Gulangyu Island:
Gulangyu Island, separated from Xiamen by the 500-metre-wide Egret River, with an area of 1.77 square kilometers, enjoys a laudatory title "Garden on the Sea." Overlapping peaks foil the blue water, white clouds, green trees and bright flowers. The air in the island is fresh. The entire place is free from any sorts of vehicles and is particularly quiet. All these render an atmosphere of a fairyland.
The roar of the waves breaks on the rocks. Impressive melodies surrounding and lingering on this island make famous for its piano-laden past. As a place of residence for Westerners during Xiamen's colonial past, Gulangyu is famous for its architecture and for being home to China's largest piano museum. It is known as the piano island because people here love the piano. Divided into two exhibition halls, the museum guides visitors through a vivid history of the instrument with displays and illustrations. All different types of pianos such as miniature pianos, automatic pianos, accordion pianos and round-shaped pianos are on display.
Today, Gulangyu is listed as one of the nation's major scenic spots. For people living in the hustle and bustle of today's metropolis, citizens on this island seem to live in a paradise with a relaxing, healthy and placid lifestyle.
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Nanputuo Temple:
Situated at the foot of Wulao Peak on the southern end of Xiamen, the temple's Heavenly King Hall, the main prayer hall, the Hall of Great Compassion and the Shrine of Buddhist Scriptures are all graced with painted brackets.
The temple was first built during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). Rebuilt during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), it is now an imposing multi-layered trapezoidal structure that overlooks the sea. The Shrine of Buddhist Scriptures houses a huge collection of Buddhist cultural relics, including a Burmese jade carving of the Buddha and many important Buddhist literatures. It is one of the sacred places of Buddhism in Southern Fujian. Inside the temple there are the Heaven King's Hall, the Daxiong Hall, and the Great Compassion Hall, all of which are built in an exquisite and grand style.
In the temple there are preserved many inscriptions, among which the stone inscriptions written by Chen Di and Sheng Yourong in the Wanli period of the Ming Dynasty and the one on a stone stele written by Emperor of the Kangxi period of the Qing Dynasty are most famous.
Behind the temple, inscribed on the wall of a rock is a large word "Buddha" which is 4.66 meters tall and 3.33 meters wide. And farther behind, high up on the mountain stands a screen of five peaks colored by green trees and bamboos and marked by serene valleys and rocks of pleasing shapes. They are called "Five Old Gentlemen Reaching the Clouds," and are one of the eight grand sights of Xiamen. Coming to the top, you not only have a view of the mountain undulating in the wind, but also the view of the sea surging in the distance.
Hulishan Fortress:
Located at the southern tip of Xiamen Island, Hulishan Fortress is a key national historical and cultural site. Occupying an area of 13,000 square meters, this spectacular site was surrounded by walls made of granite and impressive gates.
The Hulishan Fortress was constructed in 1890. It was an important defensive factor during the war against Japanese aggression in 1900 and 1937. In 1986, platforms of yearning for return are built at the forward position of the fortress. In recent years, the fortress yard has been cleaned up and large-scale wall carvings “national soul” is newly built.
The Hulishan Fortress is composed of the barracks, the secret tunnel, commanding tower, sentry platform, the ammunition depot, the trench, the castle, etc. The fortress displays more than 50 iron cannons of the Ming Dynasty and the Qing Dynasty unearthed from the Xiamen waters and the building site of capital construction. The East and West emplacements are connected by a tunnel. There are military camps at the exits of the tunnel. As a coastal defense fortress, there is a trench outside and a patrolling path inside. Besides, there is a museum at the Fortress. The Rongguang Museum displays thousands of items of ancient weaponry and artillery of the world. You can get the message of China's modern history, the history of coastal defense, the information of Westernization Movement as well as the history of weaponry and fortresses around the world in the Rongguang Museum.
Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum:
Covering an area of more than 3,000 square meters, Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum is located at 493 South Siming Road in Xiamen. Being a comprehensive museum that highlights the history of overseas Chinese, Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum aims to educate visitors in the customs and lifestyles of the departed locals.
