Introduction
2026-02-18
Chaoyang is only about 100+ kilometers from my hometown, but somehow this was my first time visiting. I’d seen online that the Lunar New Year lantern festival was supposed to be really good, so I made a special trip with my mom to check it out. We also stopped by the Chaoyang Museum—and that’s when I realized just how much history this city has.
1. Chaoyang Museum
2026-02-19
Chaoyang was founded back in the 300s AD. It used to be the capital of the Three Yan states (Former Yan, Later Yan, and Northern Yan), and it was also known as Longcheng—“Dragon City.” There’s that famous line we learned in Chinese class, “If only the Flying General of Longcheng were here, the Hu cavalry would never cross Yinshan.” Turns out “Longcheng” is actually referring to this place. I always thought it meant some city way out in the Northwest.
2. Murong Street Lantern Festival
2026-02-19
The lantern display was beautiful, but the crowd was unreal. Murong Street was absolutely packed from south to north—there was basically nowhere to stand. My mom and I walked around for a bit and then bailed. Couldn’t handle it…
