Jiuzhaigou Valley

Jiuzhaigou Valley of Sichuan Province has been crowned as "Wonderland on Earth". The name Jiuzhaigou means the Ravine with Nine Villages, so named because there were originally nine Tibetan villages there. The local Tibetan population that is left still maintain their own cultural conditions.
The main valley is 50 km (31 miles) long, and is where the Shuzheng, Qunhai, Rize, and Zechawa valleys come together. Most of the landforms are the result of glacial and tectonic activities that took place in ancient times. The soil content is mostly calcium carbonate. Waterfalls and streams link over 100 multicolored lakes of various sizes, many of which lie at the base of glacially formed valleys. These superb, natural mountain lakes are named "haizi" by the local Tibetans, which means the sea. More than half of the scenic area is covered in forests, bamboo and flowers and home to such rare animals as giant pandas, golden monkeys and white-lipped deer.