白帝城

Li Po's

"Departure by Bai Di Cheng (White Imperial City) at Dawn"

In the bright dawn cloud
I left by the Cheng
A thousand li to Jiangling
Only takes a day
And I heard
Incessant cry of monkeys from the banks
My light barge has passed countless folds of hills.
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The name literally means City of the White Emperor. It is said that the area was once surrounded with a white mist, giving it a rather mysterious yet serene look, much like what an emperor should be like.


It has also been said that someone saw a white dragon, the symbol of the Emperor come out there, and the warlord Gongsun Shu thought this was a fortuitous sign, and declared himself Emperor of Chengja. He founded the city and called himself the White Emperor.

The temple is now an island due to the rise in water levels since the construction of the Three Gorges Dam. Much of the old structures were submerged and new buildings have been built higher up.

The island is linked to the north bank of the Yangtze by a bridge. It continues to be a tourist attraction with many cruise ships stopping at Fengjie to allow tourists to visit.

Baidi was also where Liu Bei, first emperor of the Kingdom of Shu during the Three Kingdoms era, died.

Thats all folks!

Happy Birthday Rebecca.