If there is any place that children must visit, Dunhuang is one.

Located at the crossroads of the Silk Road, Dunhuang has a unique style of the Central Plains and unique characteristics of the Western Regions. There are no birds and animals in the desolate desert, but there is a Mogao grottoes that treasures murals from the North to the Yuan Dynasty.

The construction of the Mogao Grottoes began in 366 AD. It is a masterpiece with the longest excavation time, the largest number of caves and the highest artistic attainments in China. It integrates architecture, colored sculpture and painting, and is called "the grottoes in the grottoes".

more than 7 grottoes are scattered like honeycombs on the 1.7-kilometer-long broken wall from north to south. Among them, 492 grottoes are covered with colorful murals, covering more than 4, square meters. If they are all laid on the ground, it will exceed the area of 2 halls of supreme harmony in the Forbidden City.

(The picture is taken by Jin Liang of Dunhuang Research Institute)

These murals record the story of Sakyamuni's past life, the scenery of the pure land of bliss, and narrate the history of Buddhism's eastward journey. In Cave 321, the Bodhisattva bent her eyebrows and smiled, sitting cross-legged, with a warm and kind expression and cinnabar color as new. On the upper part of the four walls of Cave No.427, on the threshold of the Temple of Heaven, flying one after another in the blue sky and flowing clouds, playing music and scattering flowers. This symbolizes the highest skill of ancient painting in China, and it is also the soul of Mogao Grottoes.

More interestingly, the murals also depict scenes of people traveling on the Silk Road. The Silk Road is not only a long geographical leap, but also an exploration road for civilized exchange and breakthrough of geographical limitations. At different times, people wear different costumes, inlaid with the brim of Phnom Penh and elegant silk sleeves, which are shining and light and very realistic.

It can be said that if you want to explore the most extreme artistic treasures in ancient times and understand the splendid history of the Silk Road, visiting the Mogao Grottoes is the most direct way.

If a person can go deep into Dunhuang as a child and see this miracle in the desert with his own eyes, then I think he will have a deeper understanding and love for what civilization and history are.

However, under the erosion of time, the lines of most murals are still beautiful, the characters are vivid, but the colors are gradually dim. The patterns of many murals become blurred and damaged, and some even begin to fall off.

"The final result of the Mogao Grottoes is continuous destruction, and the flying with the pipa and the gorgeous Buddhist world will disappear sooner or later." Fan Jinshi, honorary president of Dunhuang Research Institute, has said similar things many times.

Now, thanks to the efforts of the guardians of Dunhuang, many grottoes have been restored, and some grottoes have been digitized. And we hope to go to the Mogao Grottoes with you, feel the charm of this miracle, understand the difficulty of mural protection, and have awe of cultural relics and the culture behind them.

This summer, the parent-child art research camp in Dunhuang, initiated by Southern Weekend and jointly organized by Siyi Space and Dunhuang Research Institute, is now accepting applications.

Four Arts Space-the first institution in South China to set up the course of children's museums, which integrates the education between schools and museums, advocates moving the classroom into museums at home and abroad, situational education and inquiry learning, and strengthens children's diverse interdisciplinary knowledge system.

Dunhuang Research Institute-a comprehensive research-oriented institution at the prefecture level responsible for the management of the world cultural heritage Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, Tianshui Maijishan Grottoes, Yongjing Bingling Temple Grottoes, Guazhou Yulin Grottoes, Dunhuang West Thousand Buddha Caves and Qingyang North Cave Temple.

Click on the poster to start registration

Itinerary Option 1: July 16-July 21, 219

Itinerary Option 2: August 11-August 16, 219

In our view, knowing Dunhuang is more than just flying to the local area and getting a glimpse of the grottoes. Instead, we should have a deep understanding of the local human geography, know the surrounding environment of the Mogao Grottoes, communicate with the low-key and persistent guardians of the Mogao Grottoes, and even personally participate in the creation, restoration and protection of murals, so as to truly feel the charm here.

(Take the period from July 16th to July 21st as an example, the itinerary is as shown above, and this itinerary may be adjusted, subject to the final itinerary)

Detailed itinerary

Day 1

Traveling through time and space in the Mogao Grottoes and exploring Buddhist art

In the morning, experts from Dunhuang Research Institute shared Dunhuang on the Silk Road, starting with the departure of Zhang Qian and telling the story of Mogao. And enjoy the movies "Millennium Mogao" and "Dream Buddha Palace", 8K figures, ball screens, 3D movies, and get into the digital world of Mogao Grottoes to see the greatness of grotto art.

Later, experts who have been engaged in the copying of murals in the Mogao Grottoes gave lectures in person, learned mural painting on the ground floor, saw and touched the real carrier of the Millennium murals in Dunhuang with their own eyes, and personally experienced the fun and hardships of ancient artists painting on mud walls.

