Guangzhou, the Southern Gateway to China
Wednesday, 29 May 2019 - 11:00 am (CET/MEZ) Berlin | Author/Destination: Asia / AsienCategory/Kategorie: General Reading Time: 5 minutes Guangzhou, also known as Canton since its French colonial times before the end of World War II, is the capital and most populous city of the province of Guangdong in southern China. On the Pearl River about 120 km (75 mi) north-northwest of Hong Kong and 145 km (90 mi) north of Macau, Guangzhou has a history of over 2,200 years and was a major terminus of the maritime Silk Road, and continues to serve as a major port and transportation hub, as well as one of China’s three largest cities.
Guangzhou is at the heart of the most-populous built-up metropolitan area in mainland China that extends into the neighboring cities of Foshan, Dongguan, Zhongshan and Shenzhen, forming one of the largest urban agglomerations on the planet. Administratively, the city holds sub-provincial status and is one of China’s nine National Central Cities. At the end of 2018, the population of the city itself was at 11,500,000 and the metropolitan area is estimated at 14,900,000 by city authorities, up 3.8% year from the previous year. Guangzhou is ranked as an Alpha global city. More then 100 Millionen people are livng in the Pearl River Delta Metropolitan Region.
Long the only Chinese port accessible to most foreign traders, Guangzhou fell to the British during the First Opium War. No longer enjoying a monopoly after the war, it lost trade to other ports such as Hong Kong and Shanghai, but continued to serve as a major entrepôt. In modern commerce, Guangzhou is best known for its annual Canton Fair, the oldest and largest trade fair in China. For three consecutive years (2013–2015), Forbes ranked Guangzhou as the best commercial city in mainland China.
Guangzhou is the main manufacturing hub of the Pearl River Delta, one of mainland China‘s leading commercial and manufacturing regions. In 2017, the GDP reached ¥2,150 billion (US$318 billion), per capita was ¥150,678 (US $22,317). Guangzhou is considered one of the most prosperous cities in China. Owing to rapid industrialisation, it is also considered one of the most polluted cities once. But as city development goes greener, it is now one of the most livable cities in China. The Canton Fair, formally the “China Import and Export Fair”, is held every year in April and October by the Ministry of Commerce. Inaugurated in the spring of 1957, the fair is a major event for the city. It is the trade fair with the longest history, highest level, largest scale in China. From the 104th session onwards, the fair moved to the new Guangzhou International Convention and Exhibition Center in Pazhou, from the older complex in Liuhua. The GICEC is served by two stations on Line 8 and three stations on Tram Line THZ1. Since the 104th session, the Canton Fair has been arranged in three phases instead of two phases.
- Eight Sights of Guangzhou
- Canton Tower
- Chen Clan Ancestral Hall, housing Guangzhou’s folk art museum
- Chimelong Paradise
- Guangdong Provincial Museum
- Guangzhou Zoo
- Huaisheng Mosque, site of the Plain Pagoda
- Museum of the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King
- Peasant Movement Training Institute, an important Maoist site
- Sacred Heart Cathedral or Stone House
- Temple of Bright Filial Piety (Guangxiao)
- Temple of the Six Banyan Trees (Liurong), site of the Flowery Pagoda
- Shamian or Shameen Island, the old trading compound
- Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, site of Guangzhou’s former presidential palace
- Xiguan, the western suburbs of the old city
Within China, the culture of the Cantonese people is a subset of the larger “Southern” or “Lingnan” cultural areas. Notable aspects of Guangzhou’s cultural heritage include:
- Cantonese language, the local and prestige variant of Yue Chinese
- Cantonese cuisine, one of China’s eight major culinary traditions
- Cantonese opera, usually divided into martial and literary performances
- Xiguan, the area west of the former walled city
Guangzhou Opera House & Symphony Orchestra also perform classical Western music and Chinese compositions in their style. Cantonese music is a traditional style of Chinese instrumental music, while Cantopop is the local form of pop music and rock ‘n’ roll which developed from neighbouring Hong Kong.
Read more on Wikivoyage Guangzhou and Wikipedia Guangzhou (Smart Traveler App by U.S. Department of State - Weather report by weather.com - Global Passport Power Rank - Travel Risk Map - Democracy Index - GDP according to IMF, UN, and World Bank - Global Competitiveness Report - Corruption Perceptions Index - Press Freedom Index - World Justice Project - Rule of Law Index - UN Human Development Index - Global Peace Index - Travel & Tourism Competitiveness Index). Photos by Wikimedia Commons. If you have a suggestion, critique, review or comment to this blog entry, we are looking forward to receive your e-mail at comment@wingsch.net. Please name the headline of the blog post to which your e-mail refers to in the subject line.
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