Shaanxi is a province in the Northwest China region of the People's Republic of China, and includes portions of the Loess Plateau on the middle reaches of the Yellow River as well as the Qinling Mountains across the southern part of the province.
The northern part of Shaanxi is cold in the winter and very hot in summer with dry winter and spring. Its southern portion generally receives more rain. Annual mean temperature is roughly between 9°C and 16°C with January temperature ranging from −11°C to 3.5°C and July temperature ranging from 21°C to 28°C.
Shaanxi has well developed agriculture and stockbreeding. In agriculture, the main products are wheat, cotton, silk cocoon, and tobacco, while flax is the important cash crop. The main industries include coal, machinery, textile, electronics and chemistry, etc. The coal reserve here is among the top in the country.
There are many historic places to be seen. One of the oldest is the Banpo Village Remains, the site of a 6,000-year-old village which belongs to the Neolithic Age. In the capital city, Xian, you can see the City Wall, which was begun in the Han Dynasty, a century before the Christian era, and is now the largest and most well-preserved ancient wall, existing in China. There are many more ancient structures and temples such as the Big Goose Pagoda built in 652, Famen Temple, Bell Tower and the Drum Tower. The highlight of a Shaanxi tour for many visitors is the amazing Museum of Qin Terra-cotta Warriors and Horses who guard a site honored as the Eighth Great Wonder of the world.
Shaanxi is also abundant in natural beauty beyond its rich historical legacy. As one of the five best-known mountains in China, Mt. Huashan, 120 kilometers (or 46 miles) east of Xian, is famous for its breath-taking cliffs and awe-inspiring landscape. The Hukou waterfall on Yellow River, the second biggest one in China, is very overbearing and magnificent. And Moutain Lishan and the nearby Huaqing Hot Springs are very attractive. Their beautiful legends will bring you into a moving love story between emperor Xuanzong and a beauty named Yang Yuhuan.
Shaanxi is both a base area of Chinese new-democratic revolution and a place with unique folk customs. The loud resounding Shaanxi opera, the joyous clattering of gongs and drums, the exquisite cut - paper art and the peasants' paintings full of a rich flavor of life attract more and more tourists' attention from home and abroad.
Xian is the capital of the Shaanxi province in the People's Republic of China and a sub-provincial city. As one of the oldest cities in Chinese history, Xi'an is one of the four great ancient capitals of China because it has been the capital of some of the most important dynasties in Chinese history, including the Zhou, Qin, Han, the Sui, and Tang dynasties.
It is divided into 10 prefecture-level cities, 4 county-level cities and 83 counties, with a population of 36.05 million as of 2000, mainly including ethnic groups of Han, Manchu, Hui, Mongolian, and Tibetan.
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