Getting there: From Taiyuan take a small bus to the village of Dongguan in Qi County (approximately 50 km or one hour). A day trip can include other sights in the area such as the Yantao Temple, the Nine Gorges Scenic Area, the Qu family compound, as well as the Ancient Ming and Qing streets which can be found in neighboring towns.

 Cao Compound

For over 400 years during the Ming and Qing dynasties, the Cao compound exerted tremendous political and economic influence over today's Taigu County (near Taiyuan). The compound is laid out to form the Chinese character shou ("longevity") and contains a total of 277 rooms. Now known now as the Sando Tang Museum, it houses an exhibition of the old family porcelain and pearls.

Getting there: Cao compound makes a good day trip from Taiyuan. A two-hour bus ride will take you to Taigu County. From there take a cab (5 km) to Beiguang village.