The Business City

---

The fast train from Wuhan to Guangzhou averages about 300 km/hr. Clean, cool, comfortable, even in 2nd Class. The trip takes 4 hours and costs about half of what it would cost to fly. Best of all, it gets me right into the area where I'm staying, while the airport is over 1 hour away.

I'm here in Guangzhou, the third largest city in China. Added this city to my travel plans to accept an invitation from a student, William, from my last trip to HUST. Wouldn't have thought of visiting here otherwise, since it doesn't have much to offer tourists. It is China's major city gateway to Hong Kong and it has been a major port for Southern China for centuries. It is home to more migrant workers than any other Chinese city and was the "test" city for China's economic liberalizations of the late 70s. Many of the first factories producing goods for US companies were set up here and it is still home for many international firms and factories manufacturing for them.

Guangzhou has a different feel from either Beijing or Shanghai. It is mostly more tidy, though the air is no cleaner. Drivers tend to honk less and give pedestrians more leeway. As in Hong Kong, the food isn't spicy. Some say there are more "delicate" flavors. Cantonese is spoken by just about everyone, though Mandarin is the official language. William claims people are less stressed, though I'm not sure I agree.

The city is big and feels that way. The population is about 15 million. The city is split into several parts by the Pearl River. It is sprawling. William has reserved a small hotel for me near where he and his wife live in Panyu, in the southern part of Guangzhou. He has planned to show me the sights, but has also tells me this is going to be an eating tour. He has lived in Guangzhou most of his life, so promises to take me to some of his favorite places, some of which he's been going to since he was young.

If our first dinner together is any indication, the eating is going to be a highlight. We stopped at a large restaurant in Panyu for some typical Guangzhou dishes, including fish, both savory and sweet tofu, and some barbecue pork marinated in honey. Delicious. After dinner and a few minutes of waiting for a thunderstorm with pouring rain to pass, we dropped William's wife, Yu, a doctor, off for her weekly massage and carried on to the old town of Panyu. Of course, we had to eat another favorite dish, a warm pudding of buffalo milk and ginger at a place that's been making it in the same neighborhood for years. While there might not be many tourist sights here, there appears to be no end to the eating possibilities.

---

Photos

Home of Buffalo Milk Pudding
In Old Town, Panyu.