I held the saddle tightly, placed my foot in the stirrup and tried to gracefully mount the black horse, which only shook his head as if to express his disapproval with my movements.

"Have you ever ridden a horse?" the coach asked.

"Yes, many times," I lied.

It was my first time on horseback. Lying before me was the vast grassland against a backdrop of rolling purple mountains.

The coach gave the horse a slap, and off we went. As the horse started running, I felt myself shaking violently back and forth and had to concentrate all my strength to stay on.

The clever horse realized my inexperience and slowed until soon the two of us were proceeding at a nice trot.

I was among the many visitors escaping the heat wave plaguing North China and flocking to the Bashang Grassland, where Genghis Khan once fought some eight centuries ago.

Located in Zhangbei County in Zhangjiakou of Hebei Province, the grassland is one of the closest summer resorts for Beijingers.

A five-hour drive on the Beijing-Zhangjiakou Expressway brings you to the Bashang Grassland, where temperatures are 5-10 ?C lower than in Beijing and Tianjin.

Many experts propose it was the grassland's cold weather that forced nomadic groups, including the Mongolians, to invade southern areas for food and treasure from time to time.

Today the situation has been reversed. "We have been driven here by the hot weather. It's cool, it's heaven," said Liu Yao, a visitor from Beijing.

The Bashang Grassland in Zhangbei County is one of the best and most convenient ways to escape the Beijing heat, according to Hu Ming, archaeologist and director of the Administration Office of the Yuan Zhongdu Historical Site in Zhangbei.

"The Mongolian Plateau rises abruptly from the Central Plains except in Zhangbei. Here Genghis Khan's hordes could arrive at Beijing through a relatively gentle slope, and the southern troops could access the Mongolian Plateau," he said.

Because of the gentle slope, numerous battles of historical importance have been fought in Zhangbei.

Tourists to the area can visit the ancient field of Yehuling Battle, which was decisive in the destruction of the Nuzhen (Manchu)-founded Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) by the Mongolian cavalries.

Every year guests from the Republic of Mongolia visit the Monument to Martyrs of the Allied Army of the Soviet Union and Mongolia, which is located in Zhangbei, according to Lu Xianzhong, deputy magistrate of the county.

The allied army fought their final battle against Japanese troops in the War of Resistance against Japanese Invasion (1937-45) in 1945 in the county.

Central capital

Because of its military importance and beautiful scenery, Zhangbei became the zhongdu (central capital) of the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) in 1307, but was abandoned in 1311 due to a financial crisis of the central government.

Huge blocks of rammed earth and white marble structures, lying silent in the grassland, can be seen at the remains of the grand capital.

"The central capital was built to be the most luxurious city of the Yuan Dynasty and sucked up the national treasury," said Hu Ming.

With all wooden materials transported from southern China, the city was even more fabulous than the Great Capital at the site of today's Beijing was during that period.

This masterpiece by Genghis Khan's offspring was burned down in 1358 though by rebelling Red Scarf Troops.

As dusk falls, I can see scorched parts of the rammed earth, which reflect the huge fire that burned some 700 years ago.

Besides military functions, the Bashang Grassland also served life in peaceful times.

It was the starting point of the Grassland Silk Road, which ran via Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to Central and West Asia and Europe.

Today the grassland and nearby forests are the major defences against sandstorms which plague North China every spring.

In the summer, the Bashang Grassland is among the favourite retreats of Beijing residents, who often spend weekends riding horses, picking red Chinese wolfberries and living in Mongolian tents in the grassland.

They go boating on vast clear lakes such as Angulilao Lake and Taizi Lake, and enjoy delicious fish from the plateau lakes.

They dip roasted and boiled mutton into various home-made spices and eat fresh mushrooms picked from mountains nearby.

In Zhangbei, where ancient warriors once fought, the simple pleasures of life are appreciated today.

( China Daily July 27, 2002)