Datong

Datong Hui and Tu Autonomous County lies immediately north of Xining, the Qinghai provincial capital, straddling the transition zone between the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the Loess Plateau at elevations climbing from around 2,300 up to nearly 4,600 metres. It is one of China's few counties jointly governing Hui and Tu (Monguor) communities alongside a Han majority, and its economy centers on highland barley and wheat farming, sheep and cattle herding, coal mining, and an increasingly important tourism trade built around its cool mountain air, a welcome summer escape from Xining's heat. The county has no university of its own, with students continuing on to Xining's Qinghai University and Qinghai Normal University, but Datong is nationally known as a heartland of the intangible-heritage 'Hua'er' or Flower Song tradition, celebrated every summer at a huge folk gathering on Laoye Mountain that draws singers from Han, Hui, Tu and other communities across the northwest. Its forested scenery is one of its main draws, from the spruce and larch stands of Yaozigou Forest Park to the cliffs, caves and waterfalls of Chahan River Forest Park, both easy day trips from Xining thanks to the county's own high-speed rail stop, Datong West Station. Together, its multi-ethnic culture, cool climate and accessible mountain parks make Datong one of Xining's most popular nearby getaways.

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