Xiamen sojourn

Acoastal city in southeast Fujian province, Xiamen has been an important port and trading hub since imperial times. The city has continued to build on its strong commercial ties and in 2011, its total foreign trade value hit $70.1 billion (56 billion euros), up by 23 percent from 2010. It also recorded total foreign investment of $2.24 billion, up by 36.4 percent during the same period.

Xiamen was listed as a special economic zone in 1981 and industry continues to play a major role in its economy. In 2011, its GDP hit 253.5 billion yuan ($40 billion, 32 billion euros), up by 15.1 percent from 2010. Other key industries include international trade and tourism.

Xiamen has also made plans to promote its cultural industry as a new growth engine. The city plans to cultivate 50 big culture-related companies and 30 projects as well as build 10 culture-related industry parks.

Its aim is to achieve a 25 percent annual growth in the sector and have it form 10 percent of the city's GDP by the end of 2014.

Due to its proximity to Taiwan, Xiamen has also built up close economic and cultural links with the island including those in the financial and emerging industries.

Boasting more than 700 years of history, rich southern Fujian culture and beautiful natural beauty, the city continues to serve as a rewarding destination for both Chinese and foreign tourists. Regarded as "a garden in the sea", Xiamen provides a beautiful home for 3.61 million residents and received 35.2 million visitors last year. In a survey conducted by the China Tourism Association in 2011, the city was also labeled "the most romantic city for vacation" in China.

Here are some of the city's highlights:

1. Gulangyu Island (Drum Wave Islet in Chinese)

Situated in the southwest of Xiamen, Gulangyu is considered the must-see destination for visitors. The island is full of scenic spots and the architecture of different countries from the colonial period in the 18th century, when it was used as an international settlement. People can find temples in traditional Chinese style,
Japanese cottages and original Western consulates in the European style.

In 1988, the island was listed as a State-level scenic area. As the island is home to many renowned Chinese musicians and pianists, it is also called the Island of Music.

Today, it is still the only island in the country that prohibits vehicles. Tourists can choose to spend three to four hours walking around Gulangyu while enjoying the beautiful seaside view, or walk right into the winding streets in the center of Gulangyu, and explore the unexpected and sophisticated combination of Eastern and Western cultures.

Ganghouzai seaside resort is located in the south of the island and is recognized as the best beach in Xiamen.

With soft sand, gentle waves and an average temperature of 21 C all year around, the resort is an ideal spot for beach lovers. It offers yachts and motorboats, as well as other forms of water recreation.

2. Xiamen University

Founded in 1921, the university is the first Chinese university founded by overseas Chinese. Besides its academic prominence, Xiamen University is famous for its seaside beauty and relaxed atmosphere.

On campus, visitors can find a collection of beautiful architecture combining Chinese and Western styles, various tropical plants and a Lotus Lake with swans.

There are two museums: the Museum of Lu Xun, named after the famous Chinese writer, and the Museum of Anthropology, considered the only one of its kind in China.

Located in Siming South Road, the university sits next to South Putuo Temple, a Buddhist temple built on the steep rocks of the Wulao Peaks.

3. Piano Museum

This Piano Museum in Gulangyu is the only one of its kind in China. Established in 2000, the museum is located in Shuzhuang Garden. An Australian-Chinese named Hu Youyi collected more than 100 pianos and donated them to this museum.

The collection includes a gold-plated piano, a large upright piano, an old piano with eight pedals and other valuable pianos from Italy, the UK, France and other parts of the world.

Visitors can learn about the 200 years of the evolution of the piano within this small museum.

Eating and drinking

As an important branch of Southern Fujian cuisine, Xiamen cuisine is mainly served steamed, fried and stewed. Dishes are usually fresh and light in flavor, and are sometimes slightly spicy. Famous offerings include seafood and vegetarian treats.

There are more than 200 varieties of Xiamen snacks, with rice dumplings, fishball soup, oysters and barbeque sauce noodles proving most popular.