Established in 1956 by Mr. Tan Kah Kee, a famous leader of overseas Chinese, Xiamen Overseas Chinese Museum is the only Chinese museum set up by overseas Chinese. Displaying more than 7000 cultural relics, the museum is divided into six sections, including the story of overseas Chinese, tragedies of overseas Chinese before Liberation, the friendship between overseas Chinese and the people of their host countries, the contribution of overseas Chinese to the motherland, the past and present of the community of overseas Chinese and the review of policies of overseas Chinese.
The museum has three exhibition halls, which have on display a large number of potteries, bronze wares, sculptures and paintings of the past dynasties. The History of Overseas Chinese Hall is displaying thousands of items. These items reflect the history of and the production and life of Chinese emigration overseas before and after liberation. The Relics of Motherland`s History Hall is showing about 2,000 unearthed relics and artworks. Most of them were collected by the founder of museum. Besides, there are about 2,000 specimens of animals, birds, and aquatic products exhibited on the Hall of Nature.
Jimei:
Jimei is a suburb of Xiamen City connected to Xiamen Island by a 2,212-metre long granite causeway. Jimei is also the residence of Mr. Tan Kah-kee, a famous overseas Chinese philanthropist. Encircled by the sea on three sides, the town is known for its magnificent buildings combining western and oriental styles and picture-postcard sceneries. As a tourist site, Jimei has the following attractions to offer: Jimei School Village, Aoyuan (Turtle Garden), Returnees' Hall, and Wanbao Hill Sightseeing Farms.
Jimei School Village, blending the Chinese architectural style with western one, has become a symbol of Jimei. Every year, during the Dragon Boat Festival, the dragon boat racing is held in the pond with shining ripples and melodious Nanqu (south Fujian Opera) accompanied by drumbeats. Several international dragon boat racings have been held here and attracted groups of tourists at home and abroad.
Turtle Garden was constructed in 1950 by Mr. Tan Kah- Kee on the former site of "Turtle Head Palace". In the centre of the garden is the Jimei Liberation Monument with an inscription by Mao Zedong on the front and a tablet record written by Mr. Tan Kah-Kee on the back. The foundation of the monument is surrounded by gray jade carvings and relief sculptures polished with great care, embodying a concentrated reflection of exquisite workmanship and a unique style of south Fujian stone carving art.
Returnees' Hall, Walled by white stones and roofed with green tiles, the Returnees' Hall covering an area of 4,000 square metres is a typical sample of south fujian constructions. As the former residence of Mr. Tan Kah-kee, the building is marked by Mr. Tan's bronze standing statue in front.
Located by the side of Guankouken inner road of No. 324 national highway in Jimei District, the Wanbao Hill Sightseeing Farm covers an area of 500 mu. All year around fruit trees are planted in the garden for picking and tasting by the tourists in any month. The farm is also equipped with a fishing pound, barbecue areas, camping areas, farming areas, refreshment rooms and a restaurant for customers' convenience and to meet their special interests. Further more, a holiday villa within the farm can provide lodging and all kinds of entertainments.
Earth Towers of Hakka:
The Hakkas who settled in mountainous south western Fujian province in China developed unique architectural buildings called Tulou, literally meaning earthen structures. Because of the undesirable mountainous regions, the Hakkas set up these unique homes to prevent attack from bandits and marauders.
A Tulou, or "earth tower", is a traditional communal residence in the Fujian province of Southern China, usually of a circular configuration surrounding a central shrine. These vernacular structures were occupied by Hakka groups. Fujian Tulou is known for their unique shape, large scale, and ingenious structure. They were designed as a large fortress and apartment building in one. Structures typically had only one entranceway and no windows at ground level. Each floor served a different function - the first hosts a well and livestock, the second is for food storage and the third and higher floors contain living spaces. Tulou can be found mostly in south western Fujian and southern Jiangxi provinces.
Although most Tulous were of earthen construction, the definition "tulou", is a broadly descriptive label for a building type and does not indicate construction type. Some were constructed of cut granite or had substantial walls of fired brick. Most large-scale Tulous seen today were built of a composite material known as sanhetu rather than just earth.
Among all the Earth Towers, Tianluokeng Tulou Cluster, Yuchang Earth Tower, Zhencheng Tower, Chuxi Tulou and other sites are the best-known for visitors.
