Jilin province is located in the central part of Northeast China, adjoining Heilongjiang Province in the north, Lianing Province in the south, and the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region in the west.
The province boasts rich tourism resources. In the provincial capital Changchun, there are the former government office of the Manchurian State established by the Japanese invaders during World War II, the Jingyuetan Forest Park, the Monument to the Martyrs of the Soviet Red Army, the Automobile Town, and the Changchun Film Studio. In Jilin City, there are the mountain city of Gaojuli on Mount Longtans; Beishan Park; the Songhua Lake in Fengman; the Baohai Ancient Tombs in Mount Liuding of Dunhua; the Chengzishan mountain city in Yanji; the Changbeishan Nature Reserve that covers a vast area in the three counties of Changbei, Antu and Fusong and boasts scenic spots such as the Heavenly Pond, waterfalls, and groups of hot springs and grand canyons. In Tonghua, there is the Tomb of General Yang Jingyu.
It has a temperate continental monsoonal climate. It is the climatic transition zone between the northern and southern parts of northeast China, with cold and long winters, warm, short and rainy summers, and a windy spring and autumn with ever-changing weather. Jilin has a mean annual temperature of 5.5°C, an annual ice-bound period of around five months in its rivers, and a mean annual precipitation of 400-1,000 mm.
Jilin Province has many different landforms. The topography inclines higher at the southeast and lower to the northwest. The mountain, Dahei, in the middle of the province, divides the land into two parts, a mountainous region in the east and a large plain in the mid-west. The eastern mountainous region, known as Changbaishan, is divided into two parts; the middle part, which is a low mountainous region, and a low, rolling hill country. The mid-west plain also divides into two parts, much of it is flat land, but in the west there are sand dunes. Jilin Province is China's important forestry base. Forest land area covers 8.052 million hectares, making up for 42.5% of the total land. The existing live standing timber totals 860.89 million cubic meters, making Jilin Province the 6th in forestry nationwide.
Jilin Province has many kinds of plants and animals. There are 5,284 wild plant species and 437 animals species. Jilin Province is famous for "the three treasures of the northeast" (ginseng, marten fur and velvet). These are all found in the east Beishan mountain region. Jilin Province has many wild edible plants. Tonghua wine is also produced in the province. The Changbaishan region is reputed to have one of the three big natural raw materials for Chinese traditional medicine. The entire province has 1,452 kinds of medicinal products, including ginseng, asarum and gastrodia. Jilin Province has national protection for 77 kinds of wild animals, including the Manchurian tiger.
With the development of the economy and society, tourism of Jilin becomes magnificent for the glamorous mountains and beautiful rivers. Most of the natural scenes of Jilin Province remains their primitive features, and were seldom under the helping of man-made carving. The east area features the scenic Changbai Mountains' primitive forests, unique volcanic landforms, specific and solid upright scenery. The west area entails grasslands, wetlands, clay forests of Qian'an, crane-watching tours of Xiang hai. From the west to the east, these natural sceneries reveal the magical, straightforward, simple and sophisticated characteristics of Jilin tourism resources.
The world-famous Changbai Mountains, the source of the Tumen, Yalu, and Songhua rivers, are one of the most beautiful areas in China. Endowed with rich natural resources and charming scenery, the mountains are dotted with scenic spots. A nature preserve has been established here to protect the area's animals and plants. Together with the nature preserves in Wolong of Sichuan province and Dinghu Mountain of Guangdong Province, it has become a base for international scientific research into China's indigenous wildlife. Other scenic spots and historical sites include Jilin Songhua Lake and the Puppet Manchurian Imperial Palace Museum.
The Korean ethnic group in Jilin has distinguished characteristics in terms of costume, architecture, and folk arts. The Koreans like athletic sports like football, wrestling, skating, springboard and playing swing. The women are fond of playing gangplank and swing. Football is especially popular among the Korean men, and Yanbian area has a reputation of the land of football. The Korean people are especially good at singing and dancing. The famous folk dances include the Tambourin Dance, Fan Dance, Carrying Water Dance, Sword Dance, Dance of Happy Farmers, etc. Cold noodles are their most popular food.
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