Taiyuan

Shanxi, situated in the eastern part of the Huangtu Plateau in north China, is one of the cradles of earliest civilization. The province borders the Yellow River to the west and the Taihang Mountain to the east. Shanxi is famous for its natural resources, among which coal is the most abundant one, and it accounts for one third of China,as coal deposits.

Shanxi has a long history and enjoys many ancient architectures and historical sites. It is regarded as "China,as Art Museum" and has the reputation of "the gold mine of ancient architectures and historical attractions". The Wutai Mountain, the Yunyang Grottoes, Jinci Temple, the Overhanging Temple and the Hukou Waterfall attract thousands of tourists home and abroad every y

Population: 30.1 million
Urban population: 15.1 million
Nationalities: Han, Hui, Mongolian and Manchu

Area: 150,000 square kilometers
Climatic features: temperate, continental, monsoonal climate; long, cold winters and mild summers; warmer in the south than in the north
Average temperature: -16^oC to -2^oC in January, 19^oC to 28^oC in July
Annual average rainfall: 350 - 700 mm; high precipitation in the southeast and low in the northwest; 60 percent of the rain falls in summer
Physical features: located on the eastern part of the Loess Plateau; bounded by the Taihang Range in the east, the Yellow (Huanghe) River in the west and south, and the Great Wall in the north; valleys, basins, and lowlands in the central part are drained by the Fenhe River.
Mountains: the Taihang Range in eastern Shanxi includes Mount Wutai and Mount Hengshan; the Luliang Mountains are the watershed of the Yellow and Fenhe Rivers.
Rivers: Fenhe River, a tributary of the Yellow River
Products: wheat, corn, sorghum, millet, potatoes, soybeans, sesame, peanuts, rape, cotton, ambary hemp, silk cocoons; tobacco; pears, dates, walnuts, persimmons; coal, iron
Specialties: Jishan dates, Yuanping pears, Qingxu grapes

Administrative divisions: 10 cities and 96 counties
Capital: Taiyuan
Neighboring areas: Hebei, Henan, and Shaanxi Provinces; Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Major cities: Taiyuan, Datong, Changzhi, Yuci, Yangquan, Linfen, Houma, Jiexiu

Tourist attractions: the ancient Yungang Grottoes near Datong; the Memorial Temple of Jin near Taiyuan