The light pagoda of Huaisheng Temple on the road of the light tower
The area around Guangta Street in Yuexiu District is home to compatriots of Hui, Manchu, Yao and other ethnic groups, and is currently the neighborhood with the largest concentration of ethnic minority residents and the largest ethnic composition in Guangzhou.
Statue in the Xinghua Lane community
Walking on the street, the fonts and decorations of the alley archway have their own characteristics; Walking into the alleys, you can see reliefs depicting scenes of the lives of various ethnic groups, and you will also encounter Muslim schools and Manchu schools.
Meet the Manchu Primary School on Ivory Street
Of course, the landmark building in this area is none other than the Huaisheng Temple Light Pagoda on the Light Pagoda Road.
Huaisheng Temple is the oldest existing mosque in the mainland, built in the first year of Tang Zhenguan (627 AD), has a history of more than 1,000 years, engraved with the historical imprint of the starting point of the "Maritime Silk Road" in Yangcheng.
Since the Tang Dynasty, Guangzhou has set up "Fanfang" in the area where foreigners (mainly Arabs and Persians) live in the west of the city.
During the Tang and Song dynasties, the "Poshan Gudu" wharf (now around Huifu Road) was a busy port for ships to dock and goods to load and unload. To the west, it is the main inner harbor wharf where foreign ships docked in the Song Dynasty - Western Australia.
The ruins of the ancient crossing of Poshan in the Five Immortals Temple
In the Ming Dynasty, the shoreline of the Pearl River continued to retreat southward, and the "Fanfang" in the area of Guangta Road gradually moved away from the Pearl River, and the number of Fan customers decreased significantly.
A large area of tidal flats was silted up along the river, and the silted new land soon became a place for commercial and trade activities, and many management and service agencies such as the River Parking Office, Wuyangyi, the Tax Department, the Approval Office, and the Municipal Shipping Department were built in the area of today's Yanjiang Road.
In the middle and late Qing Dynasty, the area around Guangta Street became the "flag realm" of the Eight Banners stationed in Guangdong, and "Machang Lane", "Barracks Lane", "Congjia Lane", "Wang Surname Lane" and "Heyi Lane" were all Manchu settlements in the Qing Dynasty.
Manchu primary school on Guangta Road
Although the prosperity of "Fanfang" in the past is no longer there, the story of Sino-foreign trade and cultural exchanges, and multi-ethnic integration and reproduction is still continuing in this land.
Relief in progress
Citywalk Light Tower Street
Not limited to Guangta Road
Rather, it's the whole light tower street
Guangta Street is east to Qiyi Road, west to Renmin Road, north to Jinghui Road, south to Dade Road, including Shihao Lane, Yuntaili, Huilongli, Yileli, Xinghua Lane, Guanlu, Qizhu Rong, Wenliangli, Fudi Lane, Zhushou Lane, Ivory North and other communities.
Nanchao Street on Uprising Road also belongs to Guangta Street
It is one of the starting points of the ancient Maritime Silk Road, and the hinterland of multi-ethnic integration and reproduction......
Therefore, some people say: Guangta Street is like a museum of multi-ethnic culture without walls.
Sweet Water Alley with strong fireworks in the market
The years are quiet and happy
The whole block is not big, and those who visit for the first time don't need to stick to the route, follow the mood, and there may be some new discoveries.
In addition to the long history and diverse ethnic culture, there are also many snack shops full of fireworks.
The Muslim Hotel on Zhongshan 6th Road
Friends at Citywalk on Light Tower Street
Here are some check-in spots
01
Huaisheng Temple Light Pagoda
The most unique building of the temple is the 36.5-meter-high Light Pagoda. During the Tang Dynasty, this area was also a coastal ferry, and as the tallest building on the bank of the Pearl River at that time, the light tower served as a lighthouse to guide the direction of ships.
The Huaisheng Temple is a quiet garden with a mix of Chinese and Arabic elements. You can enter for free, but you can't enter the main hall and light tower. Also, dress appropriately, avoid wearing revealing or tight clothing, keep your pants above the knees, and don't make loud noises.
If you like halal food, you might as well try Shache halal food opposite Huaisheng Temple, hand pilaf, lamb skewers, grilled mutton buns, mutton soup, Uyghur home-style handmade noodles, are all good choices.
02
Five Immortals
The aforementioned "Poshan Gudu" is described in detail in the Five Immortals Temple on Huifu West Road.
The Five Immortals Temple was built in the Ming Dynasty in the Hongwu ten years, the main hall is in the maintenance and repair, you can visit the side of the "immortal thumb print" and "Poshan Gudu". There are few tourists, and the environment is quiet, suitable for sitting quietly in the cloister, closing your eyes and recuperating.
Immortal Thumb Print
The Nanyue Sages Museum next to it displays 56 celebrities and their deeds who have made important contributions to the country and the nation in various fields such as Lingnan politics, economy, ideology, culture, and military, including Zhao Tuo, Huineng, and Sun Yat-sen.
03
Wonderful auspicious room
The ancient buildings of Guangta Street are not only temples and Taoist temples, but also arcades and western-style houses.
Walk south along Haizhu Middle Road, close to the area of Green Road and Dade Road, there are more houses and arcades, and the Manchu old-style arcade Miao Jixiang Room is one of the unique scenery.
