[Xinhua photo]

Fuzhou, a city in south China across the strait from Taiwan, is famous for its sea views, mountains and historical sites. As the capital and one of the largest cities in Fujian Province, Fuzhou is also known as the “city of banyans”, because of the numerous Banyan trees planted there.

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.