Huicheng District 惠城区

Setting and landscape

The district has mountains and hills in the north and south, and between them hills and narrow plains along the Dong and its tributary the Xizhi River (西枝江). The highest point is Shiya Shan (石牙山) in the northeast, at 695 metres. Other Dong tributaries crossing the district include the Qiuxiang River (秋香江) and the Dalan (大岚水). Oriental white storks and black-faced spoonbills are among the rare birds recorded here.

History

The Sui founded Guishan County (归善县) in 589, with its seat below Baihe Feng (白鹤峰) in today's Qiaodong (桥东) area; it was renamed Huiyang in 1912. The present district was created in 1988 from the old Huizhou city. Huizhou's nickname, Goose City (鹅城), comes from a legend of an immortal riding a goose, and besides Su Dongpo the poet Yang Wanli (杨万里) also stayed in the city.

What to see

Huizhou West Lake (惠州西湖) is a national scenic area and 5A attraction made up of West Lake and Honghua Lake (红花湖), known for its six lakes, nine bridges and eighteen views; more than 400 writers, led by Su Dongpo, left their mark here. Hejiang Tower (合江楼), first built in the early Northern Song where the Xizhi meets the Dong, served as the east gate of the prefectural city and was Su Dongpo's first home in Huizhou. On Baihe Feng, the Dongpo Shrine (东坡祠) stands on the site of the house Su Dongpo built himself, with the restored shrine, Dongpo's well, a new memorial hall and an old granary turned into an exhibition space.

Beside West Lake, the Jindai Street (金带街) historic block keeps 16 old lanes and buildings tied to education and the civil examinations, such as Binxing Hall (宾兴馆) and the Huang family study (黄氏书室). A memorial to Whampoa cadets killed in the Eastern Expedition, first built in 1930 by Gongbei Bridge (拱北桥) and rebuilt in 1992, lists 241 names; the Deng Yanda Memorial Park (邓演达纪念园), built around the revolutionary's former home, opened in 2010.

Getting oriented

By expressway the district is 162 kilometres from Guangzhou, 79 kilometres from Shenzhen and 97 kilometres from Heyuan. The Beijing–Kowloon railway and the Guangzhou–Huizhou intercity line both cross the district.

Highlights

• Huizhou West Lake 惠州西湖: National scenic area and 5A attraction of West Lake and Honghua Lake, known for six lakes, nine bridges and eighteen views.
• Hejiang Tower 合江楼: Early Northern Song tower at the Dong–Xizhi confluence; east gate of the prefectural city and Su Dongpo's first home in Huizhou.
• Dongpo Shrine 东坡祠: On Baihe Feng, on the site of the house Su Dongpo built; restored shrine, Dongpo's well and a memorial hall.
• Jindai Street historic block 金带街: Sixteen old lanes beside West Lake with Binxing Hall and the Huang family study.