Wenbi Tower

The western gate of the former walled city of Lin'an. Together with the eastern Chaoyang Gate, southern Fu'an Gate and northern Yongzhen Gate, it formed part of the traditional four-gate layout of the old city.

Long before Americans started studying for SAT, GRE, and bar exams, a system of local, provincial, and imperial examinations served to select deserving candidates for the government apparatus of imperial China. The Jianshui examination hall is a complex of buildings where, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, young Yunnan scholars would come to take the high-stake exam that could decide the course of their subsequent lives. Although the buildings have few historical artefacts, they have good displays (in Chinese and English) on the imperial examination system as it operated in the region.

The southern gate of the former walled city of Lin'an. It was one of the four historic gates that defined the old city's street layout, together with Chaoyang Gate in the east, Qingyuan Gate in the west and Yongzhen Gate in the north.

Billed as "the largest Confucian temple in Southern China", Jianshui's temple was founded in 1285, during the Yuan Dynasty, although the existing buildings date mostly to the late 18th century (and probably have been heavily restored in the late 20th). Unlike its better known namesakes in Qufu or Hanoi, Jianshui's temple includes a large lake, known as Xuehai ("The Sea of Learning"). A pavilion on the island is called Si Le Ting 思乐亭, i.e. the "Joy of Learning Pavilion"; it's also known under the alternative name, "Diao Ao Ting" 钓鳌亭, i.e. "The pavilion for catching Ao"; catching Ao, a legendary giant sea turtle, is a metaphor for scoring best at the traditional civil service examination in the Imperial China. Similar to the Confucian temples elsewhere, Jianshui's temple has a large assortment of ornate gates and halls for honoring Confucius, his ancestors and disciples, and assorted local worthies, in a parklike setting, among cypress trees. If you've been to Qufu or Hanoi, you'll notice one difference, though: in Qufu or Hanoi, most important stone tablets are mounted on top of stone tortoises (bixi), while in Jianshui, there is not a tortoise in sight; on the other hand, elephant motif is prominent in decorating the temple in Jianshui. It's up to you to decide if the temple and its lake are worth the fairly steep entry fee.

The 17-span bridge, now standing in the middle of a pond, as most of the waters in the Lin'an River has been diverted elsewhere. The tourist train makes a short stop nearby.

The preserved eastern gate tower of the former walled city of Lin'an and one of Jianshui's best-known landmarks. Built in 1389 during the Ming dynasty, it is the only one of the city's four original gate towers to survive substantially intact. The upper floors contain exhibition space and offer views over the old town. The building has been protected as a Major Historical and Cultural Site at the National Level since 2006.