Ningde 宁德市

Setting and landscape

Inland the land is mostly mountains and hills, higher in the west and north and lower toward the east and south, with small coastal plains. Its rivers, including the Jiaoxi (交溪) and the Huotong Stream (霍童溪), mostly run from north-west to south-east. The coast has 29 bays and harbours, and the city government says Sandu'ao (三都澳) has the longest deep-water shoreline of any port in Fujian.

History

The Minyue lived here before the Qin, and Wenma County (温麻县) was set up here under the Jin in 282. The Yuan raised the area to Funing Prefecture (福宁州) in 1286 and the Qing made it Funing Fu (福宁府) in 1734; the prefecture-level city was created in 1999. The city government names Chi'an (赤岸) in Xiapu (霞浦) as the place where the Japanese monk Kukai (空海) came ashore on his way to seek the Dharma in Tang China.

What to see

Baishuiyang (白水洋), Mount Taimu (太姥山) and Baiyun Mountain (白云山) make up the Ningde UNESCO Global Geopark, Fujian's second. Pingnan's (屏南) Baishuiyang and Yuanyang Stream (鸳鸯溪) and Fuding's (福鼎) Mount Taimu are AAAAA scenic areas. Mount Taimu, 250 km north of Fuzhou, is backed by mountains and faces the sea; it is the sanctuary of the ancient goddess Taimu Niangniang (太姥娘娘) and is known for its views of mountains meeting the sea. The city government also points to the Xiapu mudflats (霞浦滩涂), to Yushan Island (嵛山岛) off Fuding, and to the Linshui Palace (临水宫) in Gutian (古田), which it says is famous across South-East Asia and shares the renown of Mazu temples.

Food and local products

Mindong's waters yield Guanjingyang large yellow croaker (官井洋大黄鱼), Erdu cockles (二都蚶) and Shatang razor clams (沙塘剑蛏), and the city calls the area one of China's key tea regions and its largest producer of edible fungi. Fuding white tea (福鼎白茶) is neither pan-fired nor rolled but withered and then dried over a low fire, and is made as Baihao Yinzhen (白毫银针), Bai Mudan (白牡丹) and Gongmei (贡眉); the craft entered the national intangible heritage list in 2011. Pingnan's yuanyang guo (鸳鸯粿) are chewy noodles made in dozens of steps from acorns, the favourite food of the mandarin ducks that winter on the Yuanyang Stream.

Getting oriented

Fuzhou lies to the south, Nanping to the west and Wenzhou in Zhejiang to the north. The government sits in Jiaocheng District (蕉城区), and the Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway, the Hefei–Fuzhou high-speed line and the Quzhou–Ningde railway, opened in 2020, serve the city.

Highlights

• Mount Taimu 太姥山: AAAAA mountain in Fuding facing the sea, part of the Ningde UNESCO Global Geopark.
• Baishuiyang 白水洋: Pingnan scenic area, AAAAA-rated together with the Yuanyang Stream and part of the Ningde UNESCO Global Geopark.
• Lin Shui Gong 临水宫: Temple in Gutian that the city government calls famous across South-East Asia.
• Fuding white tea 福鼎白茶: Withered and dried without pan-firing or rolling; national intangible heritage since 2011.
• Pingnan acorn noodles 屏南鸳鸯粿: Chewy noodles made from acorns in dozens of steps.