Tourism

Hubei's tourism resources feature both beautiful landscapes and abundant places of historic and cultural interest. There are six national-level scenic spots, 13 national forest parks and three national nature reserves. Shennongjia has been listed in the UNESCO's program of Man and Biosphere and Wudang Mountain in the list of World Cultural and Natural Heritages. The Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, Yellow Crane Tower and Gezhouba have been listed among China's top 40 tourist scenic sports. Hubei encompasses five famous historical and cultural cites designated by the state, 20 cultural sites under state protection, 365 cultural sites under provincial protection, five sites of Chu city ruins, 73 Chu Cultural sites and over 140 sites relating to the Three Kingdoms.

(Chinese Business World. Hubei Province.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://www.cbw.com/general/g18/g18.htm.)

                                Jingzhou ancient city wall

                   Local Custom Scenic Spot in Yichang of Three Gorges

                      Yangtse River

Yellow Crane Tower

                                            Jiu Wan Xi Drifting

Education

Hubei Province has 61 million people; approaching twice the size of Texas’ population. It is the 16th largest Chinese province. From a literacy standpoint, Hubei Province has 99% of its students complete the 9 year compulsory education (which includes pre-k and kindergarten) and 99% of those who enter junior middle school. Three and a half million students are enrolled in 9-year compulsory (average class size 17:1), 3.5 million enrolled in middle schools. One million students are enrolled in vocational high school, which is twice the rate of Texas career & technical education course enrollment. Hubei Province has the largest college-going population with 1.1 million students, about one-quarter the Texas population/college enrollment ratio.

(Austin Chamber of Commerce. The Numbers on Hubei Province Education.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://collegereadyaustin.com/news/2010/12/06/the-numbers-on-hubei-province-education/.)

When Chinese people talked about Hubei, the first things appear in their heads that the education. Hubei student are nearly the hardest student in China. The education here is very rigorous and challenged. Students have to study very hard so that they can keeping education, and go to famous universities. All students dreams are just studing. Their parents and teachers try their best to teach more and more knowledge, so you will find some students are still studing in weekend and break days. Although Hubei's students own more knowledge than other provinces students, they are really very tired in this edcation system. Chinese society push them to achieve and improve, they loss their childhood but to be robots. Why this happan? Hubei is not rich enough, some children who live in villages just have this one way to change their future and fate.

excessive pressure

Food

Hubei is one of the birthplaces of Chinese and its ancient culture. In ancient Chu culture, the food style is mainly fresh and salty, which can date back to the ages of Qu Yuan. Porridge and soup were mostly favored.
Now, Hubei cuisine consists of dishes from Wuhan, Jinnan, Xiangyun and Southeast Hubei. Wuhan cuisine originated in an area where there is a major-scale inland fishery. Fish is the main ingredient of many dishes, such as steamed Wuchang fish, penholder-like fish belly, brown-sauce-stewed fish and quick-boiled fish with oranges. Other typical local dishes include steamed triplet from Mianyang, chicken broth stewed in an earthen jar, thousand-sliced pork, calipash soup with wax gourd and medicinal soups made by the long and gentle stewing of fried chicken with seasonings.
 
 

Wuchang Fish

 Spicy noodels, sweet & sour pork and some tufu

The word "Guozao" (meaning having breakfast outdoors) first appeared in the book Hankou Zhuzhi Ci during the Daoguang Period of Qing Dynasty. It refers to Wuhan people's having breakfast. Because of geographical environment and economic activities, people in Wuhan got used to the custom of Guozao outdoors a long time ago. The restaurants in Wuhan are highly developed, of various kinds, and of styles of both north and south. They are scattered in many streets all over the city, prosperous and crowded. According to statistiques, as many as 100, 1000 people are engaged in the business. Guozao has been in the noticeable characteristic in this city.

(English.CNHubei. Hubei Food Culture.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://english.cnhubei.com/2008-09/19/cms673032article.shtml.)

Yichang Oranges

Water Transport

Hubei is one of China's most developed provinces in terms of inland water transportation. With the Yangtze and Hanjiang rivers as the two major waterways, over half of the province's counties and cities are located along water transport lines. The Yangtze River is the most important inland waterway open for navigation all year round. The ports of Wuhan, Huangshi, Shashi and Yichang are all open to foreign ships, with the Wuhan Port being one of the largest of its kind on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It has opened freight shipping lines to Hong Kong, Japan and Southeast Asian countries. Hanjiang River is an important waterway linking northwest Hubei with the Jianghan Plain. Xiangfan and Laohekou are major ports on the Hanjiang River.

(China Scientific Book Services . Provinces and Cities.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://www.hceis.com/ChinaBasic/ProvinCity/hubei.htm.)

Ethnic--Tujia

Hubei is a province where many ethnic groups live in compact communities. It now has 50 ethnic groups, including the Han, Tujia, Miao, Hui, Dong, Manchu, Zhuang and Mongolian. According to the fifth national census, the ethnic minority groups, with nearly 2.58 million people, comprise 4.34 percent of the province's total population. Minority ethnic groups with over 10,000 people include the Tujia, Miao, Hui, Dong and Manchu. With 1.8 million people, Tujia is the largest ethnic minority group in Hubei, comprising 80 percent of the total ethnic minority population in the province. The second largest, the Miao, constitutes 10.3 percent. The areas where ethnic minority groups live in compact communities cover more than 30,000 square kilometers, forming one-sixth of the province's total area. Ethnic minority groups are mainly distributed in southwestern Hubei.

