Located in the alluvial
plain of the lower reaches of the Minjiang River in the southeast coastal area
and facing the sea to the east, Fuzhou is an ancient city along the southeast
coast and an old foreign trade port of China. It was once called as the
Metropolis in Southeast China and the City of Treasure and Fortune.
With a history of more
than 2,200 years, Fuzhou is a historical and cultural city with a lot of places
of interest and scenic spots. Now many of them are kept intact, among which the
famous ones are the Hualin Temple, the oldest wooden temple south of the lower
reaches of the Yangtze River, which was built 1,000 years ago; one of the Top
Four Steles: the Dezheng Stele of the King of Liangya with thousand years of
history; the 1,200 year-old Wushi Mountain Cliffside Stone Carvings inscribed by
the well-known calligraphist Li Yangbing; the relics of the Neolithic Age
primitive society in Tanshi Village of Minhou County.
With the Yushan, Wushan and Pingshan
mountains leaning to each other, Fuzhou is endowed with enchanting scenery.
Gushan Mountain was once one of the Top Five Jungles and the Top Ten Temples.
Along the way from Maweigang District to Minjingkou there are other scenic spots
such as the Luoxing Pagoda, the Leg of Buddha's Warrior Attendant, South-North
Tortoise, Five Tigers Isle, and the Emperor Oasis, etc. The gilded Iron Buddha
in the Kaiyuan Temple is 5.3meters tall. Its head is beyond the reach of the
hand even one stands on his shoulder. The Buddha is sitting there with his legs
crossed and palms put together.
Fuzhou also retains a
lot of flavor of its traditional culture. The Fuzhou opera, lacquer ware, stone
carving, woodcarving, ivory carving and jade caving are all with the unique
Fuzhou flavor.
As an open city along
the coastal line, Fuzhou was proclaimed a national historical and cultural city
by the State Council in 1986.