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Located at the central part of Shan Dong Province and lying across Ji'nan and Tai'an Cities, Mount Taishan is the cradle of Chinese culture and the most magnificent mountain under heaven. With a height of 1,545 meters, its majesty and splendor is incomparable. It is mainly made up of natural sights as well as man-made sights. The intense grandeur from its mountainous bearing and spectacular breath-taking scenery exudes sheer elegance, profundity and immense vastness while touching on serenity merged with an air of mystery and tempestuous danger. There are five scenic areas on Mount Taishan - the Dai Temple, the East and West Routes, the Mid-heaven Gate - junction of the two routes, and the Jade Emperor Summit. East Route: "Serenity" characterizes the east route. It is the best option to take for a climb up Mount Taishan. Many cultural relics and historic sites bear witness of the past history. Attractions include Dai Zong Archway, the place where Confucius had ever visited, Jing Shi Valley, Hu Tian Pavilion, Mid-heaven Gate, Five Pines Pavilion and Eighteen Bends.

According to historical records, the Five Pines Pavilion is also called the Five "Dafu" Pines. In 219 BC, when the first emperor Qin Shihuang was halfway down from the Mount Taishan it began to rain and he took shelter under the five pines beside five pavilions. Later, he conferred them the titles of "Dafu", the so-called "Five Pines Pavilion".

The Eighteen Bends is a long and hard journey from Dui Songshan to Southheaven Gate in the Mount Taishan. It has three "Eighteen Bends" and 1630 steps. Seen from a distance, it would appear to be almost 400 meters up, vertically. One needs to be extra careful when climbing the steps.

West Route: "Vastness" characterizes the west route, famous for its natural scenery. The winding highway forms the main path. Beautiful ridges and peaks form a silhouette speckled with long and narrow valleys, enigmatic and charming waterfalls and crystal-clear rippling streams. The International Mount Tai Climbing Festival is held there annually, and people from many different countries come to participate in, and enjoy the event. The main sights of the west route include Longevity Bridge, Black Dragon Pool, Remains of Tian Sheng Fort and Fan Cliff.

The Black Dragon Pool is a recommended scenic spot along this route. There you will witness the waterfall flowing like a long white silk flying, as it pours over the cliff culminating into the Black Dragon Pool. Limpid, green water forms a very appealing sight, and mirror-smooth stones scatter around the area. Just imagine yourself sitting on the stones, absorbing the wonderful surrounding scenery while listening to the soothing sounds of the flowing water. An exhilarating treat for both the eyes and the mind!

Mid-heaven Gate: With a height of 847 meters, the Mid-heaven Gate forms the crossing of the east and west routes. From this point, people can get a fantastic view of the mountain. On the east lies the pretty Mid-stream Mountain; to the west is the wandering Phoenix Valley; in the south is the wispy and misty Wen River and to the north is the hanging cloud ladder on the top of Mount Taishan. Cable cars and helicopters providing scenic trips for tourists are available there. Feast your eyes on the magnificent and towering splendor of Mount Taishan.

Jade Emperor Summit: This is the highest peak of Mount Taishan. At the peak lies the Jade Emperor Temple, where a bronze statue of the Jade Emperor is worshipped. Enjoy the beauty of sunrise in the mornings in the east pavilion and the golden belts of the Yellow River in the west pavilion. The most spectacular feature of the Jade Emperor Summit is the carpet of snow - indeed a marvelous spectacle to behold.

On Mount Taishan lie four wonders. The sunrise in the mornings is the most impressive and symbolic of Mount Taishan. Foggy clouds envelope the top of Tai Shan making it almost fairyland-like, instilling in one the desire to fly like a celestial being in the sea of clouds. Climbing the snow-covered Mount Tai is really a big challenge, but the scenery of the whole mountain with its unique charm makes it a worthwhile effort. The Buddha light shines on the top of Mount Taishan like a multicolored aureole, and people who are shined upon take it as a lucky omen of great honor.

