| These
new pages concerning Foshan are now coming online,
and the Foshan Menu to your left will expand as each
new page is added.
There is also a Foshan Blog planned - mainly as an
Expat's interchange and resource; which will include
most of the section information, but in a more user-friendly
and interactive medium.
Thank you for your patience, as we also have many
other project to deal with at this time...
webmaster
Introduction:
My name is Jonno, and I live in the City of Foshan,
Pop 4 million. Foshan is one of the few Cities in
China where foreigners are a relatively common sight
and have been for millennia. Foshan means Buddha Mountain,
whilst my home District called Chancheng means Zen
City. Foshan City will be host to a large proportion
of the 2010 Asia Games (Guangzhou) with International
standard swimming pools and sports arena's newly built
for the purpose.
Foshan is a very old city, with a history dating back
more than 7, 000 years, and written records for over
4 millennia. Throughout this history, it has been
know by two names - either Foshan (Chan Cheng) or
Nanhai (Gui Cheung). Early trade maps may use the
name 'Pan Yu', which is today a large town/small city
near Nanhai and Shunde; and just within the southern
extremities neighbouring Guangzhou City District.
However, the port referred to in such maps is actually
quite close physically to modern Nanhai port. There
is a local rivalry here I won't go into ahha! The
Buddha Mountain is actually situated in San Shui city
district and is called Xi Qiao (Si Tew) ... and is
the big hill West and slightly South a bit.
Foshan City comprises the City of Foshan, and four
other areas of massive proportions best described
as 'Counties'. These are: Foshan, Nanhai, San Shui,
Gaoming, and Shunde. Nanhai 'Gui Cheung' is the centre
of Nanhai, and also a physical part of Foshan City
proper. Foshan City District is bounded by the mighty
Pearl River (West) to the West, which in ancient times
was the boundary between the fledgling Chinese Empire
and what is know as 'The Badlands' or 'Bandit Country'.
However, that was the view of Beijing's predecessors,
as this area was all part of the Yue or 'Cantonese'
Empire also.
Foshan is one of only 3 cities in China that has always
been 'Open' throughout Chinese history (Kaiping and
Hong Kong being the others). This openness relates
not only to Trade, but also to thinking, and language
Foshan people speak one of the 4 main Cantonese dialects,
called "'Ba't wah". This is Guangzhou Cantonese
as spoken throughout Guangdong Province, neighbouring
Guangxi Province, and Northern Vietnam. The other
main form of Cantonese is extremely similar, whilst
Taishanese is not. The version of Cantonese in all
modern Western phrasebooks' is a small and insignificant
dialect peculiar to rich and influential people from
Hong Kong - you could consider it analogous to Queen's
English, as spoken in greater UK currently. If you
veer off the beaten track and go exploring some of
the warrens of back streets (Quite safe), then local
people may reveal their local language to you. It
is Guangzhou Cantonese, but with local quirks mainly
centring around the pronunciation of vowels and greater
use of scale and pitch.
Out and About
Modern Foshan is a lively, clean city, with everything
you would expect - cars everywhere, MacDonald's on
every corner, large Western style shopping centres,
hypermarkets, nightclubs, and street bars where you
can drink and chat 24/7.
The main roads are wide, clean, and washed regularly;
although a tad chaotic! Local industry makes this
a truly vibrant place, although there is a problem
with air pollution that is slowly being addressed
- this is the only bad thing I have found in this
great city. Factories are now moving into the nearby
countryside with Government assistance, and new premises
are very eco-friendly.
Amongst the high rise, you will be delighted to find
a plethora of parks and green spaces which team with
life in the evenings, and most offer various local
forms of entertainment. The one nearest me has a round
for Latin Dancing and Waltzes - a tad odd as a Chinese
pastime, but very entertaining
For an informative overview of Foshan, please have
a look at the local government sponsored website,
which is a mine of local information. I live in ChanCheng
area, and my apartment is one of the big ones behind
the picture of the Foshan Radio Tower - left (The
Eiffel Tower with a ball in it). There are also pages
relating to the other Foshan Districts, please use
their menu's for navigation. This website rewritten
in 2009 and you can find basic pages here
Weather
Foshan lies within the Tropic of Cancer, and officially
has sub-tropical weather. All I can say is that for
most of the year it is very hot, dry, and humid with
average summer temperatures stuck at 36 degrees 24/7.
Winter is January and February, and is very cold as
they are simply not geared-up for cold weather at
all. The rest of the year ranges from pleasant to
very hot. Although always very verdant, it only rains
twice a year = 4-weeks around the beginning of June,
and monsoon season for another month starting the
end of August. Otherwise umbrella's are normally used
to protect from the sunshine!
People
Local people are very warm, welcoming and friendly.
They will be very curious about you, and be very happy
to socialise. Please read the Social
sections for more information
Openness
Throughout a history stretching back over 2, 000 years,
Cantonese have always been Open and Outwards looking.
Ask your local restaurant owner anywhere in UK, and
I lay you 5-to-1 their family roots actually come
from Foshan. Small World!
Business
Foshan is primarily a business centre, and many visitors
are here to invest or export, although there are a
few import specialists also.
Big business needs to have a serious think and come
to China for retail, as those that have are extremely
popular. For instance, I see MacDonald's and KFC on
literally every street corner. Where are Wendy's,
Wimpy, and Burger King? JolliBee from The Philippines
has made it here, but very few outlets so far. The
Body Shop is in Hong Kong, but refuses Chinese Franchises
because of 'Eco and Humanitarian' reasons they don't
understand properly. If they actually came they would
drive a difference. It is also impossible to buy a
Doner Kebab, or any other UK style fast food. I already
have a local business plan if anyone would consider
coming here and/or investing?
We can't really help Global Enterprises, because they
already have paid through the nose to have their own
people here. We can help medium and small sized companies
who are new to China, and most definitely Sole Traders
and entrepreneurs. We can guide you through start-up
packages and procedures that are good for your business,
including Company Formation. We can also sort Canton
Fair for you, and include a full package to include
some entertainment and special foods or religious
requirements also.
Please check our Business
Guides
Summary:
Vibrant, export driven, always 'Open' and Outward
looking - whatever you want from China as a whole,
you will find in abundance in this microcosm of humanity
- but don't take our word for it, come and see for
yourself.....
Welcome to Foshan
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