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Fujian
Fuzhou Xiamen

Geographic location
   
Fujian, called "Min" for short, is situated in the southeast of China on the coast of the East China Sea. With its land area lying between 23030'-28022' north latitude and 115050'-120040' east longitude, Fujian covers a land of 540 km from east to west and 550 km from north to south. It faces Taiwan Province across the Taiwan Strait and adjoins Zhejiang, Jiangxi and Guangdong provinces on the northeast, northwest and southwest, respectively. Its territory includes 121,400 square kilometers land and 136,300 square kilometers of sea. Its coastline stretches 3,324 km, the second longest in the country. Encompassing 1,401 islands of different sizes, Fujian is a vital navigation hub between the East China Sea and the South China Sea. It is one of the Chinese provinces closest to Southeast Asia, West Asia, East Africa and Oceania

Topography:
Mountains and hilly areas constitute over 80 percent of Fujian's land area. Plains are concentrated in its southeast coastal areas.

Climate:
Fujian has a subtropical humid monsoon climate, with annual temperature averaging between 17-210C. The average temperatures in the coldest month (January) are 10-130C in the southeast coastal parts and 5-80C in the inland mountainous areas. In the hottest month (July) the temperature averages 26-290C. The average annual precipitation is 1,000 mm and frost-free period lasts 240 to 330 days a year.

Natural resources:
Fujian possesses 86 kinds of minerals with verified reserves, including 34 kinds of metallic minerals and 47 nonmetallic minerals. Among those with considerable reserves are gold, silver, lead, zinc, manganese, kaolin, limestone, granite, alunite, pyrophyllite and sulfur. Its reserve of quartz-sandstone ranks among the national tops in both quantity and quality.

Forests cover 52.4 percent of Fujian's total land area, a c rate ranking first in China. Plant species are abundant. There are 1,943 kinds of woody plants, including 400 species of timber tree and 140 varieties of bamboo. Fujian has 400 million cubic meters of timber reserved, its timber production ranking third in China.

Incomplete statistics show that there are several thousand species of terrestrial wild animals in Fujian, including 100 species of beasts, 540 species of birds, 115 species of reptiles and 44 species of amphibians. There are also more than 5,000 kinds of insects. The Wuyi Mountain Nature Reserve is abundant in wildlife resources. It is also a world-renowned specimen base for new species of vertebrates and insects. The Meihua Mountain Nature Reserve in Longyan City is home to large numbers of birds and animals.

Fujian has five big fishing grounds which abounds in marine resources. Among the more than 3,000 species of marine organisms, 750 are fishes, accounting for 50 percent of the country's total marine fish species.

Water Resources:
Fujian is rich in water resources, and its annual rainfalls totals 201.1 billion cubic meters. More than 500 rivers in the province have their drainage area of over 50 square kilometers each. The total volume of river runoff stands at 115 billion cubic meters a year on average. The province's theoretical waterpower reserves total 10.46 million kw which can generate 91.6 billion kwh of power annually. There are 1,000 places suitable for building a hydropower station with a generating capacity of over 500 kw. Their combined generating capacity can reach 7.05 million kw and their annual power generation, 32 billion kwh, both ranking first in eastern China. The existing generating capacity accounts for only 30 percent of the province's total potential, leaving big room for development. Fujian also has rich underground water resources. More than 100 hot springs have been discovered, their water temperatures ranging from 400C to 600C.

Tourist resources:
Fujian is rich in tourism resources, abounding with numerous places of historical and cultural interest, and beautiful scenic spots.

Fujian preserves many cultural sites from the Qin (221-207 BC), Han (206 BC-AD 220), Tang (618-907), Song (960-1279), Yuan (1271-1368) and Ming (1368-1644) dynasties. There are numerous ancient temples, pagodas, bridges and castles, as well as former residences of celebrities. Fujian has a wide variety of navigation relics and religious legacies thanks to its long history of navigation and frequent contacts with the outside world.

There are many beautiful mountains in the province. The famous seaside resorts include Wuyi Mountain, Gushan (Drum Hill) in Fuzhou, Tailao Mountain in east Fujian and Wanshiyan in Xiamen. The province also has many beautiful beaches, such as the bathing beach on Gulangyu Islet of Xiamen, the Luanwan Beach on Dongshan Island, the Longwangtou Beach at Pingtan and Meizhou Island at Putian. Its numerous rivers offer many picturesque water spots, including the Jiuqu (Nine-Bend) Stream in Wuyi Mountain and Jinhu Lake, the largest artificial lake in Fujian. Northwest Fujian is noted for danxia and karst landforms, with countless grotesque rocks and fantastic caves. The Wuyi and Meihua mountain nature reserves preserve vast expanses of virgin forests, with rich fauna and flora resources. These reserves and other scenic resorts are ideal places for enjoying the charms of nature, making holidays and conducting scientific explorations. In addition, Fujian has a host of gardens, parks and hot springs of different types.

