Xiamen
Gulangyu
An island settlement where migration, architecture, gardens and music meet at the scale of a lane.
The province journal
Fujian.
Between mountains and sea, many ways of life
From Wuyishan’s rivers and tea to the port memories of Xiamen and Quanzhou, then inland to tulou and market towns. Minnan, Mindong and Hakka communities bring distinct languages, crafts and everyday lives to the province.
Wuyishan
Follow the Nine Bend River into stories of Wuyi tea and places of learning.
Explore this placeBegin with the classics
Island life on Gulangyu, the settlement of Tianluokeng and Quanzhou’s Kaiyuan Temple offer different ways into Fujian.
Zhangzhou
Tianluokeng Tulou Cluster
Five earthen buildings form a recognizable hillside group whose terrain is as important as its geometry.
Quanzhou
Kaiyuan Temple
A Buddhist temple whose twin pagodas and reused stone carvings connect monumental architecture with the city’s religious life.
Look a little closer
Listen to nanyin, read black-glazed Jian tea bowls, and follow belief and everyday life on Meizhou Island.
From the journal
Listening to Quanzhou Nanyin for the First Time
A horizontal lute, bamboo flute and carefully shaped voice offer a way into Nanyin, the musical tradition shared by Minnan communities.
From the journal
Jianyang’s Jian Ware: A Dark Bowl Made for Looking at Tea
Hare’s-fur glaze, a dark exposed foot and a wide mouth connect Jianyang’s tea bowls to Song drinking practices and a continuing craft.
From the journal
Meizhou Pilgrimage: The Work of Returning to an Ancestral Temple
Behind a procession on Meizhou Island are temple relationships, practiced roles, shared food and the organisation that makes a pilgrimage possible.
Keep exploring
Choose a city: start with its highlights or continue reading in the full article collection.
Xiamen
A port city read through Gulangyu’s island lanes, Jimei’s schools, living Buddhist practice and flavours carried across the sea.
All articlesZhangzhou
From Nanjing’s earthen villages to an old city of shops and archways and Dongshan’s working shores, Zhangzhou rewards a closer look.
All articlesQuanzhou
A maritime city understood through its inland kilns, stone bridges, religious monuments and living Minnan arts.
All articlesLongyan
Earthen houses, mountain villages and the Ting River open distinct views of western Fujian’s Hakka cultural landscape.
All articlesNanping
Northern Fujian’s red-cliff valleys, tea communities, academies and dark-glazed bowls connect landscape with cultivated life.
All articlesFuzhou
Courtyard houses, river commerce and jasmine-scented tea reveal the many lives of Fujian’s capital.
All articlesNingde
A working coast and wooded inland valleys meet in seaweed farms, white tea and covered bridges.
All articlesPutian
Meizhou Island connects a coastal city to the far-reaching devotional world of Mazu.
All articlesSanming
Red cliffs, sheltered temples and small bowls of food disclose the ingenuity of inland Fujian.
All articlesPhoto credits and rights
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Bamboo rafts on the Nine Bend Stream.Administration Commission of Mt. Wuyi Scenic Area / Mt. Wuyi Tourism Development Co., Ltd.; Website photographer list (individual image author not specified): Yu Zelan, Ruan Xueqing, Liu Dayou, Chen Youyu, Wu Xinzheng, Chen Meizhong, Weng Peiyi, Liu Lijun · Rights status unspecified Photo source ↗ Original aspect ratio retained. Display copies resized only when needed; no enlargement, crop or retouching.
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Sunlight Rock rises above Gulangyu, with Xiamen across the water.厦门市鼓浪屿文化旅游发展中心 · Rights status unspecified Photo source ↗ Original aspect ratio retained. Display copies resized only when needed; no enlargement, crop or retouching.
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The roofs and open courts of Tianluokeng’s five-building group.福建省住房和城乡建设厅；转载传统村落博物馆公众号 · Rights status unspecified Photo source ↗ Original aspect ratio retained. Display copies resized only when needed; no enlargement, crop or retouching.
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Kaiyuan Temple’s twin stone pagodas rise above Quanzhou in warm, low sunlight.泉州市人民政府美食之都申创官方网站 · Rights status unspecified Photo source ↗ Original aspect ratio retained. Display copies resized only when needed; no enlargement, crop or retouching.