My beautiful hometown ---xiamen

Xiamen is a well-known tourist port city in the Southeast coast of China. It is one of the Cleanest Cities of China, the Garden Cities of China, the National Environmental Protection Model Cities, and the best sightseeing cities in China. Not only being wealthy with travel resources, Xiamen has also temperate weather, fast and convenient transport and communication, and complete travel establishments. OE2\w p%^XmoSi

uQ`{8p/@E}jf] In the old times, there were "Eight Major Landscapes" and "Eight Minor Landscapes" "Landscapes Beyond Landscapes" in Xiamen and altogether 24 scenic spots were included in the three general terms. Some of the 24 sights, such as "Wonderland of Gulang", "Five Old Gentlemen Reaching the Clouds", "Watching Sunrise on Hongji Summit", "Night Moon by Tiger Brook", "White Deer Spurting Smoke", still can be traced today. 0{/V+]&JCu|
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By reorganizing old landscapes and developing new sceneries, Xiamen has formed five main Tourist areas-- Gulangyu Island Tourist Area, Nanputuo Temple Tourist Area, Wangshi Rock Tourist Area, Huangcuo Tourist Area and Jimei Tourist Area. Beside its richful travel resources and pleasant weather, Xiamen also provides fast and convenient transportation and communication, and complete travel establishments. All makes Xiamen one of the most suitable cities for investors and tourists in China.

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;IH+C;iSw4Z3Y Egret's living  MimI(P6A@
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Sing for Xiamen _|.X#d'u9M:x
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Beautiful Coast
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[[i] Last edited by  sophiaxie at 2007-2-22 18:09 [/i]]

Boating *s;r:fJn%`6d
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A crossing
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wC;uf@6[tbR*Og River Of Egrets
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Marathon Match
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The first sight of gulang Island
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Big Snails
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B*`KQ}pb%\ Bridge Of yanwu, -YB"Y4[@A(y dU,T
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Yundang lake O\3B"KEM.[D
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[[i] Last edited by  sophiaxie at 2007-2-22 18:27 [/i]]

Sunlight Rock in night !L[6[(LPC
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I m%u.Kk#R [[i] Last edited by  sophiaxie at 2007-2-22 18:29 [/i]]

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Mooncake gambling??¡ì??????????????¡§???)The Mid-Autumn Festival falls on the 15th day of the 8th month of the Chinese lunar calendar. 'F
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For centuries, the Mid-Autumn Festival has encouraged family reunions, big feasts and enjoyment of a beautiful full moon. But for people in Xiamen, their exciting games have just started. A special custom ???Moon-cake Gambling??? will take place in every Mid-autumn Festival.
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l2\rG.Gs3L You find a pack of six dice inside after opening every gaudily decorated box of mooncakes. D.U)L8S
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Gambling? Right, but it is definitely legal. Because the stakes among the locals are mooncakes - and that is how this unique celebrating activity has got its Chinese name "Bo Bing." It is played only around the Mid-Autumn Festival. 5f+Jw$HL~&`3Jc-U

.n9m#y(SM5YtgN6PH Easy to play though, the games have quite complicated rules hard to remember. So it is thoughtful for some mooncake manufacturers to print the rules on the package. +I'E+SHX&d0pV

7yu$mY6OIL All the "Bo Bing" game requires are six dice and a china bowl. Just throw the dice into the bowl - and the different pips you get stand for different ranks of awards you will win.
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7Jl.Aux^ When walking along streets in this tiny island during this time, you will hear the pleasant silvery sound of the dice rolling. Cheers of winning or loss are everywhere.
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The 300-year-old custom of mooncake gambling dates back to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). The inventor, Zheng Chenggong (1624-62), a general of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), stationed his army in Xiamen. Zheng was determined to recover Taiwan, which was occupied by Dutch invaders since 1624. !L^|$?*cje

