Kanding is the business and administrative center of the Kham (or Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture) in Western Sichuan Province. It is situated in a valley with a river running through and mountains at back. 360kms west to the city of Chengdu, this town is at an altitude of 2560 meters, right in the middle of the Tibetan Plateau and the Sichuan Basin. Tibetans, Han Chinese, Hui,Yi and other ethnic people and the mix live here.
Kangding is the Chinese name for this town. It is called Dartsedo, meaning the conjunction of Darchu River and Tsechu River that run through the town. It was traditionally an important town between China and Tibet on Tea-horse business road. It has witnessed the conflicts between Tibet and China through the history. Local residence is mainly Tibetans. There are some Buddhist temples in the town, including Nanwu Si Monastery, Anque Monastery and Jinggang Monastery.
Not far from Kangding, there are major attractions say Tagong Grassland, Mt. Minya Konka, Lake Mugeco, Hailuogou National Park. Kangding is the stopover for travelers either heading to north, south or west. Monasteries, Festivities, local style, western cowboys and even hotsprings can be found here.
It has long been a hub for commerce and transportation for over 1000 years. Dartsedo means the juncture of the Darqu River(Yala river) and the Tsedo River. In ancient times, it was called the west Qiang area, and many other different names in the following dynasties. In Qing Dynasty (around 1700), it was a very busy town where the Tibetans and the Han Chinese resided here contrasting each other in every way.
Constructions, costumes, and even festivities here are a bit of Chinese and more of Tibetan. Some unique traditions have come into being gradually due to years of immigration and commodity exchange. Now we have many descendents in this mixed community. In the town of Kangding, more and more are going the Chinese way as constructions and morden roads have to meet the larger and larger capacity of visitors every year. But in the villeges around, genuine Tibetan style still can be found.
Religion is part of the Kham people's life just like everyone in the whole Tibet. There are monasteries like Gelugpa Anjue, Nanwu and Dorje in or near Kangding though some other have been destroyed during wars or conflicts. Monasteries are also the sites where some of the festivals are taken place. Festivals like Buddha's Birth Day on the 8th in the fourth month of Tibetan Lunar year at the park of Paomashan, which is a attractive and must-see sightseeing spot for Chinese visitors. Other festivals like Larten Day (Yuangen Festival) at the end 10th month at the monasteries in Anjue and Nanwu. Festivities and religious ceremonies and big events here, Kandding people treasure these traditions very much.
Guozhuang is some equivelence of a gathering in the west for religious rites, festival celebrations or family party. Guozhuang in Kangding(and many other regions in Tibet) used to be a casual gathering of dancing and singing in front of bonfires at one of those hostels for traveling merchants from elsewhere. Another tag for kangding is the "love song of Kangding" which is popular in China. It is a love song published in 1940s and widely-received. The administrations of kangding use this as a representative of Kangding sometimes.
Kangding, as the administrative center of Garze TAP, has relatively modern facilities in hotels and hospitals than other small towns. Banks like bank of China, China Construction Bank are avaulable. Public transportation are buses and blue taxis, an airport is also available but it is at an altitude of 4280meters some 40kms northwest to the town of Kangding. A square is conspicuous on the river bank where locals like to form a slow dancing fashion(or some say Taichi) in the morning or late afternoon. Underneath is a relatively big shopping mall. Sichuan food restaurants are everywhere more than Tibetan restaurants on numbers. Read More about Tibetan Food.
Kangding is also an important place on the Tea-Horse Road.
Paomashan Park is a park located on a mountain side by the town of Kangding. Its cultural significance made it a popular place to visit. This park is used as the place for many religious activities and ceremonies every year by local Tibetan Buddhists. There is a cable car you can take to go to the park. Cable car costs 20 yuan per person single way. An entrance fee is also required. Read More On This >>
It is located by the entrance of Paomashan Park. It is a small museum requires 60 yuan entrance fee. This museum is not a very big museum but it has three floors displaying Tibetan culture-related items including Tibetan Kham history, costumes, local festivals, Tibetan medicines, etc. It is a nice place to have look. You will need about 1.2 hours for this place.
Namo Monastery is located in the town of Kangding. It was formerly the Namu Monastery at Paomashan. It was built in Northern Song Dynasty. It is a Gelugpa Monastery and one of the attractions of Kangding.
Mount Yala is another sacred mountain in this area. It is 5880 meters’ high. It is located north to the town of Kangding. There are plenty of lakes and hot springs around Mount Yala, making it a wonderful place to visit. It is within 2 hour’s drive to the villages close to Mount Yala from the town.Read More On Kangding - Mount Yala Tagong Hiking >>
Mount Gonggashan is 7556 meters high and it is the highest mountain in Sichuan Province. It is called “the King of Sichuan Mountains”. The Gonggashan Range is a giant massif lying south to the town of Kangding within 30 minutes’ drive. Mount Gonggashan is the cradle of hundreds of glaciers and dozens of snow-capped mountains.Read More On This >>
The other places of interests around Kangding including Mugetso Park, Tagong Grassland, Xinduqiao, to name just a few.
Route: Kangding - Gongga - Kangding
Route: Chengdu - Danba - Tagong - Kangding - Chengdu
Route: Chengdu - Siguniangshan - Danba - Tagong - Kangding - Hailuogou - Chengdu
