Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,
 
It's amazing how well I slept with only one bed!
For those who didn't read yesterdays blog.....it doesn't matter......just continue.
 
I actually woke this morning with no idea what to do with my day. I looked over my map and still couldn't form any sort of plan so after a shower I headed south down Huanshi Xilu and then ducked down a maze of small alleyways and an hour or so later I found myself on Kangwang Beilu and not far from the Ancestral Temple of the Chen Clan (Family).
 
CHEN CLAN ANCESTRAL HALL/TEMPLE
 
Located on the busy corner of Zhongshan Qilu (7 Lu) and Kwangwang Beilu can be found the hugely interesting Chen Clan/Family Ancestral Hall. The fact that its located next to a metro station with the same name (Chenjiact) along with being only ten Yuan to enter make this one of Guangzhou's most interesting and more stunning sites.

The intricate carvings on these buildings reminded me so much of the old museum building in visited two summers ago in Bozhou city, Anhui Province.  

Taken from the LP: This enormous compound part of the Guangdong Museum of Folk Art is both ancestral shrine and Confucian school. It was built in 1894 by the residents of seventy two villages in Guangdong, where the Chen lineage is the predominant family. The complex encompasses nineteen buildings of the traditional Lingnan style (combining traditional Chinese, Japanese and Western traditions). All buildings contain exquisite carvings, statuary and paintings and are decorated with ornate scrollwork on the roof tiles, walls, stairs and woodwork of the window frames and doors. The scenes depict stories fro Chinese literature and folklore and include real and mythical animals.
 
A much more detailed description on both the Temple and the Folk Art Museum can be below
 
After leaving the beautiful Chen Clan complex I decided to spend the afternoon on Shamian Island so I continued my journey south. As I was walking I spotted a wooden archway above a set of stairs and decided to duck down the stairs to see what I could find. I was soon walking an absolute maze of streets that make up the Yuangsheng Arts and Crafts market in the Liwan District.
 
Within this maze of small alleyways you can find all things made of ceramic and jade.
 
A Little on the Liwan District
 
Formerly named Xiguan, Liwan District was named after "Lizhiwan", which is derived from poem of "a bay green water and red litche along both banks". Liwan District has lots of attractions and historical sites. The historically famous Lizhiwan has a 1000-year history. Now, there are two national key protection units Chen Learning Academy (Chen Clan Temple) and Shamian Ancient Buildings, out of which Chen Learning Academy was elected one of the 8 new scenic spots of Guangzhou. There are several municipality-level relic spots: Hualin Temple, one of Guangzhou's Buddhist "five jungles", Taoist Zhenwudi Renwei Temple, Jiang Guangdong's former residence, Li Wentian's Taihua Building and Xiguan big house. In addition, there are historic sites where Dr. Sun Yat-sen, Zhan Tianyou, Chen Shaobai and Tang Tingguang lived or worked. There are Guangya School setup by Zhang Zhidong, a member of the Westernization Movement in the late Qing Dynasty and relic site of Xicun Industrial Zone developed by Chen Jitang when was in power during PC period. All those spots are like pearls dotted in this valuable land and show people it's glorious and splendid past.
 
After getting lost, confused and then finding my way out of the Yuansheng Market I found myself on Kwangwang Zhonglu and soon after across from Shamian Island. By now I was starving and as I had read there was supposed to be several western bars, restaurants and coffee shops I decided on a Western Food Festival. I soon found Lucy's Bar and Restaurant and headed in for a look at the menu.
 
For lunch I chose the Malaysian Fried Rice with beef and chicken satay sticks.
For dinner I lashed out on a tom yum soup and several Vietnamese spring rolls.
Everything was awesomely delicious and everything was also expensive.
Well it was for me who usually eats two to five Yuan needles.
 
I spent the rest of the day walking lazily along the islands quiet streets. For those who have been to the small island of Gulang Yu which is located just across from Xiamen City in Fujian Province don't think in comparison when both are described as having European architecture etc. Both do but Shamian Island is simply a small sand bar on one of Gulangyu's beaches when you compare them. I was amazed at how small it really was. I have meet many people over the past week who have told me that I must go to Shamian Island and that I would need an entire day there.
 
Thankfully I arrived mid afternoon and got to see it by in both day and by night.
If I was to give advice that would be exactly it.
 
Get there mid afternoon stroll around and then after having a delicious meal at either Lucy's Eatery (or the other Eatery one on the other side of the small Shamian Park) spend another hour strolling around. You find yourself spending most of your time on the eastern side of the island with is the French side. This is where you fill find the small amount of café's and restaurants (and one big tennis complex).
 
The western side of the island is much darker and really offers nothing much at all after dark.
This side of the island once belong to the British.
 
Taken from the LP: For an instant immersion in Guangzhou's colonial history, head for the leafy oasis of Shamian Island (Shamain Dao), which was acquired as a foreign concession on 1859 after the two Opium Wars. Shamian (Sand Surface Island) was little more than a sandbank when early foreign inhabitants - mainly British and French - were granted permission to set up their warehouses here. The French and British established themselves at separate ends of the island; the French took the east and the British the west. 
 