At the Huangzehe Xiamen specialty snacks restaurant in Zhongshan Road in Siming district, tourists can find all traditional snacks.

Fresh seafood is available in almost every restaurant in the city. The most recommended eatery is Xiaoyanjing food stall, located in Hubin Middle Road. The restaurant serves up fresh seafood at reasonable prices. Reservations should be made in advance.

Bar streets

Haiwan Park

This park is located in Hubin West Road. At night, many pubs light up with candles and oil lamps. Besides exotic drinks, visitors can enjoy live performances by local singers in the bars.

Bar cultural street 1973

Situated in Honglian Road in Siming district, the 1973 bar cultural street only opened in April but 11 bars have already set up shop. Expect to see about 50 bars and cafes in the street by June.

Source: China Daily

South Putuo Temple Fujian province

South Putuo Temple is adjacent to Xiamen University in the Southeast of the city. Originally built in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the temple was destroyed many times over the course of following dynasties. In the 23rd year of the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty (1616-1912), it was once again rebuilt and given its present name. A statue of the Bodhisattva Guanyin, or Avalokitesvara, is enshrined in the temple, which receives an endless stream of worshippers and pilgrims throughout the year. [Photo/China.org.cn]

Xiamen- A city with beauty and age

It was one of the treaty ports established after the First Opium War, but Xiamen has put aside its history to take its place among China's major cities. Mike Peters finds out the latest attractions.

Egret Island. Island of Abundant Crops. Gateway to China. Amoy. Siming ("Remember the Ming"). Few cities can boast a more colorful series of names - and a history to match - than Xiamen. Legend has it that egrets and poisonous snakes once battled for supremacy here. The birds won, which is why tourists can enjoy a view of Egret Island, and why the egret's silhouette adorns the logos of many local businesses.

Xiamen's story includes plenty of battles among humans, too. Staring out over the harbor is a massive statue of Zheng Chenggong (1624-1662), the national hero popularly known in the West as Koxinga.

Xiamen was one of the five treaty ports established in 1843 after the First Opium War, which made the city - especially the islet of Gulangyu - a place of colonial architecture. The old German consulate is just one of the fine old residences that have been refurbished to welcome overnight travelers.

Today Xiamen is a haven of tranquility - and a semi-tropical escape with special allure as winter's icy grip squeezes the northern half of China. Locals describe Xiamen's appeal as if reciting the Goldilocks and the Three Bears fairy tale: It's not too big and not too small.

"Xiamen is one of the most beautiful cities in China and, located by the sea, it has great views," says Duan Yulin, a local policeman who moved there from Hunan province about eight years ago. He does not like huge cities but also dislikes the inconvenience of small places. "Xiamen is just about the right size," he says.

"I hear people debating whether this is a second-tier or a third-tier city," says Martin Verpoorten, general manager of the new Westin Xiamen, the latest high-end hotel to open its doors on the island.

"This market is not saturated," Verpoorten says. While there are plenty of options in the city center, he adds, new hotels will open on the north side of the island as trade across the Taiwan Straits grows rapidly.

Verpoorten worked in Sanya in the past and says Xiamen has an edge over that sun-and-fun destination. "On Hainan Island, when you're done at the beach, there's not much to do. Here, a lively city awaits."

Entertainment options include an intriguing jade museum, where a terrific English-speaking guide showed us everything from dainty miniatures to a massive jade head with bulging square eyes.

You can stroll and eat your way along Taiwan Food Street, one of several lanes with enticing local delicacies, starting with hot-off-the-grill oysters bubbling with garlic, chopped tomato and sea salt.

You'll find tea "shops" that have brewed regionally grown leaves in the same ceramic vessels for a century. Fujian province is China's main producer of the famed oolong teas.

