Suheisen

Zhangzhou "Xiaoerhai" is full of tourists. Photo courtesy of Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

Recently, a travel guide titled "Xiaoerhai" in Zhangzhou, Fujian Province was released on social platforms, which was hot and "out of the circle", attracting surrounding citizens and tourists to come to "check in".

On the eve of New Year's Day in 6, the second phase of Longjiang Years Park, which is located in Zhangzhou High-tech Zone and has a total length of 0.0 kilometers, was opened. Through measures such as pollution control and interception, ecological shoreline restoration, and river connection, an ecological picture of smooth rivers, clear water, green banks, and beautiful scenery has been painted. As part of the second phase of the Longjiang years, the blue water surface of "Xiaoerhai", crooked neck trees, riverside trails and other elements accurately benchmark part of the landscape of Erhai Lake in Dali, Yunnan, and transform it into a "film resort".

The noisy and bustling ancient city of Zhangzhou. Photo courtesy of Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

The ancient city of Zhangzhou, which is separated by a river from the "Xiao'er Lake", is also full of tourists.

Every nightfall, this ancient city with a history of more than 1300 years enters the most noisy and prosperous time of the day - the streets of the Tang Dynasty, the temples of the Song Dynasty, the stone workshops of the Ming and Qing dynasties, and the shops of the Republic of China. Chinese opera and puppet shows are staged in turn, and there is an endless stream of visitors to places such as the Lantern Riddle Art Museum and the Intangible Cultural Heritage Exhibition Hall; Dozens of stalls in the "Cultural and Creative Market" are lined up one after another, with a dazzling array of goods such as intangible cultural heritage paint fans, folk crafts, and original jewelry; Young people are playing cosplay here, and ethereal and melodious saxophone solos come out of the quaint alleys; Citizens and tourists are surging, and it is very beautiful and comfortable to visit the night market, taste food, and watch performances in the charm of the ancient city.

In 2024 years, Zhangzhou started to build a "pastoral city and a famous cultural city". "Pastoral City" is external and visible, and it is a high degree of condensation of Zhangzhou's resource characteristics; "Famous Cultural City" is the soul and the spiritual core of Zhangzhou. If "Xiaoerhai" is a portrayal of "pastoral city", then the ancient city of Zhangzhou is a concrete image of "famous cultural city".

In Zhangzhou, the city is in the forest, the forest is in the flowers, and the scenery can be seen everywhere. Photo courtesy of Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

早在2011年，漳州就提出“田園都市、生態之城”發展定位。經過十多年的建設，漳州逐步探索出一條城市與鄉村統籌、環境與產業互動的“雙贏路子”，形成了“一城花海半城湖”的格局，城在林中、林在花中，出門可見景、處處是公園，人居環境得到改善。

Nowadays, after ecology has become a characteristic of the city, Zhangzhou highlights the significance of "cultural city" to urban development.

So, what does Zhangzhou rely on to build a "famous cultural city"?

The statue of Chen Yuanguang and Chen Zheng located in Yunxiao County, Zhangzhou City. Photo by Li Jinwen

Zhangzhou, located in the southernmost part of Fujian, is surrounded by mountains and the sea. According to records, during the period of Tang Gaozong, there were people in Fujian and Guangdong who gathered to make trouble. The young Chen Yuanguang followed his father, General Chen Zheng, from his hometown of Gushi County, Henan, and went south to quell the rebellion in Fujian. In 686 AD, Wu Zetian approved the establishment of Zhangzhou between Quanzhou in Fujian Province and Chaozhou in Guangdong, and Chen Yuanguang was appointed as the first assassin of the history, and he was also honored by later generations as the "Holy King of Kaizhang".

南下入閩的軍隊約萬人，漳州建立後，這些來自中原的將士及家屬在此定居。從此，福建第二大江九龍江兩側肥沃的土地便成為他們世代居住和勞作的家園。

"Since Chen Yuanguang opened Zhangzhou, Zhangzhou has integrated the Central Plains culture, marine culture, and Hakka culture, inherited the Zhuzi culture and red culture, and has become the main birthplace of southern Fujian culture, the core area of the southern Fujian cultural and ecological reserve and the cultural heritage enrichment area of southern Fujian, forming a unique southern Fujian culture with Zhangzhou regional characteristics." In the view of Lin Xiaofeng, president of the Fujian Minnan Culture Research Association, Zhangzhou not only has a superior natural environment, but also a strong cultural atmosphere.

When night falls, the special performances of the ancient city of Zhangzhou attract many citizens and tourists to watch. Photo courtesy of Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

In fact, the "famous cultural city" is no stranger to the people of Zhangzhou. This thousand-year-old city in southern Fujian is known as the "seaside Zoulu", and was rated as a national historical and cultural city as early as the eighties of the last century.

