Gone to Guangdong

Guangzhou is a comfortable two hour train ride from Hong Kong

Jeff and I both had busy travel schedules in June.  I was back in the States for a couple of weeks, and Jeff had trips to China, Taiwan and the U.K.  As a result, neither of us had been very eager to get back on an airplane. But we are also conscious of the limited amount of time that remains before my work assignment here is over, and we want to see as much of the region as we can. Visiting Mainland China recently got much easier for us, courtesy of our new ten year, multi-entry visas.  So we decided to jump on a train for a short trip north to Guangdong Province.

The Five Rams Statue symbolizes the founding of the city of Guangzhou

With a population of more than 100 million, Guangdong (pronounced "gwang-dong") plays a significant role in the economic engine that is China.  For some perspective on this, Guangdong's population is roughly equal to the combined populations of California, Texas, New York and Florida.

The Flower Pagoda at the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees

This would rank the province among the twenty largest countries in the world, yet Guangdong still only represents about 8% of China's total population.  In terms of economic output, Guangdong is the largest of China's thirty-one provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions, accounting for about 12% of the entire country's output.  In Chinese, the term "guang" means "vast expanse" which is appropriate since the province occupies some 70,000 square miles along the southeastern coast of China, sharing its border with Hong Kong and Macau.  The Pearl River Delta is a prominent feature of the province.  Guangzhou (prounounced "gwang-jo"), Guangdong's capital city, is an important port city strategically located on the Pearl River, which is navigable to the South China Sea.  Formerly known as Canton, Guangzhou is the third largest city in China, after Beijing and Shanghai.  It was one was one of the early beneficiaries of China's economic reform policies that began in 1978, encouraging private business and gradually opening the country to foreign investment.  Indeed, close proximity to Hong Kong has positioned the city and the province well to benefit from trade with the west and investments by multinational companies establishing offices and production facilities there.

Guangzhou has a colorful skyline best viewed from the Pearl River

Our train trip was a comfortable, two hour ride, stopping just once between our departure from the rail station in Kowloon and arrival in Guangzhou.  Despite the relative sophistication of Guangzhou, we encountered some language barriers trying to find our hotel, but eventually got settled in.

The jade burial suit of King Zhao Mo is a featured
attraction at the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King

Our souvenir photo from the
Pearl River Night cruise

Guangzhou has an extensive metro system, which mercifully includes signage in English, so we set off to see our first stop, the Museum and Mausoleum of the Nanyue King.  Considered one of China's best museums, it is organized around the ancient tomb of Zhao Mo who ruled the kingdom of Nanyue which included parts of southern China and northern Vietnam.  Upon his death in 122 B.C., Zhao was buried in a jade burial suit in an elaborate tomb 66 feet underground containing over 1,000 artifacts, precious metals, a chariot and 15 courtiers who were buried alive for the purpose of serving Zhao during his afterlife.  The tomb was discovered in 1983; opening of the museum followed in 1988.

Guangzhou's thriving economy means that the city's center is densely packed with elaborately designed skyscrapers that are colorfully lit at night.  This has given rise to a thriving industry of cruise ships that operate on the Pearl River each night giving tourists the opportunity to view the spectacle from the river.  We signed up for a one-hour cruise and settled into our seats at a table we shared with a large family.  The ship had a professional photographer on board who spent the cruise loudly ordering passengers to pose in front of the Canton Tower, a landmark on the river's shoreline.  As the only westerners on board, we didn't realize until the cruise was nearly over and the photographer chased us down that the ticket fare included a photo of us.

The Temple of the Six Banyan Trees is one of
four major Buddhist Temples in Guangzhou

Always in search of interesting temples, I learned that Guangzhou has four Buddhist Temples to visit.  The Temple of the Six Banyan Trees is one of the best known and has a long history, dating to 537 A.D.  Having been rebuilt over the years, the temple consists of several buildings that surround an octagonal pagoda.  Originally built in 1097, the existing pagoda dates from 1900 and contains Buddhist relics.

Our last stop in Guangzhou was the Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, a traditional Chinese academic temple complex consisting of nineteen buildings, nine halls and six courtyards.  Considered to be among the best examples of Lingnan Architecture, the buildings are known for their elaborate decoration, which includes wood and plaster carvings and iron engravings. 

The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall features pottery
sculptures on the ridges of the gabled roofs

The most notable feature is the pottery sculptures on the ridges of the gabled roofs that depict scenes from traditional Chinese dramas.  Completed in 1894, the Chen Clan Ancestral Hall now houses the Guangdong Folk Art Museum and contains both visiting exhibits and permanent collections of pottery, embroidery, porcelain, and wood and jade carving.

The Chen Clan Ancestral Hall is considered a prime example of Lingnan architecture

Being in Asia affords us more opportunities than we can possibly take advantage of before our time here ends.  But our visit to Guangdong and the relatively easy trip between there and Hong Kong was a good reminder that we needn't travel far to see new sites and learn more about Asia.