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General Zheng and his lower officer Hong Xu invented mooncake gambling to help relieve homesickness among the troops. xc-X B [L5Fb R
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The gambling game has six ranks of awards, which are named as the winners in ancient imperial examinations, and has 63 different sized mooncakes as prizes.
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From the lowest to the highest, the titles of six ranks are Xiucai (the one who passed the examination at the county level), Juren (a successful candidate at the provincial level), Jinshi (a successful candidate in the highest imperial examination), Tanhua, Bangyan and Zhuangyuan (respectively the number three to number one winners in the imperial examination at the presence of the emperor).
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4A2u&yD$C6d\6{Z Game players throw the dice by turns. Different pips they count win the player a relevant "title" and corresponding type of mooncakes.
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F GY1m.lh7g2~.u The lucky player who gets the pips to make it the title of "Zhuangyuan," will be the biggest winner in the game, and gain the largest mooncake. #H;U9Q Y2F'`#rq"y

MW4} k%_hp In ancient China, to win the imperial examination was the only way to enter an official career which was the dream of most learners, since the examination system was established in the Sui Dynasty (AD 581-618).
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No wonder then, if a person won "Zhuangyuan" through the imperial examination, the success would bring great honour to both him and his family, followed with a high-level position and a great sum of money. N{9QNI
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The game has something to do with the number "four." In mooncake gambling, the pips for most ranks of the awards are related to this number. M(Z A@ CH7wz#\
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For instance, one die of four pips wins you "Xiucai" and the smallest mooncake. And if you get four or more dice of four pips, then congratulations - you win "Zhuangyuan." 4ME {rb
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The game provides 32 mooncakes for "Xiucai," 16 for "Juren" and the rest may be deduced by analogy. Only one player will win the lucky title "Zhuangyuan." That is why a total of 63 mooncakes are prepared for the game. g\ Z&vjf
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As a game well combining culture, folk custom and recreation, moon cake gambling soon got popular among troops. GI\'qEbZ1\U
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So General Zheng approved of the soldiers playing the game in turn from the 13th to the 18th of the 8th month around the Mid-Autumn Festival. ncv-h`$sC
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Since then, "Bo Bing" has become a popular traditional activity among local people. On every Mid-Autumn Festival, family members gather to gamble mooncakes, deep in arguments about who will be the winner.
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4b"h W!t`BXD Also cake confectioneries will produce many kinds of gambling cakes to cater to the market. n({'dWQ+tP
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Xiamen people believe that the person who wins "Zhuangyuan" in the game, will have good luck that year. And the Mid-Autumn Festival is the second important holiday in Xiamen besides Spring Festival.
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O.pexb_)B~u9Qk Nowadays, the mooncakes are not the only kind of award. With the upgrade of people's living standards, daily necessities, household appliances and even money can also be won.
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j0i`~2RO+` What's more, people add funny rules. If the dice read "six," then forget all those boring ranks. Turn off all the lights, and then seize as many prizes as possible in the darkness. It is a combination of good memory, high speed and a strong body. 0P(Qng}
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Changes of prizes has made the game even popular among younger generations.

Oh, my god, it is very very beatifulllll0|6_i3z)U bu
I really don't know how to express it!:$
ja6orC)a Blue sea, Blue sky,beautifull building, nice night scene:P C-T2t*t:I

2n^?I'V;? XiaMen is wonderfull city, many peoples like to live

haa, thanks, welcome to xiamen, i am glad to guide for youT&tKC|5^:t,ww-X&K
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[[i] Last edited by  sophiaxie at 2007-2-22 18:31 [/i]]

Reply #9 sophiaxie's post

Thank you for your guide in advance.
ZK yK5m I really want to be there for a tour one day. zE)i-wS5H
The first picture above is very interesting. I wonder why he is standing there all the time.`o
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He's waiting for my arrival one day, doesn't he?%p6m9\PE5v~H
All the views make me more exciting.X2pR.d TL#G1Hl5X
The piture of "Marathon Match" as good witness to hamony between nature, society and human. It's very lovely.:P @N-O5NNy
I also find the fountain performance there. I'm sure it's very nice and, and nice.

Your hometown is very wonderful !

Reply #10 mazy's post

Thank you for your attention p"q#_z'R"D'J
It is the first time I heared this explain about Koxinga, haha. Let me offer something about Koxinga, He is a god of war. He insisted on peace and was a hero of ming dynasty .%h:I(E:N"X&_d
But I think you give a new explain about Koxinga and very interested . I like it very much!

Reply #11 Saphira's post

Thank you very much ! Welcome !

