Qilian Mountains. Later they transferred those scriptures back to the temple secretly and walled up with clay the 12 cabinets hidden between the last two rows of pillars at the back of the scriptures hall. Their existence was known only to the abbot and his closest disciple. Generations of Buddhist disciples strictly kept the secret until 1975, when a fire flared up in the temple and the 12 cabinets were discovered while the back wall of the damaged hall was dismantled.

Tiger Hills

Later that day we left the city proper, driving towards Linze County and its famous Danxia landform. As we drew nearer and nearer to the landform, I recalled the images that had captivated me in Zhang Yimou’s remake of Joel Cohen’s 1984 debut, Blood Simple. In Zhang’s version, A Simple Noodle Story, the action is lifted from Texas to the wilds of imperial China’s frontier lands, with the Danxia landform as its backdrop.

The Danxia landform in Zhangye is mainly located in the counties of Linze and Sunan, with an area of over 300 square kilometers. The Danxia landform in Zhangye, which was formed in the Tertiary Period, features many good examples.

Danxia landform is made up of sandstones and conglomerates that have been shaped by nature. The hills are streaked with a thousand shades of orange like huge and ancient sleeping tigers. Iron oxide stains the rocks red, while sulfides and calcium compounds bring splashes of yellow and white.

After the A Simple Noodle Story hit the big screen, many netizens speculated that the producers utilized digital technology to enhance the images of the landform to make them more beautiful than they appear in reality, and I was determined to find out the truth. Leaving the city proper, we drove towards Linze County. I was looking forward to seeing the colorful scenery I had seen on the screen.

Having been told by locals that the Danxia landform is at its most beautiful at dusk, we decided to wait for sunset. Standing on the viewing platform we saw those mountain dunes and bizarre rocks stretch out for tens of kilometers to the edge of the sky to meet the Snow Mountains, stained crimson by the fading sun and forming a breathtaking picture.

As we continued to climb the slope, countless multihued cliffs crept into view, their vivid oranges cut through with occasional white and yellow rock belts. From afar, those cliffs resembled colorful ribbons flying in the wind.

As the sun disappeared below the horizon and the light became softer, the beauty of the Danxia landform in Zhangye reached its height. We were totally entranced.

My advice to those that still have doubts about the truth of the scenes in A Simple Noodle Story is to come to Zhangye and witness the enchanting scenery with their own eyes. They will see how generously nature has endowed Zhangye.