"After the Opium War, Xiamen fell and the Qing government signed the Treaty of Nanjing. Later, the great powers targeted Xiamen, the gateway to the southeast coast, and intensified their aggression. Gulangyu Island became a" public concession."We can now see 13 consulates in Britain, the United States, France, Japan, Germany, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Austria, and Belgium. Since then, the church settled in, and today's "Union Chapel" was built by the British. Gulangyu is known as the "Architecture Expo of All Countries", but it is actually a testimony of humiliation."

This is not my first time to visit Gulangyu. In my impression, I always think Gulangyu is too young and fashionable. Not long ago, Gulangyu was ranked among the ten most unworthy attractions. I think so too. But after reading this passage on Zhihu, I once again had the idea of going to Gulangyu to see the story of Gulangyu that I had ignored.

We set out from Pier 1. The pier is very small and has very few people. We don't need to queue up to get on the boat to have seats. We went to the island from Neicuo O Wharf. This place has more space and fewer tourists than Sanqiutian Wharf. You can see the sea as soon as you get up. It is the best experience among the three docks.


Gulangyu Academy of Fine Arts
Going to the island this time was a whim. Wherever you go, you can go. Right opposite the dock is the Gulangyu Academy of Fine Arts. With a strong artistic atmosphere, you will unconsciously slow down and lower the volume when you are in it. This is a free attraction. Currently, there are few places for tourists to visit, only the exhibition area, and the school building behind is still under repair. There are exhibition areas on the first and second floors, with different exhibits, including concept drawings, photography, paintings, and craft products. Looking at these, it seems to travel back to many years ago. Students and teachers shuttle through the campus. They live here and create here.

Meihua Beach
Meihua Beach is located in the southwest of Gulangyu Island, where Gulangshi is located. This section of the beach has smooth waves and good water quality, not as many people as the beach behind Hong Kong Tsai. The day we arrived on the island happened to be at low tide, and the reef that was usually soaked in the sea was exposed. We chose a place to take photos, without having to queue up, the background was clean, and we felt happy. The stone is still a little slippery, and if you look carefully, you almost have an intense phobia. These are all piled up by the shells of dead shellfish. My friends said that houses were built out of dead shells in southern Fujian. It sounds amazing. Unfortunately, it is rare to see them now.

Hailang
This is a cultural and creative store, close to Drum Drum Cave. The wall at the entrance is casually splashed with paint. It has a very abstract feel. There are various models of phone case inside, all of which are mainly blue, as if the waves are beating on the shell. Seals, paperweights, decorations, each can be made unique and unique to you. I have always wanted to find a DIY shop, but I didn't expect to meet you unexpectedly like this. It's a pity that I'm not following a boyfriend!!!

Shell Dream World
Ticket price: 78 yuan (online tickets will be cheaper)
This place is next to Hailang. After learning about the ticket price at the place where we bought the ticket, as hard-working New Century girls, we decided to buy it online. Because it took an hour to get in, we walked around Hailang, took photos at the door, bought an egg to rest, and the time was up.

The Internet encyclopedia said that this place was transformed from an air-raid shelter. Perhaps in that era of heavy artillery fire, the residents on Gulangyu Island hid in air-raid shelters all over the island. These mysterious caves, large and small, were like armor, and once defended Xiamen people from fighting and air strikes. The renovated cave has become more dreamy, and the large and small shells displayed are eye-opening. There are also paintings made of shells, which makes me sigh, who has no talent for painting. In addition to shells, there are also mermaids and twenty thousand miles under the sea. Twenty thousand miles under the sea are amazing, but it's just a little sore when you look up your neck.

The exit of the scenic spot is a market with blue and pink dolphins hanging on the top and selling some shell handicrafts. I almost cut off my hands, but I still held back thinking about the Double Eleven.

shuzhuang garden
Ticket price: 30
This was originally a private villa owned by Lin Erjia, a famous local gentry. It was built in 1913. It faces the sea and leans against the Sunlight Rock. It suddenly feels like walking in a Jiangnan garden, and now it feels like you are on Penglai Fairy Island, with the garden on the sea and the sea in the garden. There is also a large area of twelve caves made of rocks and rocks, containing twelve zodiac signs. Walking through it, it seems like you are walking in a maze. There is also a piano museum inside. It seems that many years ago, a gentleman walked around in his own garden, sometimes playing the piano and sometimes drinking alone in the courtyard under the moon.

Drum waves leave sound
Walking forward after leaving Shuzhuang Garden, I saw a sculpture in the shape of a tree root. I wanted to sit down and rest, but when I walked by, I heard the sculpture actually making a sound. On closer inspection, it turned out that there was a loudspeaker at the root of each branch, and each loudspeaker played a different sound. They were talking about the history of Gulangyu Island and the glory of that generation.

Lin Qiaozhi Memorial Hall
free visit to
The space is not large, but it displays the life of a gynecologist. When I was passing by Yuyuan, I saw the statue of five children and heard the tour guide next to me say that this symbolized the more than 50,000 children delivered by Dr. Lin Qiaozhi in her life. However, she studied diligently all her life, remained alone, and never got married. Her enthusiasm was dedicated to the cause she liked. Looking at those old photos, how did Gulangyu produce so many celebrities and officials and still be remembered for the ages?

wormhole bookstore
free visit to
Wormhole Bookstore is located in one of the buildings of the Sea Paradise Building and has a very charming decoration. There is a wall full of small drawers inside. There are 366 drawers marked with 366 dates. Everyone can find something that belongs to them here. The cards placed in the drawer have dates and corresponding constellations written on them, as well as a plant. The name, in addition to the cards, there are also birthday-specific quilts and seals on the display case opposite. No matter what, it is enough to be "unique".

See Gulangyu again
This was a travel accident, and it was also a beautiful accident. It seemed to be a new attraction. We took the wrong way at the time and were about to return the same way. We saw a few people surrounded by a half-open door. Out of curiosity, we moved forward and saw a play playing inside: a case of theft of money was tried. There were a victim shop boy, a yamen, an official, and a foreigner. The costumes all matched the times and looked with gusto.

When we passed by Haoyue Garden, we didn't enter, so we took a photo with Zheng Chenggong from afar. There is a dolphin pattern made of plastic in front of the door, and the introduction next to it says "The Way Home", which makes people feel uncomfortable. In the past few years, Gulangyu was full of tourists, which also brought a lot of pressure to the island. No matter how beautiful the scenery is, it is always impossible to withstand artificial destruction. Fortunately, Gulangyu now limits the number of people visiting the island.

Today's one-day trip to Gulangyu gave me another glimpse of the different aspects of Gulangyu. We avoided the places with the most tourists and walked in clean alleys. Most of the alleys were home-grown households. Old people chatted at the alleys, and occasionally cats ran over, which was different from what we had before. There is a Fuxing Road, with B & Bs and aborigines on both sides. Looking at the exquisite buildings, I am sighing with my friends along the way that if I can have a house on Gulangyu, I will have no regrets in this life.