City Bird--Egrets?????????????????????¡§???Egrets are the world's rare birds. They belong to heron family of bird class. Xiamen boasts small egrets, middle egrets, large egrets, Chinese egrets and gray egrets, which dwell are the only five types of herons ever seen in China. People choose to call them egrets (Bailu in Chinese) collectively because they, except the gray egrets, which have dark gray body-feathers, have beautiful snow-white feathers. The small and midium-sized egrets are of the largest numbers and are seen more frequently. On October 23 of 1986, at the 23rd Session of the Standing Committee of the 8th Municipal People's Congress it was decided that the egret be the City Bird of Xiamen.
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[[i] Last edited by  sophiaxie at 2007-2-23 22:37 [/i]]

I don't know what is wrong with my pic, I can't post my pic. I will do it tomorrow because it is very late, i must go to office tomorrow. It is time to sleep.
f6ETr8e-[/@ have a nice dream.

it is so great, how nice it is...
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I like there,hoping have a chance can been there in the future..:)

Reply #15 sophiaxie's post

About the pictures, if you couldn't post successfully, you can upload them on [url]www.flickr.com[/url] ; and then copy the addresses.
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| a+M9p Thanks for your good introduction. :P

[quote]Originally posted by [i]Saphira[/i] at 2007-2-22 22:59
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Your hometown is very wonderful ! [/quote];R&`2J5g2U Z
:P Very glad to see you here, Saphira.0LD/~Oy5@J
How about your hometown and when would you take a guide for us?

Hi Sophia, maybe you also can introduce something about Jimei, Tong'an etc. :)

Reply #19 Cindy1021's post

Jimei, Tong'an?
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What's that? I never hear of that.:Q

Reply #19 Cindy1021's post

it sounds good. thanks

Reply #20 mazy's post

That is two parts of xiamen

Reply #22 sophiaxie's post

Oh, really?
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A Great. Thanks again. \|u~3n)Y*`t
Happy to see you, sophia:P

[quote]Originally posted by [i]sophiaxie[/i] at 2007-2-22 23:04
&pNlv8_4b Thank you for your attention
Ml}NO9_ It is the first time I heared this explain about Koxinga, haha. Let me offer something about Koxinga, He is a god of war. He insisted on peace and was a hero of min ... [/quote]
~b1zw/Vb$q Yes, I knowed it from book before.)v+^&_{Z \E&f
Koxinga was a hero, still now.  People never forget him.:P

[quote]Originally posted by [i]mazy[/i] at 2007-2-22 19:38
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H.w H+Y Thank you for your guide in advance.j1n1OppUF]:jW
I really want to be there for a tour one day.
l5d7Yt3ZaG The first picture above is very interesting. I wonder why he is standing there all the time.
Eb(|c0Kf| He's waiting fo ... [/quote] QT0u R:wd1DiTepb-AL
mazy, you have wonderfull imagine;P
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?$^ d good evening

[quote]Originally posted by [i]Qiseviolet[/i] at 2007-2-23 01:20%j%iB:q:|s4PZu&[u
it is so great, how nice it is... vD4{G%`v%I
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I like there,hoping have a chance can been there in the future..:) [/quote]
"f~N7N:j(r Maybe we can visit there together one day.;P

Reply #25 annyblank's post

;P OK. I knew of him anyway. YES. A hero indead.
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_Di'o*K But he must be there for people's arriving now.s\&Ui
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Because it's peaceful nowaday.:P

[quote]Originally posted by [i]mazy[/i] at 2007-2-23 20:39-K2ta$GEC@&[peT
;P OK. I knew of him anyway. YES. A hero indead.
J7x2tT&F6C But he must be there for people's arriving now._ cucHq
Because it's peaceful nowaday.:P [/quote]V)b'LVl\Xo%s
I see. I knew you was just joking.:$ ;P+s.BK Zu)C)TEha1D

6u&t~.T6]0NP [[i] Last edited by  annyblank at 2007-2-23 21:22 [/i]]

Hey everybody, you can see the Egret now, Thanks to mazy

Reply #29 sophiaxie's post

It's my pleasure.:P 6s"@)W[nP"g6H

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e(w*?j2K Very beautiful.