Reputed as the pearl of the city of springs, the Daming Lake is located in the northern part of Jinan of Shandong Province.

Covering an area of 46 hectares, the Daming Lake is a natural lake with an average depth of 3 meters. The lake is the convergence of a number of springs in the city, including the Pearl Spring, the Lotus Spring, and Wangfu Pool, etc. With some 800 weeping willows standing along the shores, over 40 mu (15 mu = 1 hectare) of the lake is planted with lotuses. Emerald-green lotus leaves, lotus flowers with delicate fragrance, fish swimming in the lake and birds hovering in the sky, all make a superb fascinating picture, attracting countless tourists.

The Daming Lake was built into a garden in 1985. After dredging up, cleaning, renovation and expansion of the building, the lake has become one of the famous scenic spots in Jianna City. Main spots in the Daming Lake Park include Lixia Pavilion, North Pole Pavilion, Jiaxuan Ancestral Temple, Minghu Pavilion, Tiegong Ancestral Temple, Xiayuan Garden, and Little Canglang Pavilion. Entering the south gate and walking along the curved bridge to the west, one will find the Xiayuan Garden, built in 1909 by imitating the Tianyi Pavilion in Ningbo of Zhejiang Province. Constructed with rockeries, pavilions, bridges and corridors, the garden is quiet and tastefully laid out. The garden also has numerous precious carved stones of past dynasties. To the west of the Xiayuan Garden is the Jiaxuan Ancestral Temple, built in 1959 in memory of Xin Qiji, a great poet of the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279). In the center of the lake stands the Lixia Pavilion, an octagonal multi-eave construction.

Source: http://www.chinaculture.org