Colorful ethnic customs, unique local cultures and rich products also add attraction to the province's tourism resources.

Currently, Fujian encompasses two national tourist holiday resorts, nine national scenic spots, four national nature reserves (forest parks), four national-level famous historic and cultural cities, 29 key cultural sites under state protection, 19 provincial-level scenic spots, six provincial tourist economic develop areas, and 204 cultural sites under provincial protection.

Environment and current issues:

Its environment as a whole is improving. Water quality of rivers is generally good, but pollution is serious in certain sections and in rivers and lakes in urban areas. Some reservoirs are suffering from eutrophication and most parts of offshore waters are being polluted by nutrient salts. Air quality is generally fine; smoke from burning coal remains as the dominant pollutant. Noise pollution from traffic and construction is still serious. Radiation environment is generally fine though "white pollution" has yet to be brought under effective control and the danger of pollution from hazardous wastes exists

Total population:
  
Fujian had a population of about 34.88 million at the end of 2003, an increase of 220,000 from the end of the previous year.

Population growth rate:
  
The natural population growth rate stood at 5.85 per thousand.

Ethnicity:
  
Fujian is a province where many ethnic groups live in compact communities. According to the fifth population census, Fujian has 48 ethnic groups, with the Han constituting the largest group and the 47 ethnic minority groups, with 580,000 people in total, comprising 1.67 percent of its population. The She is the largest ethnic minority group in the province, with a population of 350,000, accounting for more than 50 percent of its total population nationwide. The number of Hui people exceeds 10,000. Ethnic minority groups in Fujian are mainly distributed in Ningde, followed by Fuzhou City and Quanzhou City.

Education:
  
By 2003 Fujian had 64 institutes of higher learning, 592 senior high schools, and 7,064 kindergartens. There are also 77 special schools for the handicapped.

Hometown of overseas Chinese:
  
Fujian is one of the hometowns of overseas Chinese. The number of Fujian natives residing abroad totals 8.8 million. They live in more than 90 countries and regions across the world, mainly in Southeast Asia.

Fujian-Taiwan Ties:
  
Fujian faces Taiwan across the sea. The people on the two sides of the Straits are closely linked because they have the same ancestors, speak the same dialect and share the same customs and cultural traditions. People from Fujian began to move to Taiwan more than 1,700 years ago. In the 17th century, large numbers of Fujian people migrated to Taiwan in order to escape from wars and natural disasters. When Zheng Chenggong, a heroic general, recovered Taiwan from the Dutch colonialists during the late Ming and early Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, he took with him tens of thousands of Fujian officers and men and their families to the island. These Fujian immigrants brought with them production techniques, cultural traditions, native dialect, customs and religious beliefs; they lived and multiplied there generation after generation, making special contributions to the social, economic and cultural development of Taiwan. According to statistics published in Taiwan, people of Fujian origin comprise 80 percent of Taiwan's 20 million population. The number of Taiwan compatriots living in Fujian also exceeds 10,000.

GDP:
  
Fujian's GDP approached 524.173 billion yuan in 2003, up 11.5 percent on the previous year.

GDP ratio:
  
In 2003, the proportions of the added value of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries in Fujian's GDP changed from the previous 14.2:46.1:39.7 to 13.5:47.6:38.9.

Revenue:
  
Fujian's revenue was 55.273 billion yuan in 2003, up 16 percent.

Industrial added value:
  
The industrial added value of Fujian totaled over 214.99 billion yuan in 2003, up 15.6 percent.

Agriculture:
  
In 2003, the ratio of grain and non-grain crop growing area was readjusted from 60.2:39.8 to 58.4:41.6. This means a reduction of 90,000 ha in the growing area of grain crops. The total grain output in the year was 7.13 million tons, down 6.6 percent from the previous year.

Foreign trade:
  
Customs statistics show that the total import and export value of the province in 2003 was US$35.335 billion, up 24.4 percent from the previous year. The export value was US$21.14 billion, up 7.9 percent; while the import value was US$14.195 billion, up 28.7 percent.

Foreign investment:
  
In 2003, the province approved a total of 2,274 projects with foreign direct investment, the contractual foreign capital amounting to US$7.25 billion, up 4.4 percent. Of the sum US$4.99 billion had been actually used, a rise of 17.5 percent.

Pillar industries:
  
Fujian has formed a complete industrial system, with the petrochemical, electronics, machinery, construction, building material, forestry, fishery and aquiculture, and light and textile sectors as its pillar industries

Highways:
  
The length of Fujian's highways totaled 54,876 km at the end of 2003, of which expressways stretch for 727 km.

Waterways:
  
Fujian has 327 port berths, including 35 deepwater berths catering to 10,000-ton vessels and larger ones. The ports' comprehensive handling capacity exceeds 45 million tons. The Fuzhou and Xiamen ports rank among the nation's top 10 container ports. Motor vessels in operation total 3,530, with a shipping capacity of 1.38 million tons. It's connected by waterway with all ports nationwide, including those in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, and over 60 ports in 40 foreign countries.

