Domestic animals look for food on a pasture in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, northwest China's Gansu Province. (Photo Source: gansudaily.com.cn)

Tibetan-style tents can be seen on a vast grassland in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southern Gansu Province. (Photo Source: gansudaily.com.cn)

Photo shows the city of Hezuo built on a grassland in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southern Gansu Province. (Photo Source: gansudaily.com.cn)

Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, southern Gansu Province, is located at the junction of Gansu, Qinghai and Sichuan provinces. It has an area of 45,000 sq km, or 7.93 percent of the provincial territory, with a population of 660,000. As a principle gateway from China's mainland to Tibetan-inhabited areas, Gannan is considered the "Mini Tibet in China" or "Backyard Garden of Gansu." There, traditional Tibetan cultures such as the Nomadic culture, Tibetan Buddhist culture and Tibetan folk culture have been well preserved.