Foreign vloggers immerse themselves in the cultural heritage of Shanxi

Foreign vloggers immersed themselves in the millennia-old cultural heritage of Hedong during a visit to Shanxi province's Yuncheng city on Friday, which was a part of a five-day tour of visiting the province's ancient architecture.

The event - Discovering Shanxi's Ancient Chinese Architecture — Overseas Media and Students Tour, organized by China Daily and Shanxi Daily, kicked off on Tuesday, attracting 10 vloggers from eight countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, and France.

Yuncheng, historically known as Hedong and located in the southwestern part of Shanxi, is also the hometown of Guan Gong — or Lord Guan.

Guan Gong is the reverent term of address for Guan Yu, a general in the period spanning the late Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220) and the Three Kingdoms (220-280). He is also known as Guandi, or Emperor Guan.

The Haizhou Guandi Temple, initially built during the Sui Dynasty (581-618), is the earliest, largest, highest-grade, and best-preserved Guandi Temple still in existence in China.

"I've seen many Guandi Temples in Africa, but now I've finally visited the ancestral temple of all Guandi Temples," said Oluwabunmi Henry Jimoh, a vlogger from Nigeria. "I've also memorized the sacred teaching of Lord Guan - Read good books, speak good words, do good deeds, and be a good person - I will bring the stories from here back to Nigeria."

The Yongle Palace, with a history of 700 years, is the only surviving official architectural complex from the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) in China.

It is renowned worldwide for its nearly 1,000-square-meter Yuan Dynasty fresco, "Chaoyuan Tu" (The Assembly of the Gods), hailed as the "Gallery of Oriental Art".

"I felt as if I could see the gods interacting and sense the vivid and dynamic celestial realm while standing inside," said Indonesian vlogger Veldsen Yaputra.

"Although I didn't know much about Shanxi before, this trip allowed me to personally touch the profound history of ancient architecture and feel its vibrant vitality," said Irish vlogger Luke O'Farrell. "Yuncheng, in particular, with the Guandi Temple and the spirit of loyalty and righteousness it embodies, gave me a more genuine understanding of the cultural roots of China."