Tianluokeng Tulou Cluster:
Tianluokeng earth building cluster is one of the better known Fujian Tulou, about four hours' drive from city Xiamen. It consists of a square earth building in the center, surrounded by four round earth buildings. These earth buildings have only one entrance, guarded by 4–5-inch-thick wooden doors re-enforced with an outer shell of iron plate.
The square Buyunlou (Reaching the Cloud building) at the center of the quincunx. It was the first tulou at this site, built in 1796. It is three storeys high, each storey has 26 rooms, four sets of stairs, and a go around corridor in front of the rooms at each level. The Buyun building was burnt down by bandits in 1936, rebuilt in 1953 according to the original plan.
The Hechang building, a three-storey-high round earth building,
Zhenchang building, three storeys, round shape, 26 rooms per storey, built in 1930
Ruiyun building, built in 1936, three storeys, 26 rooms per floor.
The oval shape Wenchang building of 1966, three storeys, 32 rooms per floor.
Kaiyuan Temple:
Built in 686 (during the reign of Empress Wu Zetian), Kaiyuan Temple is located on West Street in Quanzhou City. The entire complex covers an area of over 19 acres. Through past restorations, it has now become a fairly complete set of courtyard galleries. As the largest Buddhist temple in Fujian Province, Kaiyuan Temple has attracted many domestic and foreign travelers who are interested in Buddhist culture.
Most of the temple's architecture has special artistic features of the Tang (618-907), the Song (960-1279), the Yuan (1271-1368), the Ming (1368-1644), and the Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties. Major buildings in Kaiyuan Temple include Tianwang Hall, Daxiong Palace, the Sweet Dew Temple, the Sutra Depository, and Gongde Tang. Two long corridors and two stone towers date from the Song Dynasty (960-1279). In addition, many cultural relics are kept in the temple.
In front of Kaiyuan Temple are two imposing stone towers. The east one is called Zhenguo Tower and stands 158 feet high, while the west one is called Renshou Tower and stands 145 feet high. This pair of towers is the highest stone towers in China. Due to their uniqueness, they are regarded as a special landmark of Quanzhou City. On every floor of each tower, lifelike carvings of arhats and knights can be seen around the niches, on the walls, and on the eaves.
Among the main buildings, visitors first enter Tianwang Hall, where they will see two statues of Tianwang (King of the Sky). At the back of the hall, there is a long corridor displaying various kinds of stone towers and furnaces.
Lying behind Tianwang Hall is Daxiong Palace, the main body of Kaiyuan Temple. It is 66 feet high and covers an area of 1,196 square yards. Inside are 34 figures of the Buddha, 24 statues of angels, and 86 columns. Originally, there were 100 columns in the palace, so Daxiong Palace was also named Baizhu (one hundred poles) Palace. Viewing these works of art, visitors will be surprised at the superb techniques of sculpture. On the base of the palace 172 images of a Sphinx are carved in bluestone. In the corridor at the back of the palace, two steles in Brahmanism style are carved with fairy tales from India and Ceylon.
Coming out of Tianwang Hall, visitors will see the Sweet Dew Temple. Along with the Beijing Jietan Temple and the Hangzhou Zhaoqing Temple, it has one of the three largest altars in China. The Sweet Dew Temple has five floors and many Gods are worshiped here, such as Sakyamuni, Amitabha, and Kwan-yin.
The Sutra Depository has a collection of tens of thousands of sutra, among which are more than 20 rare and valuable ones from the Song Dynasty (960-1279). Under the depository is a showroom of ancient bells in which a dozen copper and iron bells from past dynasties are exhibited. To the west of the File Cabinet is the Hall of Virtue. The statue of the temple founder -- Buddhist Kuang Hu -- sits in the hall to greet visitors. Around the back, visitors will find two corridors about 197 feet long, pointing to east and west. From the corridors, visitors can see the Kwan-yin Cabinet, the Dizang Cabinet, the LiuZu Hall, and the Hall of the Abbot.
