Guangzhou is the capital of Guangdong Province in the southern part of China. The city is also known by an older English name, Canton. It is a port on the Pearl River, navigable to the South China Sea, and is located about 120 km (75 miles) northwest of Hong Kong.
Culture
Guangzhou is a famous historical city. It is said that in ancient times, five immortals wearing colorful clothes and riding colorful immortal sheep that hold rice stalk in their mouths arrived in Guangzhou. They handed out the rice stalks to the mass here and wished that there would never have famine. Afterwards, Guangzhou was renowned as Goat City or Sui Cheng and hence Wu Yang (five sheep) became the symbol of Guangzhou. As recorded in historical documents, there established city walls since the year of 214 B.C., and it has a history of 2210 years as a city and has many cultural sites, which vividly reflect the development of Guangzhou in different times. The city has flourished economically since China opened its door to the outside world in 1978. Guangzhou's location near Hong Kong makes it an important stop for foreign visitors and the Canton Fair held twice yearly, has made the city as one of the most popular destinations for business travelers. Sights in around Guangzhou include Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Chen Family Ancestral Temple, and the Temple of Six Banyan Trees, there are a lot of parks and tourists attractions.
Population
In 2006, the city area of Guangzhou had a total population of 7,607,200 inhabitants. According to rough statistics, the permanent foreign residents in Guangzhou total over 50,000, which would increase with the coming years. It has been estimated that by 2010 the number would have exceeded 200,000, which makes Guangzhou second to none among provincial capitals in terms of permanent foreign residents.
It is a famous overseas Chinese hometown of China and a metropolis with the largest number of overseas Chinese. According to statistics, there are 1.06 million compatriots and relatives abroad, which are spread over 130 countries and regions throughout the world.
Transportation
From 1 January 2007, the municipal government has banned motorcycles in the urban areas. Motorcycles found violating the ban will be confiscated. The Guangzhou traffic bureau claimed to have reported reduced traffic problems and accidents in the downtown area since the ban. According to the official China Daily of 6 July 2007, all buses and taxis in Guangzhou will be LPG-fueled by 2010 to promote clean energy for transportation and improve the environment. At present, Guangzhou is the city that uses the most LPG-fueled vehicles in the world.