Blogs from Xiamen, Fujian, China, Asia - page 12

A five minute ferry ride from the city of Xiamen, Gulangyu is an island still transitioning from its colonial past. Its a fine example of China's cultural resilience. The look is still European, but the vibe is entirely Chinese. A Brief Overview of the History of the Concessions The Opium Wars were a terrible loss for China, not only because it legalized a terrible drug addiction and cemented a bankrupting trade imbalance but it opened China to European concessions. These concessions reflected the social darwinism of the time, as Chinese citizens were not allowed entry. The European architecture stamps the Chinese cities with a near permanent reminder of their brutal loss. Gulangyu was foreign occupied after the Treaty of Nanjing in 1842 and remained so until 1949 with the Chinese Communist victory. The island was abandoned ... read more

We decided to venture across the water to Gulangyu, a small island across the water from Xiamen, where many old colonial buildings and historical sites are still standing. There are beautiful trees, some of which are 200+ years old, and gardens as well. Gulangyu in Pinyin literally means, "Piano Island." The island was home to a famous music school and contains the world's largest piano museum (we'll catch that one the next time around!) One great thing about Gulangyu is that it is not very crowded. It also has NO vehicles, save for a few electric golf carts that drive elderly folks and lazy tourists around. The first thing that one sees upon arrival on the ferry is a beautiful garden. The next thing in sight is...McDonalds!... read more

Getting around here is a bit of a challenge when you don't know the language. Xiamen is an island, but we live at Jimei University, which is on the mainland. Jimei is basically a college town built around the schools of the university. There are many small shops, bars, and restaurants that cater to college students, but not much else to do there. There's a Kentucky Fried Chicken, but not much else to my picky tastes! Getting to Xiamen requires a taxi ride (my favorite - a 30 minute ride across the bridge, to the opposite side of the island - cost is about $5) or a bus ride (about one hour, very crowded, often no AC - cost is about 30 cents). There are three major places for food shopping for Westerners in Xiamen - ... read more

Well, we arrived safely in Xiamen, China last Monday (18 June) and yes it is true - travelling in China ain't easy. (Just wait for our blog on Beijing where we are now!!!) Virtually no one speaks any english (at least where we landed ) and there are very few signs in english. But just when you need help some one with enough english just seems to come along and get you out of the predicament. For example - Our guide book says - "turn east at the entrance of the airport and walk to the bus stop to the city". Which direction is east???? It's dark, it's late, no signs - do we go left, right or straight ahead? A good samaritan (who speaks english) comes to our rescue. "Are you going into the ... read more

Whenever I say "Gulang Yu" that bloody ABBA song makes me go "Aha!" in my mind... Yes, well... We arrived with directions from Shannon as to where we should stay. Though Xiamen is an island off the coast of China with a long history as 'Amoy', Gulang Yu was our target. Just a few hundred metres from the ferry terminal the island sat in the searing sun looking something like a cross between Portugal and Italy. The terracotta red roofs and pale walls shining across at us and green everywhere else apart from a few rock outcrops and the grey line of the promenade. A perfect remedy from those big city blues I'd been experiencing. We hopped on the free ferry to Gulang Yu and didn't leave for four days. Following Shannon's advice we checked into ... read more