Here, the tangible cultural heritage is dotted and the intangible cultural heritage is dazzling. The total number of cultural relics and the number of national protection rank second in Fujian, and the number of provincial protection, Taiwan-related cultural relics and city (county, district) protection rank first in Fujian, with 71 national intangible cultural heritage and 0 provincial intangible cultural heritage, which is one of the main birthplaces of southern Fujian culture and the core area of the national cultural and ecological reserve of southern Fujian.

Here, the Maritime Silk Road culture is strong. Yuegang was once the only legal port of departure for private maritime trade in China during the Ming Dynasty. At that time, inland goods went down the Jiulong River to Zhangzhou, and then transferred to Yuegang, from which they were transported to Nanyang and other places, and then crossed the Pacific Ocean to the Americas and Europe, and the whole world was linked as one.

Here, there are many historical figures. Zhu Xi, the master of the Song Dynasty, served as the governor of Zhangzhou, which not only brought advanced ideas of political and economic reform, but also promoted the spread of Confucian culture in Zhangzhou. Born in Zhangzhou, Huang Daozhou was widely educated and was known as the "Three Great Masters of Calligraphy", "Two Great Confucians" and "A Perfect Generation" in the late Ming Dynasty. Lin Yutang, a literary giant who advocates nature, walked out of the mountains of Zhangzhou and crossed the ocean, "stepping on the culture of the East and the West with one foot, and commenting on the universe with one heart".

Zhangzhou is one of the main gathering places of Fujian Tulou, a world cultural heritage site. Photo by Xie Wei

In recent years, in order to protect and inherit the cultural roots, on the one hand, Zhangzhou has made efforts to explore and build a pattern of "great protection" of cultural heritage, and protect the "root" and "soul" of the thousand-year-old city; On the other hand, we should pay attention to revitalizing historical and cultural heritage resources, promote the creative transformation and innovative development of cultural heritage, and promote the in-depth integration and two-way empowerment of cultural tourism, so that more cultural heritage can bloom with the glory of the times.

However, to build a "famous cultural city", is Zhangzhou's cultural heritage enough alone? Among the hundreds of national historical and cultural cities in the country, why does Zhangzhou stand out?

"'Pastoral city' and 'cultural city' are integrated and integrated." In the view of Tu Zhiwei, the former director of the Zhangzhou CPPCC Learning Culture and History Committee and the president of the Zhangzhou Minnan Culture Research Association, culture needs carriers, and Zhangzhou has continued to make efforts in the construction of ecological civilization, and the city's appearance has been greatly improved.

It is located in the plains on both sides of the Zhangjiang River in Yunxiao County, Zhangzhou City. Photo by Liu Liangzhen

"Pastoral City" can polish the brand of "Famous Cultural City" more brightly, and "Famous Cultural City" can also maximize the value of "Pastoral City". Zhangzhou has built a big stage for the integration of culture and tourism in the "famous cultural city", which can not only promote economic development, but also play an important role in urban exchanges.

2024年，漳州累計接待遊客8680.22萬人次，比增16.4%；遊客旅遊總花費首次突破千億大關，達1021.93億元，比增22.3%。三項指標增速均排在福建前列。

During the Spring Festival of 4, Zhangzhou rushed to the "Top 0 Popular Small Cities of Intangible Cultural Heritage during the Spring Festival". According to the "0 Spring Festival Tourism Market Forecast Report" released by Ctrip, Zhangzhou has become more popular as a niche destination, with a year-on-year increase of about 0 times in terms of booking orders.

"For the new generation of tourists who are looking for in-depth experiences, in addition to the attraction of beautiful scenery, it is also necessary to have the blessing of culture." Liu Hui, director of the Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, said that Zhangzhou is speeding up the construction of five cultural and tourism belts of "Ocean Blue", "Ecological Green", "Tulou Rhyme", "Ancient City Style" and "Southern Fujian Red" to promote the in-depth integration of culture and tourism.

Zhangzhou has one of the top three coastlines in Fujian, with many bays, harbors and islands, and is blessed with unique marine resources. Photo courtesy of Zhangzhou Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism

Nowadays, Zhangzhou is also building a multi-woven cultural integration hub, insisting on taking "pastoral city and cultural city" as the spiritual core of building a modern coastal city, forming a cultural hub with Zhangzhou as the center of gravity, connecting southwest Fujian, northeast Guangdong and Taiwan, and building a new highland for multicultural integration, a new model for the coordinated development of regional cultures, and a new model for the construction of a cross-strait integrated development demonstration zone.

The main leaders of Zhangzhou City said that they should focus on "long-term success", fully display the new image of Zhangzhou, focus on the construction of "pastoral city and cultural city", focus on revitalizing culture, cultivating civilization, and strengthening cultural tourism, and earnestly undertake the new cultural mission of the new era, and fully show the charm and style of Zhangzhou's thousand-year-old city.