Luoyang — Longmen Grottoes and “Phoenix Dance of the Divine Capital” 洛阳——龙门石窟与《凤舞神都》
October 15, 2025
The high-speed train from Yinchuan to Shanghai would have taken more than ten hours, which felt a bit too long for us. So, we decided to break the journey into two segments and spend a night in Luoyang (洛阳).
After a four hour ride, we arrived in Luoyang and checked into a hotel. In the afternoon, we visited the Longmen Grottoes (龙门石窟) — a UNESCO World Heritage Site that began during the Northern Wei Dynasty and expanded over several centuries. The site contains more than 2,300 caves and over 100,000 Buddha statues, representing the pinnacle of Chinese Buddhist stone carving and artistry. The scenic area was quite busy with tourists, but we climbed up and down the stairs to admire the highlights and appreciate the scale and beauty of the carvings. Unlike the grottoes in Dunhuang, which were mostly sponsored by private patrons, most of the Longmen carvings were commissioned by the state. After exploring both sides of the river, we took a Didi ride back to our hotel.
After a short rest, we went to the Sui-Tang Grand Canal Cultural Park (隋唐历史文化公园) to watch the large-scale outdoor performance “Phoenix Dance of the Divine Capital” (凤舞神都), which tells the story of Empress Wu Zetian (武则天) — the only female emperor in Chinese history. The open-air show was spectacular, and the weather was perfect, making the experience even more enjoyable. Before the performance, we stopped by a small street café for beef noodles (牛肉面) and roujiamo (肉夹馍) — both were simple but tasty.
The next day, we visited the Luoyang Museum, an impressive world-class museum where we learned a great deal about the city’s long and rich history. In the afternoon, we boarded the train back to Shanghai, enjoying some salted duck we ordered on board.
Thus ended our eight-day journey across China’s great northwest, a trip filled with culture, history, and unforgettable memories — a truly satisfying conclusion.
洛阳——龙门石窟与《凤舞神都》
2025年10月15日
我们很喜欢在中国坐高铁，干净，舒适且很方便。从银川到上海的高铁需十多个小时，我们觉得时间太长，便决定在中途的洛阳停留一晚。
经过四个半小时的车程，我们抵达洛阳并入住酒店。下午前往参观著名的龙门石窟（Longmen Grottoes）——一处联合国教科文组织世界文化遗产。石窟始建于北魏时期，历经数个朝代扩建，现有洞窟两千三百余个、佛像十万余尊，被誉为中国石刻艺术与佛教艺术的巅峰。景区内游客众多，我们沿着石阶上下攀行，仔细欣赏各个主要洞窟的造像，感叹其规模与精美。与之前由民间供养人建造的敦煌石窟不同，龙门石窟的主要造像多由朝廷主持开凿。不过石窟内外的佛像损坏严重，主要是自然侵蚀，人为盗凿和战争破坏所造成。
游览了伊河两岸的景点后，乘滴滴返回酒店稍作休息，接下来我们前往隋唐历史文化公园观看大型户外演出——《凤舞神都》。节目以中国历史上唯一的女皇武则天为主线，场面宏大、灯光绚丽，天气也恰到好处，让我们观赏得格外尽兴。演出前，我们在街边一家小餐馆用餐，点了牛肉面和肉夹馍，味道都很不错。
第二天早上我们参观了洛阳博物馆。这是一座内容非常丰富、陈列精美的世界级博物馆，让我们对洛阳厚重的历史有了更深入的了解。因为时间有限，我们只能匆匆看一遍。下午我们乘高铁返回上海，在车上直接点了南京站的外卖盐水鸭作为晚餐。
至此，我们的八天大西北之行画上了圆满的句号——一次充实而愉快的旅程。