Xiamen’s Gulangyu Island Offers a Memorable Historical and Cultural Experience for Visitors– Xiamen, China
What is It? - One of the most interesting places to visit in China for a historical and cultural experience is the port city of Xiamen located in the southeastern section of the country. With a metropolitan area population of almost four million people, Xiamen has quietly emerged as a prosperous area because of its economic development and tourist activity. It was designated as one of China’s first Special Economic Zones by Premier Deng Xiaoping in the 1980s. Today, international conferences and exhibitions are frequently held there and in 2018 an estimated eighty-nine million tourists visited the city. Gulangyu Island, located in the middle of the Lujiang River to the west of the city, is the principal attraction for people with only a day to spend in Xiamen but the island is also frequented by local families and school groups. Everyone enjoys the historical structures, fresh air, and environment that China is attempting to preserve in the middle of this major city.
Historical Events- The fascinating history of Xiamen created the conditions for its 21st century success. First, after Portuguese traders visited Xiamen in 1541, the city became a gateway into China for colonial powers seeking a foothold to obtain tea, silk, porcelain, and other goods from local merchants. Conversely, for generations and particularly during the 19th century, people from the surrounding area have emigrated from Xiamen to other nations and locals communicate frequently with the overseas Chinese community. Second, clans loyal to the Ming dynasty fiercely resisted the Manchus who invaded most of China from the north during the mid-1600s. One major shipping group or pirate organization led by a general Zheng Chenggong fought a personal naval war against the Manchus. Eventually, he decided to raise a fleet of hundreds of ships and an army of thousands of soldiers to protect the region. He brought his entire force to the nearby island of Taiwan and succeeded in ousting the Dutch East India Company from its fort and trading headquarters there and installing his own base in its place. This important victory over a European power in 1662 resulted in general Chenggong, also called Koxinga, becoming a symbolic hero to many Chinese and Asian people. He is a local hero still in Xiamen.
Finally, after the First Opium War ended in 1842, the island of Gulangyu was designated as a treaty port. This allowed merchants, seafarers, and people from thirteen other countries including Britain, Portugal, France, Japan, The Netherlands, and Denmark to settle there. They built a complete community on the small island over the next hundred years full of churches, government buildings, social clubs, hospitals, and residences by using a wide combination of architectural designs and local themes. As a result, when Gulangyu Island was taken back by China from the Japanese after World War II, the settlement was still intact. The island’s unusual blend of European and Chinese buildings, monuments, beaches, gardens, and colonial accoutrements helped it achieve recognition as a World Heritage Site in 2017.
What to See on Gulangyu Island- Gulangyu Island may only be explored on foot since no cars are bicycles allowed within the one square mile location except for a few electric golf carts. The main squares and popular restaurants on the island can become crowded on weekends and holidays with visitors, but only 30,000 people per day are allowed to take a ten-minute ferry ride to come over from Xiamen city. Consequently, a well-planned walk along the quaint alleyways and abundant gardens can still make exploring the island a relaxing and rewarding experience. Some interesting places to see on the island include:
Statue of Koxinga in Bright Moon Garden - It is easy to spot the memorial statue to Koxinga that looks out to sea from a promontory on the south side of the island as you exit the ferry terminal. You can approach it by walking along the shoreline past a small beach and then following the trail up to the point or by walking farther inland through the Bright Moon Garden. At the top is a fifty-foot high,1400-ton, statue of the famous general that was carved from hundreds of pieces of white granite. The gardens surrounding the statue contain various poems attributed to the general along with sculptures exhorting his soldiers to drive away invaders from Chinese lands.
Colonial Buildings and Shops - The winding streets of Gulangyu Island are full of interesting buildings, shops, restaurants, and hundreds of colonial era mansions that range from fully restored guesthouses to ramshackle structures on their last legs. This area is best reached by proceeding across the main square to the streets leading to the center of the island. Along these streets, you may run into an old graveyard with barely readable tombstones dedicated to past missionaries and soldiers. Another area may contain art deco buildings which have been turned into shops selling all kinds of milk teas or calligraphy stores. Fujian province is famous for its teas and one popular local Tea Shop is dedicated the Zhangshan Feng, a famous stray cat who is now the island’s mascot. You should not expect wide boulevards and gardens throughout the island though. The main commercial streets around Longtou Square are crowded and feature noodle shops with tiny plastic chairs and the same kind of general merchandise vendors and street food sellers you would find in any other Chinese city.
Piano Museum - One of the oddities of history is that there is an abundance of pianos on Gulangyu Island among the 20,000 or so residents. Supposedly, the island’s name means “Isle of the Drumming Waves” and the European missionaries who settled here created a tradition of piano music that h endured. One result is an attraction called the Piano Museum with buildings filled with more than one hundred pianos from Germany, England, and Austria instruments including some that are centuries old.
Sunlight Rock- Sunlight Rock is the highest point on the island. It can be reached by climbing several long flights of stairs or by taking a short cable car ride. This is one of the island’s most popular tourist attractions and often there are long lines at the top with hundreds of people taking pictures. The area has always been important to local people since there has been a Buddhist Temple there since the early 1500s. Sayings and prayers have been carved into the ledges around the rock by monks and priests. From the top, you can look back across the whole island, see the waterfront of the city of Xiamen, see the surrounding waters in all directions, and get great photographs. Crowds are smaller and the views are best after sunrise and before sunset.
Other Island Activities- There are numerous other activities available on the island such as the Xiamen Sea World located next to the ferry terminal, the Shuzhuang Gardens which are full of interesting pavilions and bridges to explore, and the Zhen Qi Museum which present exhibits on the history of the Fujian area and Taiwan along with some natural history oddities.
When to Go- The crowds can affect a visitor’s experience at Gulangyu Island, so it is best to avoid weekends, school vacation times, and Chinese Holidays when visiting the site. The best time to go to the island is in the morning during the week or at the end of the day after most of the tour groups have departed. Weather is also a factor. Although temperatures only drop below 60 degrees during the day from December to March, there are fewer activities to enjoy during those months. Meanwhile, sometimes the weather can be blazing hot, humid, and rainy in August and late summer. So, in general, fall is the best time to enjoy the island.
Where to Stay - Some people enhance their time and privacy on the island by staying overnight at one of the renovated guesthouses. Others take advantage of the major international hotels on the Xiamen waterfront such as the Millennium Harbourview or the Conrad Xiamen or stay at Le Meridien or the Waldorf Astoria within the city, and then take the ferry over the island as needed.
How to Get Here – Xiamen is a major city in China that is served directly from Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong on airlines such as Cathay Pacific, China Eastern, China Southern, Xiamen Airlines and Shanghai Airlines. Some Asian airlines have direct flights into Xiamen and Xiamen Airlines has a direct flight from Los Angeles in the United States. Xiamen is also part of the China High Speed Rail System which provides connections to most other major destinations in China for travelers using the trains to visit attractions in the country. Major international and Chinese based cruise lines frequently stop at the port of Xiamen also.
Cost- There is no cost to enter the island or to enter the city of Xiamen, but the ferry service costs around six dollars per person. Individual exhibits or museums may charge a fee to enter.