Most of the local people in Quanzhou believe in Buddhism. Kaiyuan Temple is a must for visitors to learn the local culture. After exploring the entire complex, visitors will surely appreciate the Buddhist culture exemplified by the Kaiyuan Temple.
Wuyi Mountain:
The Wuyi Mountain is the most outstanding area for biodiversity conservation in southeast China and a refuge for a large number of ancient species, many of them endemic to China. The serene beauty of the dramatic gorges of the Nine-Bend River, with its numerous temples and monasteries, many now in ruins, provided the setting for the development and spread of neo-Confucianism during the Tang and Song dynasties (618-1279). The neo-Confucianism has brought great influences to the cultures of east China since the 11th century. In the 1st century a large administrative capital was built close to Chengcun by the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) rulers, surrounded by solid walls, which is of great archaeological significance.
Brief Introduction
The Wuyi Mountain, located in northwest Fujian Province, is a key area of global biodiversity protection and features the most typical Danxia landform in China. Covering an area of some 999.75 square kilometers, it is a national A A AAA scenic area, famous for green water and red mountains and known as the "most wonderful mountain in southeast China".
The mountain is richly endowed with wonderful, elegant and ancient scenic spots, including 36 peaks, 99 rocks, the Nine-Bend River, the Taoyuan Cave, the Liuxiang Gully, the Wolong Pond, the Longxiao Rock, the Chongyou Wannian Palace (customarily known as the Wuyi Palace), the site of Ziyang Academy of Classic Learning (or Wuyi Academy) and cliff carvings from all the dynasties through history. Of all these, the Nine-Bend River is reputed as the soul of the Wuyi Mountain, winding for 60 kilometers including 9.5 kilometers through the scenic area. Along both banks is typical Danxia landform.
The Wuyi Mountain boasts rich historical and cultural remains. The site of the Minyue State's Imperial City, built in the Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD), covers an area of 480,000 square meters and is the most intact site of any ancient town from this period in south of the Yangtze River. Tens of thousands of cultural relics of the Han Dynasty have been unearthed here. Moreover, Zhu Xi (1130-1200) studied, wrote books and taught students for 50-odd years on Yuyi Mountain and the rationalistic Confucian philosophical school he established gradually spread to other parts of the country and became an orthodox philosophical thought of the government. The Wuyi Academy established by Zhu Xi was the most influential college at that time.
Transport
The Wuyishan Airport is seven kilometers away from the downtown area and the Wuyi Mountain Scenic Area respectively. It has opened 27 domestic and regional flight routes to Xiamen, Fuzhou, Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Dalian, Nanjing, Tianjin, Changchun, Chang-zhou, Hangzhou, Wenzhou, Xi'an, Wuhan, Ningbo, Jinan, Zhuhai, Haikou, Shantou, Zhengzhou, Shenyang, Jinjiang, Zhoushan, Kunming, Hong Kong and Macao. Moreover, there are trains that go directly to Wuyishan. Also tourists can reach Shaowu Railway Station in Fujian or the Shangrao Railway Station in Jiangxi by train and then take a bus to the Wuyi Mountain Scenic Area.
Catering
The local characteristic dishes include the Fried Chicken With Bamboo Shoots, the Sliced Snake Meat With Orchids, the Grass Carp With Chrysanthemum, the Loach With Potato Noodles and traditional folk dishes such as salted potherb mustard, smoked goose, and field snails. There is also a lot of venison in the food served on the Wuyi Mountain, but visitors should be reminded not to eat animals or plants under state protection.
Shopping
The Wuyi Mountain is particularly proud of "four treasures", namely the bamboo shoots in the east, tea in the south, fish in the west and rice in the north. The bamboo shoots are tender, white, crisp and sweet; the Wuyi Rock Tea is unique in fragrance and taste; the fish in the west refers to those from the rivers in the Yangzhuang Town in west Wuyishan City; and the rice in the north is comparable bigger, brighter and more fragrant. Many tourists purchase them as gifts for their relatives and friends.
Kunluan Building (Building 2, Main Building Group), Xiang'an Campus, Xiamen University, Xiang'an South Road, Xindian Town, Xiang'an
District, Xiamen City, Fujian Province, China 361102, School of Overseas Education, Xiamen University