In the afternoon, led by experts from Dunhuang Research Institute, we went to the mural restoration site in the private tour area to observe the mural restoration, learn what diseases and problems exist in the mural, visit the digital engineering site and get in close contact with professional restorers.

Avoid crowds at night, visit the Mogao Grottoes in depth, and learn the story behind every Buddha statue and mural under the explanation of experts.

Day 2

Take Yangguan Avenue to see the scenic spots of Han and Tang Dynasties

As early as 121 BC, the Western Han Dynasty set up four counties in Hexi Corridor, namely Wuwei, Zhangye, Jiuquan and Dunhuang, and established Yangguan and Yumenguan at the same time, in order to resist the Xiongnu's harassment of the frontier. From then on, as the gateway to the western regions, Yangguan is the only pass of the South Road of the Silk Road, and its strategic position is extremely important.

In the morning, we will visit Yumenguan, Yangguan and the Great Wall of Han Dynasty to appreciate the vicissitudes of history and civilization from reality.

in the afternoon, we will set out for Yadan landform in Dunhuang. Yadan landform is a typical wind erosion landform in dry areas. Yadan City in Dunhuang is located at the junction of Gansu and Xinjiang, more than 8 kilometers northwest of Yumenguan, and it is also a part of ancient Lop Nur. It is a rare natural sculpture museum with orderly layout and strange shape, which is another wonder of Dunhuang.

We will learn all kinds of climate and geography knowledge here and enjoy the sunset. After nightfall, we will hold a poetry recital on the frontier fortress to personally experience the mood created by the ancients.

visit the Yulin grottoes on day 3, and take Xuanzang road again

The Yulin grottoes have a different cave and live in the desert. There are murals from the Tang Dynasty to the Yuan Dynasty for 8 years, as well as scenes in The Journey to the West.

Experts from Dunhuang Grottoes will take us around to unlock Buddhist stories on the Silk Road and enjoy the exquisite portraits of Buddha and Bodhisattva in Yulin Grottoes.

In the afternoon, we will visit the ruins of Suoyangcheng and Pozhenzi. Xuanzang went west privately in those days, and once passed through here. It is also the best-preserved ancient military defense system and ancient farmland irrigation system in China. There are a large number of plants and insects, but all of them have protective colors and are not easy to detect. We will take Xuanzang Road again here and have a natural science examination class in the field beyond the desert.

Day4 incarnates as a narrator and plays around Mingsha Mountain

The Dunhuang Museum tells us about the development of Dunhuang from the Stone Age to the new era with history as the guide. From the establishment of four counties in Hexi in Han Dynasty as the starting point of prosperity, to the peak of Tang Dynasty, to the gradual desolation in Ming Dynasty, and then to the present efforts.

under the guidance of experts, children will learn to observe and understand the artifacts and statues in Dunhuang Museum, explore the historical traces in cultural relics, open their minds, visit the museum in a brand-new way, and become small lecturers to share with their peers.

In the afternoon, we will come to Mingsha Mountain and Crescent Spring. Crescent Spring is famous as a "desert wonder" in the world. It is located at the foot of Mingsha Mountain and surrounded by sand dunes. Because of the terrain, sand does not go down the mountain when it is windy, but flows up the mountain. Here, we will ride camels and slide sand to experience the most desert sports. You can also climb Mingsha Mountain, overlook the crescent spring and enjoy the sunset on the top of the mountain.

After sunset, we will hold a bonfire party in Mingsha Mountain to share the harvest and unforgettable memories of this trip.

original price: 7,999 yuan. If you register before June 15th, you can enjoy the early bird price of 7,888 yuan and the group price of 7,688 yuan for four people, and you can enjoy the special right to listen to the online lecture of Dream Dunhuang (the theme is tentatively planned). The lecture time will be announced later. This group is a boutique group, 12 people start the group and 3 people are full. If the group fails, we will inform you 15 days before the trip and give a full refund.

The fee includes

1. 5 nights' accommodation fee of Huaxia International Hotel in Dunhuang (or a five-star hotel at the same level, including breakfast)

2. Tickets for various scenic spots and lectures by experts

3. Airport pick-up fee in Dunhuang, and pick-up and drop-off at Dunhuang Airport at the same time

4. Dinner at 5 am and 7 am during the trip (catering is not a group meal, All are high-standard meals)

5. During the trip, the whole chartered car and driver's expenses (38 luxury tourist buses)

7. Travel accident insurance with a coverage of 1,. Another 1 million travel agency liability insurance will be added

8. A backpack of museum classroom exploration tools and study materials

The cost does not include

1. Transportation to and from Dunhuang all over the country

2. Personal expenses during the trip

Staying in a five-star hotel (Dunhuang Huaxia International Hotel or a five-star hotel at the same level)

Special meals, Study packages, etc.

Registration consultation

Scan the QR code below to add a little assistant Zhou Zhou Registration

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(this article is promotion information).