Zhengzhou, capital city of Henan Province, is located at the hinterland of central China, center of central plains and passage of ten provinces. As an important national transportation hub and communication center as well as an important city in the Eurasian Continental Bridge, through which the national projects such as "West-east gas transfer" and "South-north water transfer¡± pass, Zhengzhou plays an important role in connecting east & west and linking up north & south in the national economic development structure. Zhengzhou is a national open city , historical cultural city and sanitary city that has ascended itself to be one of the state¡¯s top 50 cities in comprehensive strength and top 40 in investment surroundings. The long history leaves Zhengzhou abundant cultural heritages. 
         

Within the municipal area, there are more than 1400 cultural relics, 26 of which are key sights under the state protection. Mount Songshan Scenic Area is one of China's 44 key scenic areas as well as a National Pilot Civilized Scenic Tourist Attraction. The Shaolin Temple known as the "No. 1 Famous Temple under Heaven" is located in the embrace of Mount Songshan, the Shaolin Kung Fu that has gained a worldwide fame just originated here. In the Songshan area, there are also Lord Zhou's Sun Shade-measuring Platform of the Zhou Dynasty and the Observatory of the Yuan Dynasty - the oldest astronomical structures in China, Songyang Academy - one of the four major academies in the Song Dynasty, Zhongyue Temple - the largest existing block of Taoist buildings in China, etc. Around Zhengzhou city proper, numerous ruins of ancient towns, cultures, tombs, buildings, passes and battlefields have been found; and the ancestor of the Chinese nation- the Yellow Emperor and many famous historical figures including Liezi, Zichan, Du Fu, Bai Juyi and Gao Gong were born in Zhengzhou. Situated in the center of China's greatest cross of communications, Zhengzhou has convenient communications and developed telecommunications. shaolin temple The ancestral temple of the Zen Sect of the Chinese Buddhism, the origin of the world-famous Shaolin Kungfu, a top tourist attraction of China, also known as the "No.1 Famous Temple under Heaven". 
          
Situated in the heart of Mount Songshan the Central Sacred Mountains, the temple is named for its location in the dense forest at the northern foot of Shaoshi Mountain, a major part of Songshan. It is 13 kilometers northwest of Dengfeng City center and about 90 kilometers southwest of Zhengzhou urban districts. Built in the Northern Wei Dynasty, the temple has been as old as more than 1,500 years, now with a total area of over 40,000 square meters. Right here Bodhi Dharma, the founder of the Zen Sect of the lndian Buddhism, sat in meditation in a natural mountain cave for 9 years and preached Zen in China for the first time, thus Dharma is also respected as the Founder of the Chinese Zen and Shaolin Temple as the birthplace of Chinese Zen. Tang Dynasty is the first golden period for the temple, with a total of 2,500 monks. The prosperity was attributed to the historical fact that 13 Shaolin monks good at cudgel fighting bravely rescued Li Shimin, a king of the Tang Dynasty who later became a great emperor in the Chinese history, and the movie of Shaolin Temple was just based on that story. So the Shaolin Kung Fu is named after the temple and the temple wins a great fame with its Kungfu.