Laid-back vendors will slice off servings from jackfruits the size of a wall safe, and rose apples - those hot-pink, bell-shaped fruits - are offered three on a stick for about 5 yuan (80 cents).

There's a strong bar and restaurant scene, too, but skip the guidebook-touted Guanren Road Bar Street - a shadow of its once-lively self - and head for the new hotspot: the waterfront strip at Haiwan Park.

Popular hangouts there include the Me & You 2 Bar & Pizza Co, the Havana Bar, JJ's Texas and Steve's, all with live music from spot-on Filipino cover bands. We also liked the food, cigars and music at the Westin's Cuba-themed Qba, where a lively live band from Havana plays six nights a week.

Culture vultures shouldn't miss the Nanputuo Temple, first constructed during Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907). The nearby vegetarian restaurant Dafang Sucaiguan is nearly as famous as the temple itself among the patrons, with dishes that are colorful, tasty and poetically named.

Xiamen University, colloquially known as Xia Da, is the first university in China founded by overseas Chinese in 1921. Backed by green hills and fronted by the sea, its elegant architecture and tree-lined streets make it a treat to explore the grounds on foot.

And then there's that must-do daytrip to Gulangyu islet, a 10-minute ferry ride away. Shuzhuang Garden includes a pleasant bathing beach and the Piano Museum, which features more than a hundred instruments of historic interest from around the world.

Under the influences of European missionaries, the piano has long been popular among locals - one out of every three residences is said to have one - and the island also boasts a famous music college and an organ museum.

Daytrips often turn into overnighters on the islet, and hundreds of beds are available in "home-stay hostels". Some are fully operating bed-and-breakfasts, while others may simply be a bedroom in a busy multi-family dwelling. But even the latter are generally pleasantly renovated with Western-style plumbing and an ambience from bygone days.

If you are a museum fan, you may need an extended stay in Xiamen. Besides the shrines for music and jade, there are museums dedicated to Koxinga, coins, bridges, overseas Chinese and anthropology.

If shopping is your thing, check out the Buy Now Electronics Market for the latest gadgets, and Gulangyu's market streets for souvenir samples of tasty dried meat and fruit, pies and milk-tea cafes. We were gobsmacked by surfboard-sized dried eels, but before you grab one remember they won't fit in the overhead bin if you're flying home.

Xiamen is gearing up to become an aviation hub, with the fourth terminal at its Gaoqi International Airport scheduled to open in June 2014, Business Traveler Asia reports.

In 2012 the airport received about 17 million passengers, and the new terminal will be able to handle 20 million alone.

International trade is nothing new to Xiamen. The first German company to settle in Xiamen in 1854 was Pasedag & Co, notes Stefan Gallon, the consul general of Germany in Guangzhou. International brands with big Chinese markets, such as Denmark's Ecco and US computer-maker Dell, have long-established manufacturing in Xiamen.

Xiamen's waterfront ferry terminals are also expanding, to more easily accommodate the crowds of passengers who line up for tickets to Gulangyu and the nearby islands of Taiwan.

Tourists who come seeking coastal sun, mild temperatures and Fujian cuisine are a major boost to Xiamen's economy, but even the visitors complain about the crowds in summer.

Source: By Mike Peters (China Daily)

'Garden on the Sea' - Gulangyu Island

Gulangyu is a car-free island off the coast of Xiamen, Fujian Province in southern China. Visitors can reach it by ferry from Xiamen Island in about 10 minutes. Gulangyu Island is renowned for its beaches and winding lanes and its varied architecture. It is also known as the "Garden on the Sea."


source: china.org

Sunlight Rock on Gulangyu Island

Sunlight Rock (Riguangyan) is the highest point on Gulangyu Island in southern China’s Xiamen, 92.68 meters above sea level. From this vantage point you can get a bird's eye view of the entire island. The climb up to the 40-meter-wide rock is leisurely and winds through some of the nicest scenery on Gulangyu Island, between mansions and ancient trees


Source: china.org.cn