At the foot of Qianshan Mountains about ninety kilometers southwest of Shenyang lies Anshan, China's "capital of steel." Since the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, the iron and steel industry has been built up into a giant complex embracing mining, ore dressing, smelting, steel rolling, chemicals, power, transport, and mechanical repairing and maintenance.

Qianshan Mountains

Rising 898 meters above sea level in the southeast suburbs of Anshan, the numerous peaks of the mountains, often faintly visible in a sea of clouds, resemble thousands of blossoming lotus flowers. This led to its being called "Thousands Lotus Blossoms Mountains," later shortened to "Thousand Peaks Mountains" or Qianshan Mountains in Chinese.

A folktale says that once, long ago, the four corners of the sky collapsed. To save the lives of all the creatures below, Goddess N| Wa patched the sky with stones. Out of carelessness, she dropped a stone on the ground, which splashed into thousands of peaks in the shape of lotus blossoms.

There are many temples on the hill, built after the Tang Dynasty (A.D. 618-907); they include Dragon Spring Temple (Longquansi), Great Peace Temple (Da'ansi), Fragrant Rock Temple (Xiangyansi), and many other Buddhist and Taoist temples, monasteries, and nunneries. Surrounded by a forest of pine trees, these magnificent temples are well worth a visit.

Tanggangzi Hot Spring Sanatorium

This spa is located fifteen kilometers south of Anshan. Every day, more than a thousand town of clear water with a temperature of 57-65ºC (135-149ºF) springs from rifts in the underground granite. Containing many chemical elements and minerals, this water is used for hydropathic treatment.