with short, mild, damp winters, rainy springs, long, hot, and humid summers, and relatively sunny autumns. Due to the city's location far inland, winters are significantly cooler than in the rest of the province, with freezing rain possible in the nearby mountain passes in some years. Winter begins dry and relatively sunny but becomes progressively cloudier and damper. Spring is the cloudiest and wettest season, with the sun shining less than 30% of the time. The annual rainfall is around , much of it delivered from April thru June. The monthly 24-hour average temperature ranges from in January to in July; the annual mean is . With monthly percent possible sunshine ranging from 16% in March to 54% in July, the city receives 1,617 hours of bright sunshine annually. Administrative divisions Shaoguan has direct jurisdiction over 3 districts, 2 county-level cities and 5 counties: Tourism The Fengcai Tower () in the centre of Shaoguan was built in the Ming Dynasty. To the south of the tower, at the other end of a pedestrian shopping street, the Dajian Monastery was founded in 660. Near Shaoguan is the town of Maba, home of relics and museum of the Maba Man, Chinese Neanderthals. Near Maba is Nanhua Temple, which was founded by Huineng, the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism. Shaoguan Iron and Steel is also located near Maba. Danxia Mountain is located in Renhua County, Shaoguan. Northwest of Shaoguan, at the town of Pingshi, a stretch of river known as the Nine Torrents and Eighteen Shoals is a popular place for white-water rafting. The city is served by Shaoguan Danxia Airport. Education Shaoguan University is located in the city. Language The main languages spoken are Hakka and Shaozhou Tuhua, related to Ping Chinese. Shaozhounese is spoken in Shaozhou city and Hakka (mainly Yetpet and Seunan dialects) are spoken in neighboring counties. Notable people: Zhang, Jiu Ling(張九齡）)： a high ranking official of Tang Dynasty. (A.D. 618–A.D. 1127) Yu, Jing (余靖）)： a high ranking official of northern Song Dynasty. (A.D 960–A.D. 1127) Chu, Siu Hung(朱韶洪）)： Hong Kong social activist Regina Ho Yee Ting (何依婷）)： winner of 2017 Miss Hong Kong pageant, also an actress of Hong Kong Gallery See also Dajian Huineng Hanshan Deqing Roman Catholic Diocese of Shaozhou Notes References External links http://www.shaoguan.gov.cn/ https://web.archive.org/web/20040924085950/http://shaoguan.com.cn/ Shaoguan, China Prefecture-level divisions of Guangdong