Miao auspicious room is an old-style arcade, the Ming Dynasty is a wooden attic, during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, it was changed to Guangzhou Manchu Guanyin Building, named "Wanshan Palace", and later renamed "Miao Jixiang Room".
The Guangzhou Manchu History and Culture Research Association, established in 1984, is located in this building. There is also a community with a very elegant name nearby, called Seven Banyan Trees, and the archway is very distinctive.
04
Christian Zion Church
On Renmin Middle Road, there is an ancient building - Christian Zion Church, which can be visited for free without an appointment.
Built in 1936, the Guangzhou Christian Zion Church is a church with Chinese architectural characteristics. The exterior of the church is designed with red walls and green tiles with four-corner cornices, revealing the charm of traditional Lingnan architecture. The Gothic spire, on the other hand, follows the architectural characteristics of traditional churches in the 19th century.
05
Apricot Blossom Lane - Progress
It is a good choice to learn about the scene of "Fanfang" on Guangta Street and the folk culture of the ethnic minorities living here, Xinghua Lane and the Ethnic Folk Culture Corridor in Progress.
In addition to admiring the reliefs on the walls of the corridor, the community is full of green trees, charming flowers, and a very quiet environment.
06
Onyx Lane - Cuifu Street
Agate Lane opposite Xinghua Lane, the archway is quite national characteristics.
Agate Lane was originally called "Tortoiseshell Lane", which was closely related to the treasures of the Western Regions sold by foreign merchants. In the Tang Dynasty, it was an agate bazaar for the Arabs. In the Song Dynasty, it was still a commercial market in Fanfang, and then gradually became a street and alley, named Agate Lane.
Entering from Guangta Road, you can go all the way to Zhongshan Sixth Road. In addition to the old side alleys, there are also some former residences of celebrities along the way.
No. 55 Traditional Residential Building
Halfway through the alley, you will see an old street with a history of more than 800 years - Cuifu Street, because the Southern Song Dynasty famous minister Cui lived with him on this street, so it is named.
Quiet Choi Fu Street
In the quiet Cuifu Street, in addition to admiring the beauty of the old western-style buildings, you can also see a section of the eaves of Huaisheng Temple, and Chaotian Road to the east.
07
Jiali - Fudi Lane
In addition to the thousand-year-old history of "Fanfang" and the multi-ethnic culture, the ancient Guangta Street is also a feng shui treasure land rich in talents. The C position of the treasure land refers to the area of Fudi Lane and Jiali.
The word "Jia" is the transliteration of the word "alley" in Arabic, and it was a gathering place for Arab foreign businessmen during the Tang Dynasty.
The "history of the development of Jiali" began in the Southern Song Dynasty, when Huang Xun lived here, and through hard study, he was finally admitted to the Jinshi, and then his younger brother Huang Xi was also admitted to the Jinshi. To commemorate this achievement, the county guards rebuilt their mansion and named the alley Jiali.
Blessed Land Lane
Fudi Lane was originally a part of the Jiali, because after the Ming Dynasty's "ghost talent" Lun Wenxu won the title, his sons Lun Yiliang and Lun Yixun also explored the flower and the list of eyes respectively, so the place was named Fudi Lane. Zhongshan 6th Road is located next to Fudi Lane, and a new Lunwenxu Memorial Square has been built.
Strolling through Jiali and Fudi Lane, you may also encounter a small shop with a lot of fireworks, and the more popular one is the Qiqi snack shop at No. 2 Fudi Lane, where the foodies who come to cheer every time they come to the dinner are crowded with the outdoor small square.
08
Yuntaili - Xuegong Street
The sweet house in Yuntai is a home-cooked Cantonese dish hidden in an alley. At 5 p.m., the crowd of people waiting for a seat lined up until the archway in Yuntaili.
In addition to the food, some of the old house buildings in Yuntai are also very distinctive. A few dozen meters away, there is also a rich literary Xuegong Street.
In the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, Xuegong Street was the location of the Nanhai Xuegong, and was used as the site of the army hospital in the early years of the Republic of China (later moved to the shore of Liuhua Lake). Walking through it, you can see the cultural corridor and rhetorical verses.
09
Shihao Lane - Xianzang Street
Muslim Primary School in Shihao Lane
No. 1 Shihao Lane, a school with a light green façade, is the location of Guangzhou Muslim Primary School (South Campus).
Diagonally opposite the entrance of the school, there is an ancient academy, Daonan Academy. The alleys in this area are very literate, such as the Xianzang Street next to it, whose name comes from the "Rites - Xueji": "The gentleman is also learning, hiding, cultivating, resting, and wandering." "That is, the place where the sages hide and retreat.
Time flies, and how many sages are blown away by the wind and rain. Put aside the distractions of work, come to Guangta Street to be an idler for a day of shopping and eating, and take a leisurely stroll in the mottled old streets and alleys.
Where there is light, there is hope, and where there is a tower, there is direction. Looking through the light and looking at the solemn and sacred White Tower, as long as you are willing to move forward, the future is full of hope.
Source: "Menghu" WeChat public account Editor: He Yunhong Proofreader: Jiang Jintong Editor: Liu Siming Editor: Zhan Pingping