By the Yellow River in Lanzhou, Hundred Water Wheels Gurgle Day and Night
A water wheel in the crook of the Yellow River
A water wheel breeds a city
And the children of the city
I saw this water wheel in Lanzhou
It gurgles and turns
Turning with vicissitudes, turning with years, turning with persistence
Breathing heavy breaths
I mistakenly thought I had taken the wrong place when I first saw so many, so large water wheels by the Yellow River in Lanzhou. What is the relationship between this water wheel and Lanzhou, and the Yellow River?
Lanzhou, known as 'Water Wheel City', now Lanzhou people gather scattered water wheels together and build the largest water wheel theme park
The Water Wheel Exhibition Park is located on the Yellow River shore, Huanghe East Road, which is part of the Riverside Green Corridor, and is also a famous park in Lanzhou
The park was built along the Yellow River, about 1 kilometer long and only a hundred meters wide, you can stroll after entering the park, the tour time is about one or two hours
The Water Wheel Exhibition Park is divided into three main areas, the first area is the Water Wheel Square, the second area is the Water Wheel Garden, dozens of water wheels are running in the Yellow River and pond, the third area is the east side's cultural area, here are the Lanzhou Stone Pavilion, Gansu Folk Pavilion, and souvenir shops
In the central square of the exhibition park, a statue of white stone is particularly prominent, it is the inventor of the Yellow River water wheel, Duan Xù. Duan Xù, a Lanzhou native. He was admitted to the exam in the second year of the Jiajing reign (1523), he served as the envoy of the Yunnan Province, the supervisor of Huayuanshen, and the deputy commander of Miyun Garrison. He served in the south and paid great attention to the structure of the wooden car, drew diagrams and detailed its principles. After returning to Lanzhou, he changed his career and began to make water wheels in the 35th year of the Jiajing reign (1556) he made water wheels suitable for the north
Lanzhou is a river valley city, the Yellow River runs through the city, the water resources are abundant, but in ancient times, Lanzhou was a place where water was in the river and land was dry
Because the farmland is twenty meters above the Yellow River water surface, farmers can only rely on shoulder and hand to carry water to irrigate their fields, it is hard work and ineffective
Duan Xù's successful manufacture of water wheels brought good news to the farmers by the Yellow River, farmers eagerly copied it, at one time yellow river water wheel appeared one after another, the drought and rainy Yellow River area's output increased by several percent
These water wheels leaning against the shore are mostly ancient relics, the vast and mighty Yellow River keeps them turning
These water wheels were called 'Heaven Car', 'Flip Car', 'Irrigation Car', 'Tiger Car' at that time, the Lanzhou Water Wheel Exhibition Park was specially built and rebuilt by the Lanzhou Tourism Bureau to re-present this ancient irrigation tool, it is for recreation, not for irrigation today
The water wheel uses the mechanical power of water to drive the axle rotation, pushing the paddle, the water bucket scoops up water, when it reaches the top, it will automatically pour water into the wooden trough, the water in the wooden trough flows into the land, irrigates crops, and goes on and on
The water mill is very efficient, it uses water to drive the turbine rotation, the turbine is equipped with a stone mill, grinding flour and corn, it liberated people from the hardest physical labor, human began to be lazy
Push open the door of the mill, inside is demonstrating the grinding of corn
There are many types of water wheels, such as foot-powered water wheels, its principle is to step on the wooden wheel, driven by the transmission chain, to push the water wheel, young people are fun to try, didn't pedal a few times, tired, while in the field, farmers often pedal for half a day, the hardship is imaginable
With feet, there are hands, hand-pushed water wheels are similar to foot-pushed water wheels, just changed the foot-pushing to hand-shaking, this car is suitable for lifting low water levels, such as water tanks
