Shamian Island, Guangzhou

Favorite thing: Communist Church at Shamien, probably they pray for Karl Marx, Lenin & Jesus Christ, or probably they display the sculptor of Karl Marx inside with joss sticks and Chairman Mao's poster and they burn hell money...

Favorite thing: Adopt a child, is a culture where you can come to Guangzhou to adopt a Chinese boy/girl and you can bring them back to your country. At Shamien, Paul told me there were many foreigners from US Europe adopted Children children. Photo is a foreigner holding hand with a Chinese girl at Shamien.

So please remember, adopt a child at Shamien, Guangzhou.

Favorite thing: In Shamian Island, you can see those pretty old and expensive houses. And also, you can walk along the pearl river and it has a nice river walk . Xianghai Concert Hall and Guangdong Museum of Art are around the area.

Favorite thing: I don't know what my preconcieved notions were about China before my trip there last week,but I do know that I was delighted and surprised by what I discovered. Firstly, the ball room dancing in the park at night, the fan dancing and Tai chi, and the bustling, yet strangely invigorating pulse of the city streets, were an absolute eye opener. I was struck by the sense of community that the open green spaces and parks appeared to reflect. On boat tip up the Pearl River, I made friends which several wonderful Chinese children who wanted to say "hi" a thousand times to this rather strange looking white woman before them!
North to Beijing, I thoroughly enjoyed the Silk market which borders the American Embassy. According to local gossip, while the Embassy staff "pooh pooh" the corporate rip offs the silk alley merchants conduct, the staff continues to shop there. Ah - capitalism at its best.
The Great Wall was another delight - although the vendors are a little aggressive, they will deal and are polite none the less...
a wonderful trip and a desire to return soon!

Fondest memory: A trip to Shamian Island is an absolute "do no miss" with a wonderful Vietnamese coffee house where Vietnamese coffee, a sweet and delightful blend of flavours, awaits you. The European ambience as well as the colonial buildings (many of which are in sad need of repair) harken back to a past best remembered for its historical import rather than its symbolism.

Favorite thing: Guangzhou is a busy and polluted city. But not far from central Guangzhou, there's a small Island which is just like paradise. Shamian Island is so peaceful. You won't see heavy traffic there. Houses there are from late 19th century and early 20th century. I think I love those old houses the most.

Fondest memory: During the night, Shamian Dao transforms into a deeply romantic locale, where lovers often walk amidst the gardens and parks, or along the side of the Pearl River, sitting on benches, holding hands, or dining under Chinese lanterns at restaurants... The various constructions of the island are lit up at night with spectral, almost mystical chroma, like the blush of violet you see in the image here...

Fondest memory: This is one of my favorite buildings on Shamian Dao, located on Shamian Daijie, somewhere around the intersection of 3rd or 4th street... Crumbling, decaying and dilapidated, this seemingly ancient, timeworn construction, hidden behind an overgrowth of trees, suggests the abandoned precinct of a post-apocalyptic catastrophe of some kind...

Fondest memory: Shamian Island is the home to many extraordinary trees, many of them as old as 200 or 300 years...! Most of them have a small sign attached to them telling the age of the tree... Many tropical varieties can be found such as the famous banyan trees that have populated this region of China for ages...