Airway:
  
Fujian has four airports: the Gaoqi International Airport in Xiamen, Changle International Airport in Fuzhou, Jinjiang Airport in Quanzhou, and Wuyishan Airport in Nanping.


Fuzhou

Fuzhou is an ancient city with a history of more than 2,100 years and now the capital city of Fujian province. It is one ofthe fourteen open coastal cities in China. Situated by the East Sea and in the lower reaches of the Min River, this area of 12,153 square kilometres is populated with 5.83 million people. The city tree is Banyan Jasmine flower is known as the symbolic flower of the city.

The city of Fuzhou is alternatively called Three Hills. The Yu, Wu andScreen Hills, all verdant with flourishing trees and grass, form a triangle inside the city. The White and Black Pagodas, elegant and slim as they are, face each other from the Yu and Wu hills. The Min River flows through the city, carrying along with it the reflections of trees and flowers. As it is said, "Three Hills, Two Pagodas and a River" constitute the unique landscape of Fuzhou City. The banyan is the symbolic tree of the city. Since the Song
Dynasty (960-1279), this kind of trees have been planted all over the city,and as a local saying goes; "Green shade is the cover of the city, and no otheris needed in summer. " Ancient banyan trees, shaped like umbrellas and luxuriant with all the youthfulness, offer a comfortable coolness to courtyards. Thus, the city is also called Banyan City. Jasmine flower is known as the symbolic flower of the city. The broad modern avenues and little ancient lanes are permeated with the sweet scent of jasmines, which contend with the Yulan magnolia, banana shrub and orchid, blazing the city with a riot of colour, brimming it with aroma and bringing about the name to the city "Hometown of Flowers and Fruits. "

Fuzhou has a honourable title "Civilization by the East Sea. " Since the establishment of the city under the reign of Song Dynasty Gaozhu over one thousand years ago, the city has even served as the capital either to the king's prefecture or emperor's state or today's province. The rock-face inscriptions in the Drum Mountain, the Luoxing Tower in Mawei,the Great Iron Buddha in the Kaiyuan Temple and the Jinshan Temple amid the Min River, along with the hundred and more historic sites, have recorded the glory of Fuzhou City. The historical figures such as Lin Zexu, Yan Fu, Sha Zhenbing, Zheng Zhenduo and Gao Shiqi, have always aroused the pride in the hearts of Fuzhou people. The "Treasure Land" Fuzhou has become more and more glamorous today.

Xiamen

The City of Xiamen is situated on the southeast coast of the province of Fujian . This famous city of Fujian was once the home of the egrets and thus it is also known as ?The Egret Island ? The remote island of Xiamen was joined to the People's Republic of China by the two causeways named Jimei and Xinglin.

Xiamen is positioned on the second place amongst the largest cities of Fujian. It encompasses an area of 1,516.12 square kilometers. Being located on the subtropical zone Xiamen experiences warm and humid climatic conditions.

This large city with approximately 1.17 million population is a home to lot many Chinese living in Taiwan and is also the entrance and exit point for all the Chinese living abroad.

Lot of tourists visit the place in the month of April and November which is considered to be the tourist season of Xiamen . It provides the tourists from Taiwanon arrival?and to the other tourists it provides visa to the Xiamen Special Administrative Region.

The beautiful City of Xiamen is one of the hottest tourist destination centers of Fujian. It houses some of the famous tourist destinations including the Gulangyu Islet, Nanputuo Hill, Wanshi Crag, and Jimei along with an interesting tourist destination in the sea. The Nanputuo Temple at Xiamen is famous for its vegetarian dishes and the Lujiang Hotel for its medicinal food preparations based on the ancient recipes.

Some of the important places at Xiamen that are of great tourist interest as well comprise of:

Gulangyu Islet : This famous island of Xiamen is situated towards the southwestern region of Xiamen. This island holds an area of 1.78 square kilometers. Gulangyu is full of natural beauty and is therefore called "a shining pearl in the Orient" and "the garden on the sea". Gulangyu the house of music and pianist is full of an enriching ambiance, lush trees, sunlit beaches, red tiled houses, majestic mountains and lovely seagulls, has flowers blooming all through out the year giving it a mesmerizing beauty.

The Wanshi Crag Scenic Area : This area is the part of the Gulangyu Islet and Wanshi Mountain Scenic Area. This hilly region expands over 26 square kilometers including the 7 square kilometer stretch of the coastal region. This famous tourist destination of Xiamen includes Wanshi, Taiping, Zuixian, and Huxi mountains, the New Forest of Tablets, Zhongshan Park, and the Xiamen Botanical Garden.

The Hulishan Fort : This famous fort was built in the 17 th century towards the southwestern region of Xiamen during the rule of Emperor Guang Xu of the Cling Dynasty. It is built on an area of 10,000 square meters and houses many Chinese and Western guns and mortars.



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