Guangzhou : Main Scenic Spots

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Chen Clan Temple
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It is an interesting example of an ancestral temple, few of which have survived in modern China. Built in 1890s, it is a splendid example of traditional southern architecture of the late Qing period. Chen (Chan in Cantonese) is a very common surname in the province, members of the Chan family from 72 counties in Guangdong founded this temple to give a proper setting for ancestor worship and Confucian studies. In the moral order expounded by Confucius, education, loyalty and filial duty were all stressed.

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Guangxiao Temple
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It is the oldest and least visited temple in Guangzhou. The Guangxiao Temple is of great historical significance, especially for those with an interest in Zen (Chan in Chinese) Buddhism. It was here in the Tang Dynasty that the Sixth Patriarch of Zen Buddhism, Hui Neng, was initiated into the monkhood. Hui Neng taught that enlightenment can be attained in a flash of illumination, and does not necessarily have to be earned through systematic discipline and study. That doctrine is the core of Zen Buddhism.

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Mausoleum of the 72 Martyrs
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Located on Yellow Flower Hill, midway between the zoo and the Garden Hotel, this mausoleum honours the martyrs who died in the unsuccessful 1911 uprising against the Qing. Funds from overseas Chinese contributed to its eclectic east-west architecture.

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Shamian Island
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In order to gain an impression of how European traders once lived, it is worth visiting Shamian Island. The Chinese authorities gave the land to European in the 19th century, to be their residential base, along with extraterritorial rights. Shamian was made an elegant enclave with large mansions, churches, a yacht club and tennis courts.

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Six Banyan Trees Temple
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It was named by the 12th-century poet Su Dongpo, came south to Guangzhou and impressed by the trees of the temple, wrote two characters meaning "Six Banyans′as an inscription. Today the temple houses the Guangzhou Buddhist Association. The octagon-shaped Liurong Pagoda teases the mind with its curious architecture. From the outside, the pagoda appears to be nine stories high; from the inside, the visitor counts 17 floors.

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Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall
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Guangzhou honours its favourite son with a large and picturesque memorial hall. The hall is set in a large park of its own, with an extensive lawn that is well-tended and almost always filled with local residents out for a picnic or to stretch out and read on blankets. The gleaming blue-tile roof and surrounds tree make this a pleasant place for a photo and frequently is used by local Chinese for wedding pictures, etc.

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Peasant Movement Institute
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The city′s earliest contribution to communist revolutionary history is remembered in the Peasant Movement Institute. It was once the headquarters of such activists as Mao Zedong, who set up a school to educate young cadres. The Institute is housed in a Ming-dynasty Confucian temple, and is therefore both historically and architecturally interesting.

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Yuexiu Park and the Statue of the Five Goats
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Yuexiu Park, the city′s largest and best-known, sits right across from the China Hotel along Jiefang Road. Five-story Zhen Hai Lou, or Tower Overlooking the Sea, has been sitting on this hilltop since the 14th century. Originally a temple and then a military watchtower, it now houses the Guangdong Historical Museum. Just north of the tower stands the symbol of Guangzhou, the Statue of the Five Goats. Legend has it that five celestial beings descended from heaven in the 13th century B.C. on the backs of five goats. Each goat carried a stem of rice in his mouth, indicating that this region along the Pearl would be forever free of famine. Guangzhou is sometimes called Five Goat City.

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