Zheng He Park In Jinning

Zheng He Park, 67 kilometers from Kunming, is located in the town of Kunyang 
 to the south of Lake Dian. It is a theme park erected to commemorate Zheng
 He, a great navigator in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644).

Zhenghe (1371-1435), born in Kunyang, Jinning County, was a member of Hui 
 minority. He was one of the famous navigators in the Ming Dynasty. His original
 name was Ma, and his given name was Sanbao. He made himself conspicuous
 in helping Emperor Chengzhu (Zhu Di, 1360-1424, the fourth son of Zhu 
Yuanzhang who was the foundering emperor of the Ming Dynasty) to take over
 power and was promoted to be a court eunuch by 1433. For seven times, he
 led a huge fleet of ships to travel to the Western Sea (referring to the West 
of Southern Sea of China). His fleet visited 39 countries and reached as far as 
the east shore of Africa, and the estuary of the Red Sea. These voyages improved 
 the cultural and economic exchanges between China and some Asia and Africa
 countries, and were regarded as a wonder in the world history of voyages. 
The fleet was composed of 200 ships, the largest of which was 147 meters long 
and 60 meter wide, with a load of one thousand people. These voyages even
 today remain a wonder to the Western navigators 500 years later.