Dragon Gate, Kunming

This spectacular complex of temples, grottoes, halls, pavilions, stone ladders, steps, and twisting tunnels was hollowed out of the rock on West Mountain, beginning in 1781, by a Daoist monk named Wu Laiqing. The work was continued after his death by local villagers and pious gentlemen, and completed in 1853. The name "Dragon Gate" is written on the portico roof at the upper left of this photo.