Lying 15 kilometers west of Kunming City, the Western Hills is close to the west shore of the Dianchi Lake. It consists of the Huating, Taihua, Taiping, Luohan and Guaban Peaks. The Western Hills stretches over 40 kilometers from north to south, at an elevation of 1,900 to 2,350 meters. It was said that when people saw phoenixes coming to the place in ancient times, they called them green peacocks so the whole mountain was also named the Green Peacock Mountain. Because the undulating skyline of these mountains resembles a sleeping Buddha or a sleeping Beauty with long tresses trailing southward. It is praised as Sleeping Buddha Mountain or Sleeping Beauty as well.

The north foot of the Western Hills is the only pass on the Yunnan-Burma Road. The road is also called the Kunming-Wanding Road. There are many famous places on Western Hills, for example, the shengan Temple, the Xuxiake Memorial Hall, the Huating Temple (the biggest Buddhist temple in Kunming), the tomb of Nie Er and the Dragon Gate.

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