As one of the five best-known mountains in China, Mount Huashan is located to the south of Huayin city, 120 kilometers east of Xi'an, in Shaanxi province, with an elevation of 2200 meters above sea level. In ancient times, Mount Huashan was called Mt. Taihuashan. Seen from afar, the five peaks looks like five petals of a flower. Hence its name, Mount Huashan (= five flowers). Today, it is listed as one of the renowned national scenic spots.

Mount Huashan is famous for its breath-taking cliffs. Along the 12-kilometer-long winding path up to the top are awe-inspiring precipices, looking into which will take your breath away. Among the five peaks, East Peak (Facing Sun Peak), West Peak (Lotus Peak) and South Peak (Dropping Goose Peak) are comparatively high. Standing at the top of East Peak, one can enjoy the rising sun early in the morning. West Peak, in resemblance to a lotus flower, is the most graceful peak in Mount Huashan. In addition, there are Middle Peak (Jade Maiden Peak) and North Peak (Clouds Stand). The middle peak got its name because of a story telling that once a young lady rode a white horse among the mountains. North Peak, like a flat platform in the clouds, is the place where the story Capturing Mount Huashan Wisely took place.

Mount Huashan boasts lot of places of interest. Here and there stand Buddhist and Taoist temples, pavilions and buildings as well as sculptures and engravings. Of the ruins, Yuquan (Jade Spring), Zhenwu Palace, and Jintian Palace are, comparatively speaking, famous. Xiyue Temple, seven kilometers north of Mount Huashan is the place where people of ancient times paid tribute to the Mount Huashan God.

Along the cliff of South Peak is a planked path equipped with an iron chain, with the help of which, adventurers can walk on the frightful path. There is a giant rock in front of Cuiyun Palace on West Peak. As it takes the shape of a lotus flower, the mountain is also called Lotus

Peak. As legend has it, Chen Xiang, a filial young man, once split the mountain and rescued his mother out of it. Now a crack can be witnessed in a giant rock beside Cuiyun Palace as if an axe made it. Thus, the rock is called "Axe-splitting Rock," beside which is a huge axe with a long handle. The northwest side of the peak is called Fatal Cliff for it is as steep as if it was cut by a sharp sword.

North Peak, with cliffs on three sides, has only one road leading to the south. From here one goes south to Ca'er Precipice, the fourth most dangerous place along the only path in Mount Huashan. The cliff path is less than 30 centimeters wide, and faces such a deep valley that the tourists have to edge along carefully. Then one comes to Sky-leading Ladder, Sun and Moon Precipice and the well-known Blue Dragon Mountain.

East Peak, with a rising-sun platform favorable for viewing the morning sun, is also called Facing Sun Peak. As the sun emerges from the sea of clouds, one cannot help but show great admiration.

Mount Songshan is located in Dengfeng County, in the Henan province of the People Republic of China. The highest peak is 1440 mt.

Mt. Songshan got its fame from being the place where the Indian monk Batuo founded the Shaolin temple in 495 a.C. Few years later in 527 a.D. another Indian monk, Damo (or Bodhidharma) moved to the temple to teach the Chan sect of Buddhism, best known as Zen Buddhism (Zen is the way Japaneses read the Chinese ideogram for Chan). Buddhism was been already introduced in China during the first century b.C., but the many cultural differencies between India and China made the strict Hinayana form to be not well accepted. The Chan version was instead more adapt to the Chinese culture and became rapidly the most influential Buddhist school in China.

The magnificent Songshan Mountain towers on the plain between Zhengzhou and Luoyang, consisting of the peaks of Taishi and Shaoshi. Zhongyue (the Central Sacred Mount) Temple at the front of Taishi was first built in the Qin Dynasty (221-207 B. C. ) and was renamed in the Northern Wei period (386-534). A Taoist temple, it has 11 gates leading to the final Imperial Library. In the temple, there are 300 ancient cypresses, and more than 100 metal-cast statues and stone tablets. Shaolin Temple at the foot of Shaoshi was first built in the Northern Wei period, and has long been renown worldwide for kongfu, or Chinese martial arts. There are 230 brick dagobas, the largest of its kind in China, erected during the Tang, Song, An, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties.