Foshan, called Chan for short, is located in
the hinterland of the Pearl River Delta, and in the central part by south of
Guangdong Province. It is connected to Guangzhou to the east, neighbors Jiangmen
and Zhougshan to the south, borders Zhaoqing to the west and Qingyuan to the
north, and is within 100 km from Hong Kong and Macao. Under the administration
of Foshan are the Shiwan District and four county-level cities, namely Nanhai,
Shunde, Sanshui and Gaoming. With a total area of 3,813.64 square kilometers,
Foshan is a famous cultural city with a long history.
Foshan is rich in tourist resources and
boasts many places of interest. First built in the Yuanfeng reign (1078-1085) of
the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1279), the Foshan Ancestor Temple is a palace
hall that integrates ancient clay sculpture, woodcarving, foundry and
architectural arts into a whole. It is said that the temple was built to
enshrine the North Xuantian God worshipped by Taoists and was called the North
God Temple at that time. The original buildings were burnt down at the end of
the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), and were rebuilt in the fifth year (1372) of the
Hongwu reign in the Ming Dynasty (1338-16440). Records said that the temple was
renamed the Foshan Ancestor Temple due to its long history and leading position
among the temples in Foshan. Other scenic spots include the Qinghui Garden in
Shunde, one of the four famous gardens of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in
Guangdong, Xijiao Mountain in Nanhai, a national level scenic area, and historic
sites such as the Confucius Temple, the Renshou Temple, the former residence of
Kang Youwei, and so on, attracting numerous tourists.
Foshan is the birthplace of the Yueju Opera,
and the famous hometowns of martial arts, arts, potteries and cate.
The climate in Foshan is characterized by
the monsoons in the subtropical zone with an average temperature between 21.2 -
22.2¡æ.