SICHUAN

Sichuan is the home of the giant panda and golden-haired monkey.

Location: located in the Upper Yangtze Valley in the southwest part of the country
Area: 560,000 sq km
Capital: Chengdu

Population: 111.0 million
Urban Population: 28.2 million

Ethnic Groups: Dai, Qiang,Miao, Man,Yi,Lishu, Tibetan, Mongol, Zhuang, Naxi, Buyi and fourteen other ethnic groups

Tourist Attractions: Mt. Emei, 3,099 meters in elevation, one of the four mountains in China famous for their Buddhist temples; Mt. Qingcheng, near Guanxian County, known historically as a center of the Taoist culture; Dujiangyan, on Minjiang River, near Guanxian, built in 250 B.C., one of the earliest and most effective water conservancy projects; Baodingshan sculptures in Dazu County, about 100 kilometers west of Chongqing; Leshan Giant Buddha, the largest Buddha statue in the world; the Three Gorges on the Yangtze; Jiuzhaigou, a scenic spot in Nanping County at the foot of the Minshan Mountain

Climate: In the eastern basin area and the lower western valleys that are sheltered from cold polar air masses by the surrounding mountains, there are 350 frost-free days in the east, and the growing season lasts nearly all year round. In the west, the sheltering effect of the mountains is evident from the contrast between the perennially snow-capped peaks and the mild weather prevailing in the valleys beneath them.