Lanzhou, Gansu, China!

It’s China’s birthday, so we get a week off of work! We are still pretty bummed about not being able to go home this summer, and the COVID numbers here are still very low (because social distancing, closing boarders and making people wear masks works…), so we decided to do a bit of traveling!

We travelled to a north western province of China: Gansu

We decided on Gansu for a few reasons. Of course, I’ve always wanted to see the rainbow mountains (I’m writing this post from a camp right next to this beautiful geological formation), but also, Gansu is generally less crowded than places like Xi’an, Beijing or Shanghai. We loved our trip to Xi’an 3 years ago, but we don’t want a repeat of those crowds!!

Gansu has so much to see. This province is home to the Gobi desert, some gorgeous temples, unbelievable geological formations and also some rich history.

The silk road went through Gansu, and you can even find part of the Great Wall of China in this province. We’ll be heading there next week!

Our first stop in Gansu, of course, was the province’s capital city: Lanzhou. There isn’t a lot to see there, but it is home to some pretty great food! Especially if you like naan, lamb and skewers!!!

P1: Lamb Skewers. P2: Spicy Naan. P3: Lamb Ribs

Of course, Lanzhou isn’t without sites to see. We spent most of the afternoon walking around Baita Mountain, which is home to a pretty cool pagoda. There are some beautiful views from up on the mountain and it’s a nice walk. You can take cable cars both up and down the mountain, if you don’t feel like doing the work.

There are some nice temples and shrines on your way up

Nice views of un-developed China to enjoy as well!

There are nice benches along the way too, which is good because there are a LOT of stairs!!

At the top, the view is nice, and the pagoda is definitely worth seeing. It’s different from any pagoda I’ve ever seen because it looks like it’s made right from the earth around it, while most others are made of brightly painted wood.

After our trip up the mountain, we decided to take the cable car down. It was a bit of a wait but we chatted with some local people and had a good time of it. From there, we head down to another of Lanzhou’s best sites: the night market!

The market was a bit nutty but I was able to get some crazy photos to share with all of you. We had dinner at one of the best rated restaurants on the strip, and opted out of the food-stall choices. I don’t regret that decision….