Changsha Orange Island
As a long and narrow island in the Xiangjiang River, the Orange Island Park is the place where the ancient people appreciated "Snow by River at Dusk"– one of the eight scenic spots "Eight Grand Sights in Hunan". Since ancient times, Orange Island has been known as the producer of high-quality oranges. The main tourist attractions in the park include the Poem Tablet, ode to Oranges Pavilion and a square of sculptures named "Who Dominates the Rise and Fall".
If you stand somewhere far away, it absolutely looks like a green navel vessel, sailing in the center of Changsha and ready to defend the old town. It connects the Yuelu Mountain in the west with the downtown in the east, with a N-S length of 5km, a E-W width of 50-200m, a total area of 70hm2. The island is a famous in-river land in China, also the world's longest inland river island. In Mao Zedong’s youth, he spent a lot of time walking on the beach, swimming and sunbathing.
The Orange Island can be divided into three parts on general: the head of the Orange Island, the middle of the Orange Island and the rear of the Orange Island.
The main attractions on the Orange Island are: The Statue of Chairman Mao Zedong, Asking-Heaven Platform, 100 Meter Fountain, the Fireworks Square. In the head of the Orange Island are the Watching River Pavilion and corridors as well as a huge white-marble memorial monument erecting stately in the face of Xiangjiang River, which functions as a park facing the river, covering an area of 14.2 hectares. On the monument are engraved "the Head of the Orange Island" written by Chairman Mao with his poem "Qinyuanchun•Changsha" on the back of the monument, among which the poem is filled with a tremendous momentum, and the highlight of the head of the Orange Island is the Statue of Chairman Mao Zedong. Thousands of orange trees are planted in the middle of the Orange Island with rich fruits in autumn, and there is a plain beach by the side of the island, which is a natural swimming place for the visitors in summer. In the rear of the Orange Island is a natural swimming pool with clear water and white sands.
