Once upon a time five celestial beings in colorful robes were riding through the air on the backs of five flying male goats. Each goat carried in his mouth a stem of rice to guarantee that the place they chose to land would ever be free from famine. Finding a spot to their liking with sub-tropical climate combined with a rich delta land and a long coastline, they landed and named the spot Goat City.  Since this fabled landing, the area has produced an abundance of fruits, vegetables and fish. The happy circumstance is that the people here have been well fed and have created an astonishing cuisine enjoyed throughout the world. Goat City with it's energetic, outward thinking people, bustling harbor of Whampoa and more than 2,000 years of trading with the world is better known to us as Guangzhou in the province of Guandong. 

The high Nanling Mountains looming over its  fertile valleys have been an influence in somewhat isolating Guangzhou from the rest of China and allowing the growth of its unique identity, dialect and venturesome spirit. Whampoa Port has traded with the Roman Empire, has had  ancient links with the Middle East and India and has traded not only goods but ideas and scientific discoveries since 264 B.C. This is also where caravans began their long journey across Asia on the old Silk Route

At night both sides of the city streets are lighted with brightly colored Neon, so appropriate in this setting.  Large Chinese characters are fueled by brilliant reds, yellows and greens, like the embroidery on a Chinese silk robe, announcing a restaurant, motor scooter sales room or clothing store. Dimly lit Mom and Pop grocery stores seem to stay open all night as much for the owners to chat with friends as to make sales. The traffic of people and business never stops, and flowing through the center of it all is the timeless Pearl River. Ferry boats and  sightseeing boats travel their prescribed courses through the day and industrial barges, large and small, ply the river during the day and slip through the night.

More contemporary sights are the Sun Yat -Sen memorial hall with celestial blue tiles for the roof. The blue tiles are a special honor for the founding father of the republic.  Or you may find your way into the thick of things at Qingping Free Market  where much bargaining, and trading goes on in over 2,000 stalls with fruits, vegetables, fish, meat and herbal medicines. In government sponsored craft stores are artists and crafts people. One of the artists who paints in the classical style, uses only his thumb as a paint brush to create extraordinary impressions of landscapes and running horses.

To soak in the atmosphere of how and where Europeans lived in Guangzhou  in the 1850's a short ride over a bridge from the mainland to Shamian Island is quick and easy.  After the second Opium War a colony of mostly British and French traders was formed on this sandbar called Shamian island. Here they built mansions along the waters edge, tennis courts, garden walks, yacht clubs, their consulates and a Christian house of worship. The grand old buildings are peeling paint and dropping plaster, but a feeling of their former opulence is still there. School children now play ball or tag at recess under the giant Banyan trees where once wealthy merchants strolled and enjoyed their shade.  

Towering over this old European enclave in its Fung Shui chosen spot is the five-star White Swan hotel. The lobby is an oasis of flowers and greenery, intricate jade carvings and very old Bonsai trees. In its atrium a Chinese pavilion sits high on a rock cliff  overlooking a cascade splashing into a pond of gold fish. It is the ideal base for exploring Guangzhou. Wandering souls have found it a good place for dining or just dropping by for a cool drink. Realizing that many North Americans have discovered China as their answer for adopting the baby they've longed for, the hotel, together with China Southern Airlines has put together a travel package to accommodate and ease this process.  The fact that the American Embassy is immediately next door to the hotel couldn't be more convenient.

One of the highlights of a trip to Southern China is only a 45-minute plane ride from Guangzhou. It is the wonderland of Guilin, founded in 214 B. C. The city is less hectic than Guangzhou, and there are many more bicycles than cars. Streets are lined with large Cassia trees with fragrant yellow flowers. The flavor of these flowers is captured in the local teas and wines. Several streams flow through the city and rice fields color the surrounding countryside a luscious green.  When you are there you will understand why this landscape has inspired poets and painters through the ages.

The city is famous for it's unusual rock formations that are more like  pointed verdant hills or mountains. They are so unusual as to be almost eerie or magical depending upon one's frame of mind. They  , cover the countryside and line up along the sides of  the River Li  where 300 million years ago they were forced up from the bottom of the sea. While these sharp craggy hills were forming above ground, amazing caves and grottoes were left underground.

A boat trip down the Li River will take you into the heart of these beautiful ancient rock formations, bamboo forests and dense reed beds. A constant part of the scenery are the fisherman standing on bamboo rafts, fishing with cormorants as they pole their way to favorite fishing spots.

Reed Flute Cave is Guilin's largest of the many caves and the most impressive. Its vast grotto called the Crystal Palace of the Dragon King is large enough to hold 1,000 people and in times of trouble village people ran to the cave for protection.  Paths lead visitors through twisting halls of stalagmites and stalactites where one imagines seeing forms of lions, pagodas or even the Statue of Liberty. There is much here to spark the imagination and red, blue or green lamps illuminate hidden corners that might go unnoticed.

Near the center of downtown Guilin is Duxiu Feng hill called the Peak of Unique Beauty. It is one of the bizarre rock formations with a lookout on top and well worth the climb of 300 steps to see the view of the city and rice fields below. If you are lucky enough to be there in the autumn, you'll find the scent of Cinnamon trees filling the air.

In your journey to Southern China, you will see the familiar pictures of its hard-working people practicing the exercise of Tai Chi Chuan in the mornings, playing card games in the parks, boating on the lakes and bicycling to work or play, and you will find them warm, kind and polite.  And you will find yourself thoroughly enjoying the variety of flavors and textures and visual originality of their highly praised Cantonese cuisine, keeping the fable of the five goats alive.

For those in the process of adopting Chinese babies, a travel and accommodations package that can be helpful is offered by China Southern Airlines: 888-338-8988; and The White Swan Hotel next to the American Embassy on Shamian Island, Guangzhou, China: Website, http://www.white-swan-hotel.com

For details on travel to Guangzhou, Guilin and other parts of China, try the  China International Travel Service (CITS/US), a huge governmental travel ministry with offices in San Francisco. To access their Website, go to:   http://www.citsusa.com

PHOTO CREDITS: Mary Ashcraft, Beijing Slide Publishing Co.(Two Contributed  Slides: Goat Statue and Guilin's Li River)



© 1999 ROMAR TRAVEL GUIDES