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Home> China City Guide> Guangzhou
Detailed travelling knowledge about Guangzhou or Canton and the major attractions in Guangzhou.
Introduction
Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong Province, has an area of 7434.4 square kilometres. The city is between latitude 22
0
and 24
with the highest of 38.7
Guangzhou was probably founded in 214 B.C. as an encampment by the armies of the first Emperor of Qin Dynasty, Qin Shihuang. By the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the city was already an international port. The modernization of Guangzhou began in the early 1920s; most of the main streets defining the city today were built then. A feverish sense of urgency in construction -- it took only 18 months to build 40 kilometres (25 mi.) of road -- is evident even today. During that modernization in the 1920s, the remainder of the old city wall was pulled down. Today, throughout the city, high-risen hotels, bridges, and new highways now seemingly materialize overnight.
The personality of Guangzhou differs significantly from that of northern China. While one can stand in the middle of Tian'anmen Square in Beijing and feel the backbone of Chinese authority, one can easily stand on any street in Guangzhou and feel the lack of order inherent in the traffic and commotion. The language of Guangzhou is incomprehensible to northern Chinese, who typically speak Mandarin. A word in Cantonese has nine tones, instead of the four tones in the Mandarin dialect.
The area around Guangzhou was overcrowded even 200 years ago, and many peasants from the region emigrated to Southeast Asia, North America and Europe. As a result, Cantonese is the most common dialect amongst overseas Chinese. Likewise, Cantonese cuisine is the most widely-known of all Chinese idioms: in Beijing one talks, in Shanghai one shops, and in Guangzhou one eats. Without a doubt, Guangzhou is best known for its eclectic food -- from insect omelettes to dim sum. Famous for its snack-like form (dumplings, pastries and noodle dishes chosen from carts wheeled around the restaurant), dim sum is ubiquitous in Guangzhou.
Standing on the top of Yuexiu Hill in the northern suburbs, the 28-metre-high five-storey tower -- also known as Five-storey Pagoda -- was built on the order of Zhu Liangzu, the Yongjia Marquis of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), to flaunt his power that was able to "shake the seas and mountains". A magnificent building, it commands a bird's-eye view of the whole city. The tower now houses the City Museum, with exhibits which describe the history of Guangzhou from Neolithic times till the early part of this century.
Bright filial Piety Temple is also called Guanghua Temple. Situated in the city proper and first built in the Three Kingdoms period (220-280), the temple is known as the "first ancient temple in South China". The Sixth Ancestor Hall in the temple was built in memory of Huineng, the sixth master of the Chan Sect of Buddhism, who was also the most influential monk in the history of Chinese Buddhism. In the temple there is also a pagoda where Huineng's hair was buried. Other ancient structures in the temple include The Sakyamuni Hall, The Samgharama Hall, The King of Heaven Hall, and two iron towers.
Temple of the Six Banyan Trees
The temple is known as Liu Rong Temple in Chinese. Situated inside the city, the temple, first built in the Five Dynasties period (907-960), was originally called Baozhuangyan Temple. It was renamed in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) as Su Shi, a great writer of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), was found to shave written the two characters of Liu Rong when he saw the six ancient banyan trees there on a visit to the temple. In the temple there is a 57-metre-high, 17-story octagonal pagoda, which has on its top a bronze column with 1,000 Buddhist sculptures. The column, with its metal accessories, weighs five tons, something rarely seen in ancient China. The pagoda is also called Flower Pagoda for its colorful exterior. In the temple there are also three large bronze Buddhist sculptures made in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), each standing six metres high and weighing 10 tons.
Huaisheng (Remember the Sage) Mosque
Built in the city during the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the building is one of the oldest mosques in China. The name of the mosque means "Remember the Sage", in memory of the prophet. The 1,000-year-old Guangta, or Smooth Tower, a 36-metre-high brick structure with a smooth surface, is of the Arabic architectural style. In the mosque are the Praying Hall and other buildings.
The hall, situated on the southern slope of Yuexiu Hill, is built in memory of Sun Yat-sen, the pioneer of China's bourgeois democratic revolution. The 49-metre-high hall, with a magnificent exterior and elegant interior decorations, can accommodate 6,000 people.
There are also other sites of historic interest and scenic spots in Guangzhou, such as the Southern Yue Tomb Museum and tombs of ancient Moslem sages, Baiyun (White Cloud) Hills, Nankun Hill, Lianhua (Lotus) Hill and Feixia (Flying Clouds) Hill.
Foreign Embassies / Consulates in Guangzhou
Australia Consulate Gen.
Add: Room 1503-4, Main Building, Citic Plaza, 339 Huanshi Donglu
Tel: 8331 2738
Fax: 8331 2198Canadian Consulate Gen.
Add: China Hotel Office Tower, Suite 1563/4, Liuhua Lu
Tel: 8666 0569Consulate Gen. of France
Add: Unit 1160, China Hotel, Liuhua Lu
Tel: 8667 7522
Fax: 8666 5390Consulate Gen. of Japan
Add: Grand Hotel Tower, 368 Huashi Donglu
Tel: 8333 8999Consulate Gen. of Republic of Poland
Add: 63 Shamian Dajie
Tel: 8186 1854Consulate Gen. of United States of America
Add: 1 Shamian Nanjie, Shamian Island
Tel: 8888 8911
Fax: 8886 2341Consulate Gen. of Vietnam
Add: 13 Taojin Beilu
Tel: 8358 1000 ext. 101Royal Thai Consulate-Gen.
Add: Rm. 316, White Swan Hotel, Shamian Island
Tel: 8888 6968 ext. 3310
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