Guangzhou: Yuan Xuan Taoist Temple

North of Guangzhou is the district of Huadu (just west of the Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport). Not much going on there, although like most Chinese population hubs they do have a beautiful and thriving People's Park. But on the western outskirts of Huadu is a gem that somehow has escaped the average China tourist agenda... the largest Taoist temple in Guangdong Province, the Yuan Xuan Taoist Temple. Wow. One layer after another of artisitic majesty, and the new areas still under construction (behind the huge bronze statue of Confucius) while I was there are likely now finished ~ I visited in September 2010. To put the photos below in context, it was 95 degrees that afternoon, probably why I was one of only a few guests walking the grounds at that time. I can assure you, many visual treasures await inside the various buildings, but photos are not allowed.