(China Through A Lens. Ethnic.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://www.china.org.cn/english/features/66665.htm.)


The Tujia nationality

Population in Hubei: 200,000 people in Hubei

Cultural etiquette: Tujia people engage in agriculture. Women like handicraft. Embroidery art in Tujia is very famour, and it is traditional handicraft. Tujia people like singing and dancing. Tujia's music is one of the most traditional and original music in China.

Custom: Tujia people was supersition befor, they sacrificed a pig's head in the first day of a new year. They also believed the kitchen god, in every special day they would insert a chopstick to pray a harvest in a new year. Tujia people believe White Tiger god, because the region where they live has some tigers. This is why they think the god will protect them forever.

Traditional culture: All the Tujia girls should cry in their wedding day. They should cry three to five days in general but some of them can cry one weeks. It looks like a standard to value how virtuousness a girl has.
In historical result about they cried for their marrige that Tujia girls were not satisfied with the marriage system. They didn't own true love and happiness, and they were just tools to give birth to babies.

(China Culture. Tujia Ethnic Minority.. 6 Jan. 2011 http://www.chinaculture.org/library/2008-02/05/content_24094.htm.)

                                                          Two Tujia men

                                                            A Tujia girl

                                                      Tujia girl's wedding

The Three Gorges Dam

The Three Gorges Dam is the world’s largest hydro power project and most notorious dam. The massive project sets records for number of people displaced (more than 1.2 million), number of cities and towns flooded (13 cities, 140 towns, 1,350 villages), and length of reservoir (more than 600 kilometers).
(International River. Three Gorges Dam.. 5 Jan. 2011 <http://www.internationalrivers.org/en/node/356?gclid=CLv29KSEpKYCFUVqKgodkSJlnA>.)

The most significant function of the dam is to control flooding, which is a major problem for the seasonal river of the Yangtze. Millions of people live downstream of the dam, with many large, important cities like Wuhan, Nanjing, and Shanghai situated adjacent to the river. Plenty of farm land and China's most important industrial area are built beside the river.
As a Yichang citizens, I am not happy with this project. Although Yichang's economy changed by this big project, more environment problems impact my hometown even more the whole China.
In order to build this dam, some historical relict suffered damaged and destroyed. When the dam constructed, many newspaper reported that some animal run away to the mountain peak. Absolutely, resettlement who lived in Three Gorges struggled with government in a long time.
Today, my hometown has chaged rich but it lost more than before.

Religion

Hubei has five religions, they are Taoism, Buddhism, Christian, Catholisim and Islamism. Wudang mountain is seated in the northwestern of Hubei province, it is known as Taoist center. Daoism is an important religion in China because it is originated form China mainland, and it has existed about 1,800 years.
Wudang Taoism belongs to Quanzhen, the purpose is for living forever. Tao divides into different branches that has different goals, such as Maoshan, Zhengyi and so on.
Laozi, the Taoist founder, is famous as Confucius in China. He wrote a book named "Tao The Ching", it  is a short but all his philosophy theory includes in it.

                                                        Taoist

Wing-tsit Chan stated that "Tao meant a system of morality to Confucianism, but the natural, eternal, spontaneous, indescribable way things began and pursued their course to Taoists."
In fact the explanation of "Tao" is various, but all of them has a simple significant means that "Tao" is a rule. The rule is determined by nature. If people want to mix into society in advance, people must abide by natural rules. That is "Tao".    (Wudang Taoist Kung Fu Academy. Wudang Taoist.. 6 Jan. 2010 http://www.wudang-kungfu.com/.)

"Man takes Earth as his model;

  Earth takes Heaven as his model;

Heaven takes Tao as its model;

               The Tao takes what is nature as its model."

    -Laozi

Wudang Mountain (short film)

Nature Reserves-Shennongjia

It is located in the west of Hubei province. Shennongjia is characterized by high mountains, steep slopes and deep valleys. These have formed its unique landscape. The ecological communities of animals and plants are well preserved, including the ancient rare plants, such as emmenoplerys, Katsura Trees, taxus tissue, and polar trees. Besides, there are thousands kinds of herbs, among which the rhizoma gastrodiae, goldthread root and seven-leaf one-flower are the precious or local herbs. Shennongjia is reputed as “Garden of Herbs” or “Natural Herb Garden”.

(Travel China Guide. Shennongjia Forest Zone.. 6 Jan. 2010 http://www.travelchinaguide.com/attraction/hubei/shiyan/shennongjia.htm.)

                                                                            Spring

                                                                           Autumn

                                                                            Winter

                                                                         Summer

Introduction

Hubei, a central province in China, which includes 17 cities.
It has a sub-tropical monsoonal climate, with distinct contrast between the eastern plain and the western mountainous area. The annual temperature is 15°－17°C, and sticky weather in the height of summer. The maximum temperature exceeding 40°C, Wuhan, the provincial capital, is one of the hottest places in China. This kind of whether is conducive to grow rice, tea and cotton.
Hubei has a long history. By the 21st century BC, original people had settled in it. Hubei owns aboundant of nature resource especially mineral resources such as iron, copper and phosphate.
The world famous Three Goges Dam is located in Yichang City, and the dense wilderness Shennongjia always regard as a mysterious place.
Hubei has been said to be one of the originating places of the Chinese people. Today many minority ethnic groups live in this area including: Miao, Tujia, Dong and some others. But most of native people are Han nation.
Welcome to Hubei, my homtown!!

(People's Daily. Hubei Province.. 5 Jan. 2010 http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/data/province/hubei.html.)