Gangkou District 港口区

Setting and landscape

The district's coast runs for 317 kilometres around two peninsulas, Qisha (企沙半岛) and Yuwan (渔澫半岛), and two bays, East Bay and West Bay. It has China's first GEF international mangrove demonstration area and Qisha fishing port (企沙渔港), which the district government calls the second largest in Guangxi. Offshore lies the Beibu Gulf fishing ground, with more than 500 kinds of fish; Bryde's whales, dolphins, green turtles and the critically endangered spoon-billed sandpiper are recorded visitors.

History

Under the Qin the area belonged to Xiang Commandery (象郡). Between 1644 and 1652, according to local tradition, the Ming general Yang Yi (杨义), fleeing Qing troops, began a canal known as the Emperor's Ditch (皇帝沟), 12 kilometres long; about 500 metres were never dug, and only traces remain. On 15 November 1939 Japanese troops landed at Qisha. The district was created in May 1993, when the Fangchenggang port zone and the Fangcheng autonomous county were abolished.

What to see

The West Bay scenic area (西湾旅游景区), in the city centre, became a 4A scenic area on 31 December 2014. Its seafront parks include Xianrenshan Park (仙人山公园), the Fubo culture park (伏波文化园), Egret Park (白鹭公园) and the Beibu Gulf marine culture park.

Leshan Ancient Fishing Village (簕山古渔村) sits on a small peninsula on the southeast side of the Qisha Peninsula, 11 kilometres from Qisha town and about 25 kilometres from the city centre; the district government calls it one of Guangxi's more complete surviving old fishing villages. Most villagers are named Li, descended from a clan that the village story says settled here in the Ming. Visitors can see the Li family fort (李庄古堡), first built in the Ming, sand dunes known as the "southern snowfield", old looking-glass mangrove trees (银叶树) and a banyan that regrew after a typhoon uprooted it. Most villagers live by raising and catching sand worms (沙虫).

Food and local culture

The Qisha Peninsula is where Fangchenggang's Tanka (疍家) boat-dwelling culture began, and Qisha town remains the main Tanka community. Tanka women make fish sauce (鱼露) by salting green scale fish (青鳞鱼) with sea salt at five to one and letting it ferment in sealed jars until it turns amber; before eating, they add fried soybeans and star anise to remove the fishy smell. Tanka saltwater songs (咸水歌) and Tanka weddings have been on the city's intangible heritage list since 2010.

Highlights

• West Bay Scenic Area 西湾旅游景区: 4A seafront scenic area in the city centre since 31 December 2014, with Xianrenshan Park and Egret Park.
• Leshan Ancient Fishing Village 簕山古渔村: Fishing village on the Qisha Peninsula with a Ming-era fort, dunes and old looking-glass mangrove trees.
• Qisha fishing port 企沙渔港: Fishing port called the second largest in Guangxi by the district government.
• Tanka fish sauce 鱼露: Fish fermented with sea salt at five to one until amber, a staple seasoning of Tanka kitchens.