Tai’an, Shandong Province
Tai’an is a famous cultural and tourism city in Middle Shandong Province, with 
Mount Taishan as a national key scenic spot. Tai’an is a cradle of Chinese civilization. Human beings appeared here as early as 500,000 years ago; the Xintai people 50,000 years ago had been Homo sapiens already; the splendid Dawenkou Culture occurred here more than 5,000 years ago has become an important milestone in Chinese civilization.
Located on the foot of Taishan Mountain, Tai’an city is built by the mountain, 66.8 kilometers north to Jinan, the capital of Shandong, and 74.6 kilometers south to Qufu, the holy place of Sankong (Temple, Mansion and Cemetery of Confucius). Tai’an is in the center of the popular “Mount Taishan, Huanghe River and Confucius” route in Shandong. Tai’an belongs to the Central Shandong Economic Zone, bordering Taishan Mountain and Jinan to the north, connecting Ji’ning city to the south,
neighboring Laiwu and Linyi to the east and facing Liaocheng across Huanghe River. The transportation of Tai’an is well-developed with convenient railway and road transportation and emerging air transportation.
The Taishan Mountain in Tai’an is called the East Sacred Mountain and the first mountain in the world, with a total area of 426 square kilometers. Since emperors and people always offered sacrifice to Taishan Mountain from ancient times during the long history of Chinese civilization, the Mount Taishan has been deified. Scholars and celebrities flood here in ancient China, leaving many historical relics to us. The name “Taishan” originated from Taishan Mountain. For its profound history and culture and magnificent landscapes, Taishan Mountain attracts many tourists every year. Taishan Mountain Scenic Spot is arranged radially, centering with the main peak of Taishan. The whole spot is made up of natural landscapes and cultural landscapes. They include 156 peaks, 136 ranges, 72 famous caves, 72 strange rocks, 130 valleys, 64 waterfalls, 72 springs, thousands of trees, 58 temples, 128 ancient relics, 1239 stone tablets and 1277 inscriptions on precipices, most of which distribute in Daiyang, Daiding, Daiyin and Lingyan. Taishan Mountain International Climbing Festival is held every year in early September, during when opening ceremony, sports competition, business trade activities and cultural activities will be on stage.