The tear shaped sandbank was connected to the mainland by several small bridges.
The bridges also had gates on them that prohibited any Chinese from entering the island.
 
Major renovation has restored some of the buildings to their original appearance, transforming them into chic restaurants, cafes and hotels. Traffic is restricted making it a peaceful respite from the city. The best way to experience the island is to wander around and look at some of the restored buildings, each bearing a plaque with a brief history. Shamian Dajie, the main boulevard, is a gentle stretch of gardens, trees and old men playing Chinese checkers.
 
Need I say anymore!
To get there by metro grab a train to the Huangsha stop.
 
Beers N Noodles toya.....shane
PS: PHOTOS can be found beneath all text as usual and today's are worthy of a look too!
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The soundtrack to this entry was by the Foo Fighters
The album was 'The Colour and the Extras'
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Chen Clan Academy
 
"The Chen Clan Academy, locally known as the Chen's Ancestral Hall, was built on funds jointly raised by the Chen families in 72 counties of Guangdong Province in the 20th year of Guangxu Reign of the Qing Dynasty (1894). The ancestral hall covers a total area of 13,200 square meters. Its main structure, 5-bay-wide and 3-row-deep in square shape with a floorspace of 6,400 square meters, is an artistic complex comprising 19 big and small buildings. The buildings are interspaced by courtyards but connected with verandas, thus forming a magnificent complex structure with grand halls and tasteful gardens which not only embodies the traditional style of Chinese ancient structures, but also possesses the distinctive features of the buildings in the south of China.
 
"The Chen's Ancestral Hall makes a comprehensive expression of the exquisite folk arts and crafts of the local province. All its buildings were decorated inside and outside with wood carvings, brick carvings, stone carvings, ceramic sculptures, line sculptures, iron castings and paintings.
 
 These artistic decorations are varied in style and life-like modeling, all of super workmanship. They cover a wide range of subjects, including Chinese legends and historical stories of "The Seven Scholars in the Bamboo Grove," "The Heroes Gather in Mt. Liang for the Rightful Cause" and "Presenting the Brocade Robe as a Gift"; rare birds and lucky animals, auspicious flowers and plants, ornamental patterns symbolic of fortune and happiness such as "The Five Bats Gather to Greet Longevity," "The Three Goats Bring in Prosperity" and "The Phoenix Faces the Sun," local scenes of "The Egith Sights of the Goat City" and "Joyfully Singing after Catching Fish for Home at Dusk'; natural scenery of hills and waters in southern China; and Guangdong's fruits of pineapple, papaya, litchi and carambola.
 
"In 1959, Mr. Guo Moruo highly appreciated the artistic decorations after his visit here and composed the verse: Nature's engineering may be replaced by human creations, Man-made objects here appear nicer than natural ones; The human world is created in a way like this: A visit here surpasses my learning from books in ten years.     "The Chen's Ancestral Hall is the extant traditional art building in Guangdong, which is famous for the most extensive scale, the intactest preservation and the most exquisite decoration. It is listed as an important historical site under state protection, and becomes one of the famous tourist sites of Guangzhou."
 
Guangdong Folk Arts Museum
 
"Guangdong Folk Arts Museum is housed in the Chen's Ancestral Hall. Established in 1959, it is devoted to the procurement, collection, care, study, promotion and display of handicraft articles from various regions of China, with emphasis on the folk arts and crafts of Guangdong Province.
 
"Guangdong's folk arts and crafts are multifarious in kind and known for their long history. The museum has collected some 100 kinds of arts and crafts, including pottery and porcelain, carving and sculpture, embroidery and stitchwork, and other handicraft articles as well. Exhibitions of various kinds with strong folk custom and local conditions are often held in this art museum. They include the long-displaying exhibitions, such as the Guangdong Ceramics, Guangdong Carving and Sculpture, Guangdong Embroidery, Guangdong Paper Puts and Wheatstraw Patchwork. Among these exhibitions, there are Shiwan artistic ceramics noted for their simple and unsophisticated style, Guangzhou colored porcelain famed for its golden and colorful drawing,
 
Chaozhou golden wood carving characterized by their exquisite workmanship, "Guang Xiu"-one of the Chinese "Four Famous Tambours," noble and elegant stain-etched glass, and the ivory carving of Guangzhou well-known at home and abroad for its ingeniously carved ivory balls. In order to carry forward the Guangdong excellent and traditional folk arts, promote prosperity and development in the fine arts, the museum often holds rich and colorful special exhibitions and various art lectures, which are aimed to enrich the cultural life of the people."
 
Origin of Guangdong Chen Clan
 
Shun, named Chonghua, was one of the five emperors in Chinese remote antiquity.
 
In Zhou dynasty, Shun's descendant Hu Gongman was made a prince in 'Chen' country by King Wu, then the clan used 'Chen' as their surname. After that, Chen clan developed continuously and moved into Guangdong Province. Up to now, Chen Clan has had more than four-thousand-year history. Their earliest ancestor were Shun Emperor and Hu Gongman.