By Amélie, travel-addict and blogger* Voyagista
When you live in Hong Kong you tend to think about hopping on a plane when you fancy a week-end getaway. However, there are other options including a destination you can easily reach by train that has a lot to offer including a world heritage site, an island retaining its colonial architectural heritage, river cruises and markets of traditional Chinese goods - I am describing Guangzhou.
The world heritage site of Kaiping Towers
In the pearl delta countryside, not far from the city of Guangzhou, you can find some unlikely constructions built in a mix of American-Venetian-Chinese style. These expensively decorated fortified towers stand guard over little villages and stand in stark contrast to the simple homes and paddy fields of the area. Successful local emigrants, who left the country (mainly to the USA in the first half of the 20th century) looking for a better life, built these houses for the family members remaining in China for comfort and protection (from local bandits).
You can find the buildings all over the Kaiping area but which were our favorite ones? The world heritage sites: Li Yuan Garden for the wealth it emanates, Zili Village for its abundance of remarkable towers and the peaceful Jiang Jiang Li village tower, which we enjoyed the most. You can climb to the top of these buildings to admire the views ...as long as your legs are willing.
Shamian Island: a former English and French concession
Shamian is a peaceful oasis amongst the hustle and bustle of Guangzhou and the perfect stop for sleep and a stroll. Between 1859 and 1949, the island was mainly an English concession with a small French section and a lot of the colonial buildings from this period remain today (former banks and embassies). As a result Shamian is a favorite wedding photo shoot spot for locals. You can sip a drink on the Starbucks terrace (inside a beautiful old colonial building) and look at people passing by dolce-vita-Cantonese style!
Guangzhou between history and modernity
In Guangzhou you can jump quickly from one period of time to another: during the afternoon we enjoyed visiting the huge and impressive Chen Clan Academy historical buildings and a few hours later, when it got dark, we boarded our fake pirate ship to go for a cruise on the Pearl River to see the television tower and the nightly light show.
The traditional Chinese medicine market of Qing Ping
This market is in the image of Guangzhou and China: huge! You can find here all the dried ingredients necessary for preparing Chinese medicines: seahorses, centipedes, flies, turtle shell, snakes, massive mushrooms... We didn’t see any illegal ingredients for sale - they must be sold in the back alleys these days!
There are numerous other markets and gardens to see in Guangzhou but our 3 days passed fast and it was already time to go back to Hong Kong before we could venture into any others. I hope you will take the time to discover Guangzhou as it is worth a visit and hopefully you will discover interesting places we missed!
Voyagista’s tips
• To get to Guangzhou take a train from Hung Hom station. It takes 2 hours to reach Guangzhou East station. Ticket bookings open 2 weeks before departure on the internet and tickets costs 190 HKD per adult.
• I recommend Shamian island to sleep in Guangzhou. It is a very nice and peaceful area.
• To visit Kaiping towers, use a car and driver from Guangzhou or organize to take a bus to Kaiping and take a driver there. The pass to see all the main sites costs 180 Yuan and is valid for 2 days.
• The night cruise on the pearl river can be enjoyable especially if you get a ticket on the top deck of a boat, where you’ll get the best views possible.
• It is sometimes difficult to find a taxi in Guangzhou but you can use the subway, which is convenient and efficient.
• It’s generally warmer in Guangzhou and Kaiping than it is in Hong Kong. Better not go at the height of summer or during the Canton fair when it will be difficult to find a hotel room.
*Are you looking for travel ideas for you and the family? Voyagista can help you discover new places in Asia and further afield. Visit http://voyagista.com/
