West Hill Park


West Hill is located 2 kilometers west of Guilin and covers about 2 square kilometers. It consists
of the West Hill, the Hidden Hill and the West Lake. Hills are composed of 12 peaks, including the
Thousand Peak, Stone Fish Peak, West Peak and Guanyin Peak.

The Thousand Peak is located in the southeast of the park, with latitude of 357 meters. It features
for its lavish vegetation. A stone path can be found up to the summit.

The West Peak, towering up precipitously, is the highest peak here. When in fine evening the peak
is veiled in golden sunlight, which is known as the " Sunset in the West Hill".

Along the cliff of the Guanyin Peak are more than 200 Buddha statues carved in the Tang dynasty. These benignant-looking Buddha are exquisitely
carved, ranging from 2 centimeters to 2 meters in height. The great number of Buddha statues as well as frequent visits by pilgrims and
successive worshipping activities has brought to the West Hill the reputation as one of the five most important Buddhist centers in South China.

The hill is surrounded by a lake called West Lake, by which stands a temple called Xi Qinglin. Xi Qinglin Temple was built in Tang Dynasty and
was of the five most famous Buddhist temples in south China.

Hidden Hill features a great number of caves. All caves are connected with each other. The most famous caves are Sunset Cave, South Glory
Cave, North Window Cave, Lotus Cave and White Bird Cave.

There are many things that make West Hill Park special. First, it is located outside of the downtown
area and so it not as visited. Climbing the hills in West Park you often feel like you are the only person
there. Another thing that makes this park special is the hills themselves. They are covered with jagged
and bizarrely shaped rocks. The hills in most of the parks in Guilin are fairly smooth, there aren't many
jagged points sticking out of them, but West Hill is very different.

In the park, the three-story Guilin Museum is worth a visit not only for getting basic background and
history of the city but the cultural customs of Guangxi’s indigenous Zhuang minority.