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Lanzhou is the capital of the Gansu province, with 13 thousand square
kilometers in area and a population of 2.58 million. The topography is
formed by three parts. They are valleys, basins, hilly land and Huangtumao
ditch and gully area. The Yellow River is flowing through the whole city.
Most parts of the area are semi-dry climate in the temperate zone. It has
an average annual temperature of 8.9 degree Celsius, and an average annual
precipitation of 331mm. Lanzhou abounds in coal. And also, there is gold,
silver, zine, nickel, manganese, clay and dolomite, etc. The resource of
waterpower is abundant too. Amongst its major industries, especially the
oil refinery, chemical, machinary and metallurgical industry, are in the
first place in China. In agriculture, there is spring wheat, vegetables,
beans, oil-boiling, melon, tobacco, drug and so on. Lanzhou is the
important output place of roses and lilieLanzhou. The reserve of rose-oil
is in the first place. It can be about 80% of Chinese output. Lanzhou's
fruits are famous too.
In Lanzhou, the railway and highway are very convenient. The airplane
here can take you to more than 20 cities all over the country.
Lanzhou・s climate is cool. And there are so many places of interest.
Wuquan Mountain, Baita Mountain and Xinglong Mountain are the most famous
summer resort places in China. Lutusi ancient government is the most
complete ancient palace building that has survived through China・s long
history.
The traditional specialties are melon seed, peach, watermelon, pears,
roses and lilies.
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Police Station:
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Lanzhou, capital of Gansu Province, boasts a fairly advanced
transport network and is generally thought of as one of the most important
railway and air traffic centers in west China. The city is an important
transit point for travelers planning on going northwest to Xinjiang, east
to Ningxia, south to Sichuan and north to Inner Mongolia.
Airport
It is possible to fly to Lanzhou from within the province (from
Dunhuang and Jiayuguan) and from most of the major cities in China such as
Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Chengdu, Xi'an and Nanjing.The
airport (Zhongchuan feiji chang) is 70km north of town, about an hour's
ride. You may either take a shuttle bus or hire a taxi to get downtown.
Airport buses (RMB20-RMB25) leave from the CAAC office (on Donggang xilu),
three hours before scheduled flights. You may, in addition, ask the
receptionist of the hotel you are staying in to see if they provide such a
service. There are also weekly charter flights for Hong Kong.To get
further information and book tickets, go to the booking office in Jincheng
Hotel or call (0931-8416737). China Northwest Airlines has a booking
office on Dongguang xilu, a five-minute walk northwest of Lanzhou Hotel
(open daily, 8am-9pm; Tel: 0931-8821964). The CAAC office is just 50m
further west along the road.
Railway station
Lanzhou is the intersection point of four major railway lines: the
Lanzhou-Lianyungang line, the Lanzhou-Urumqi line, the Lanzhou-Xining line
and the Lanzhou-Baotou line. There are almost daily trains passing the
city either way--to Urumqi (35 hours), to Beijing (28 hours) via Hohhot
(18 hours), to Golmud (20 hours) via Xining (4 hours), to Shanghai (24
hours) via Xi'an (17 hours) and Zhengzhou (12 hours).To facilitate
travelers within the province, there are daily special express trains to
Zhangye (12 hours) and Jiayuguan (15 hours). The main railway station is
at the foot of Gaolan Mountain in the southern part of town. Tickets, one
or two days in advance, can be bought either from the station or a railway
booking office on Donggang xilu, just next to the CAAC office (open daily
from 8:30am to 5pm).
Bus station
Although there are seven
long-distance bus stations in town and four state-level expressways pass
the city, travelers are advised to take a train, for it takes much less
time. However, if you are planning on heading south to Xiahe, bus is your
only option. For detailed information, check the corresponding section in
Xiahe. The Western Bus Station (Qiche xizhan) has buses to Yongjing (near
the Bingling Temple Caves), Linxia (4 hours), Xiahe (three direct buses
daily at 7:30am, 8:30am and 2:00pm, RMB30), Hezuo (7 hours), Zhangye
(about 15 hours) and Dunhuang (about 27 hours, a lengthy time auctually).
You may expect to be charged double unless you can produce a student or
resident identity card. The Eastern Bus Station on Pingliang lu handles
east-bound departures--one nightly sleeper to Xi'an (RMB105, 15 hours) and
morning and evening buses for Yinchuan (RMB36 for ordinary and RMB75 for
sleeper, 11 hours) and Tianshui (RMB27 for ordinary and double for
sleeper, nine hours).
City transport
City transport is relatively convenient, given the several dozen bus
routes in town. Bus No.1 and Trolley bus No.31 both run from the railway
station to the West Bus Station. Bus No.7 and 10 also run from the railway
station and head west. There are also many cabs that run through the
night.
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