Hong Kong and Macau_ City Guide (Lonely Planet, 14th Edition) - Andrew Stone [195]
Zhuhai Holiday Resort (Zhūhǎi Dùjià Cūn; 0756-333 3838; www.zhuhai-holitel.com; 9 Shihua Donglu; s & d Y572-997, ste from Y1166) This five-star complex was once the place to stay in Zhuhai. It still has spacious rooms and villas. For budget travellers, the youth hostel (Zhūhǎi Gúojìxuéshēng Lǚguǎn) is also here, with two eight-bed dorms (Y60).
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GUANGZHOU
Known to many in the West as Canton, Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, is a sprawling city with 12 million people wrapped in a perpetual haze of pink smog and flashing neon lights. But that’s slowly changing. To prepare for the Asian Games in November 2010, the city began to ameliorate the worst of its rampant urbanisation with a makeover that has resulted in tougher traffic-law enforcement and greener roadsides. Guangzhou remains as chaotic as ever, but you’ll find it unique among China’s metropolises. It just takes some time to grow on you. Many of its elegant churches and villas have been restored. More importantly, as home to a series of uprisings that changed the Middle Kingdom forever, Guangzhou’s revolution-related sights unveil a vital part of China’s modern history. And fittingly enough, in Guangzhou, where food is the centrepiece of any conversation, you’ll find Cantonese cuisine cooked at its very best.
The biggest event in Guangzhou is the 15-day Canton Trade Fair (Zhōngguó Chūkǒu Shāngpǐn Jiāoyì Huì; 020-2608 8888; www.cantonfair.org.cn). It has been held twice yearly, usually in April and October, since 1957. Now the fair is held in complexes on Pazhou Island (Pázhōu) south of the river, accessible by metro.
Unlike the SEZs, you cannot get visas on the spot in Guangzhou. Get one in advance in Hong Kong or Macau.
Central Guangzhou is bounded by semi-circular Huanshi Lu to the north and the Pearl River (Zhū Jiāng) to the south. If you arrive by train, your first encounter of Guangzhou will be the new commercial area, Tiānhé District. West of here is Yuèxiù District, with a cluster of high-end hotels and important sights, and the main train station. The east–west bound Zhongshan Lu is the boulevard that separates Yuèxiù from the old town, Lìwān District, that stretches from south of the road to the riverbank.
Begin your tour in Yuèxiù District and lose your sense of time in the Mausoleum of the Nanyue King (Nányuèwáng Mù; 020-8666 4920; 867 Jiefang Beilu; admission Y12, audioguide Y10; 9am-5.30pm), a superb mausoleum from the 2000-year-old Nanyue kingdom now turned into one of China’s best museums. A highlight is the burial suit of Zhao Mo (second king of Nanyue), made of thousands of tiny jade tiles, gold jewellery and trinkets.
Near the mausoleum is Yuexiu Park (Yuèxiù Gōngyuán; 13 Jiefang Beilu; admission Y5; 6am-9pm). Within, you’ll find Guangzhou’s Five Rams Statue, a statue of the five immortals attributed to Guangzhou’s founding. On top of a hill in the park is the red-walled, five-storey Zhenhai Tower (Zhènhǎi Lóu), which houses the Guangzhou City Museum (Guǎngzhōushì Bówùguǎn; 020-8355 0627; admission Y10; 9am-5.30pm; Yuèxiù Gōngyuán metro). The museum boasts an excellent collection of exhibits that trace the history of Guangzhou from the Neolithic period. On the east side of the tower is the Guangzhou Art Gallery (Guǎngzhōu Měishùguǎn), showcasing Cantonese embroidery, carved ivory decorations, and (oddly) displays outlining Guangzhou’s trading history with the West.
Chen Clan Ancestral Hall (Chénjiā Cí; 020-8181 4559; 34 Enlongji Lu; admission Y10; 8.30am-5.30pm; Chénjiācí metro) is a spectacular ancestral shrine built in 1894 by the residents of 72 villages in Guangdong, where the Chen lineage is the predominant family. The complex encompasses 19 buildings with exquisite carvings, statues and paintings. Throughout, ornate scrollworks depict stories from Chinese literature