First Impressions: FOSHAN
Disclaimer: This was written back in mid-December 2019; I’ve been sorting through my drafts the past few weeks and realized this was never posted. Although things will never turn back to what it was before but I hope it will be safe enough to travel again because I am getting very anxious from being stuck in Hong Kong for more than 5 months.
Did I mention in my previous posts that it is my goal to visit all 11 cities in the Great Bay Area? Well, if I didn’t, it is! And so far, I’ve genuinely enjoyed every single one of them! Economics aside, from a tourism perspective, all of them have such unique mix of history and newly developed hipster areas that makes each of them with its special character worth visiting.
Foshan, home to multiple kungfu masters, is just about 35km away from it’s mega neighbor, Guangzhou. I was not that into the whole kungfu craze at first but after visiting the Ancestral Temple that houses the temple for Master Huang Feihong and Yip Man, I swear to God, I had a sudden inspiration to watch all the Yip Man kungfu movies. Of course, it just happens that Yip Man 4 was in theaters the same time I visited Master Yip Man’s ancestral hall so you know I got all inspired!
Truth be told, I took Kungfu for a few years in middle school and high school and hated it. But now I am oddly inspired to take Kungfu classes! Especially since I found out that Master Yip Man’s Kungfu studio in which he established after escaping Foshan due to Sino-Japanese War in the mid-20th century still exists in Tsim Sha Tsui!
Also, Foshan is quite a family friendly city, as we visited during Christmas with my parents and there were lots of things to see and explore! Without further ado, here are some of my first impressions of Foshan.
Kungfu City, home to Master Yip Man and Huang Feihong!
Big Buddha. From the name itself, which literally means Buddha Mountain, reminds me of a place that’s very cultural driven. And perhaps in honor of the name, there is a giant Guangyin Buddha at the Xiqiao Park.
Great mix of nature, history, and historical preservation/revitalization areas
Lion dancing is the king of culture here! Beautiful handcrafted costumes and kungfu choreographs as part of its performance
Lingnan Culture! Not as modern and “new” as some of its Greater Bay Area counterparts, but not necessarily in a bad way. It has a unique position of having preserved many of its traditional elements whether its lifestyle, food, or performances.
Beautiful weather and interesting culture and history make this definitely a unique place to visit and spent Christmas!
