Weihai City
At the easternmost tip of the Shandong Peninsula, at 37° north latitude, Weihai hangs high above the coast of mainland China like a bird’s beak. This is a city surrounded by the sea on three sides and has a super-long coastline of 986 kilometers. The mountains lie vertically, surrounded by the Yellow Sea, and more than 30 bays intersect with the headlands extending to the sea. The complex terrain has created Weihai’s extremely rich coastal scenery and wide viewing angles; the ocean brings abundant rain and cools in summer and warm in winter The climate has endowed Weihai with rich products, and also contributed to Weihai’s inclusive culture and unique urban flavor.
Overlooking Liugong Island
01
In Weihai’s historical beacon
Along the urban area of Weihai, several parks line up one after another, filling Weihai’s golden coastline. Harbor Park, Xingfu Park, Weihai Park, Yuehai Park, Ocean Park, Kowloon Bay Park…are arranged one by one, stretching to the easternmost tip of Jiaodong Peninsula.
The parks in Weihai hide the stories of the city and the sea. In Weihai Port in Huancui District, at the intersection of Hangzhou Road, Haibin North Road, and Wenhua East Road, there are many flowers. This is the first park in Weihai. In 1916, a giant whale ran aground on the seashore of Weihai. People folded its jawbone and erected it at the east gate, so it was called “Whale Park”. Since then, the old buildings in Weihai Port have been transformed into new ones, the roads have been turned into asphalt roads, the whale bones have been removed, and squares and green spaces have been surrounded. Weihai Harbor Park rises from the ground.
When the lanterns first come on, the sound of the waves in Weihai Port Park is still there. To the south of it, the 49-meter-high sightseeing lighthouse in Yuehai Park lights up the night. The seagrass house at the foot of the lighthouse is the epitome of the most characteristic ecological dwellings along the coast of Jiaodong. Until now, there are still hundreds of original ecological seaweed houses distributed in coastal fishing villages such as Rongcheng Lidao, Chengshanwei Town, and Gangxi Town in Weihai. value. On the bricks and stones, saline-alkali seaweeds are spread on the roof beams, resisting the erosion from sea wind and sea water. Lighthouses, thatched cottages and the sea, this is the most romantic and rustic cape.
If you want to look at the whole city from Weihai Port, there is no better way to “check in” at the Gate of Happiness in Xingfu Park. This is a landmark building in Weihai, 45 meters high and 42 meters wide, which is the “Gate of Weihai”. When you go to the Gate of Happiness, you can not only see Weihai city buildings with red tiles and white walls, but also the sea and sky on the other side. Under the Gate of Happiness, the park has a circular copper forging member with a diameter of 13.8 meters protruding from the ground, which is called “Baifu Tu”: the word “Fu” in different shapes circles five times on the copper piece, which means “five blessings come to the door”. “”Five Blessings Shared”, you can open the door to happiness by stepping on it.
When we look from the Gate of Happiness, we can see the mottled boats coming and going on Liugong Island nearby, and the forts on the island can be seen faintly. In the long modern history and the delicate game of the world pattern, Liugong Island has left a strong and colorful figure. Weihai Bay is like a semicircle surrounded by mountains on three sides. Liugong Island, a natural island barrier, guards Weihai Bay and faces Lushunkou in Liaodong Peninsula. It is an extremely important place for national defense.
Alfred Mahan wrote in “Naval Strategy”: “Whoever controls the sea will rule the world.” The 18th century was an era of navigation. The closed-door Qing government established the Beiyang Navy under the intrusion of Western countries’ strong ships and guns. Ding Ruchang served as the admiral of the Beiyang Navy, established a naval base in Weihai, and built the Weihai Naval Academy on Liugong Island.
Then in 1895, the Sino-Japanese War of Sino-Japanese War broke out, and the Beiyang Navy was wiped out in the war. Weihai was successively designated as a colony by Japan and the United Kingdom. Until 1948, with the liberation of Weihai, the smoke that rolled up on Liugong Island finally dissipated, and the small island that had gone through storms became an ordinary and special scenery on the thousand-mile coastline of Weihai. Today, in the Sino-Japanese War Museum in Liugong Island, there are 28 old sites of the Beiyang Navy, including the Admiralty Office of the Beiyang Navy, Ding Ruchang’s residence, the Naval Academy, and various forts, silently telling the history of the Beiyang Navy’s glory and disgrace. Although this period of history is only a heavy corner of the book, it will continue to engrave Weihai, a seaside city, in the years to come.
Huancuilou Park, entrenched on the top of Weihai, has also witnessed the ups and downs of Weihai. This ancient acropolis has naturally carried the great mission of “guarding” since its establishment. Huancui Building, a Ming Dynasty building, was once carved with beams and painted buildings, but it withered and rebuilt in several wars. Climb up the Huancui Building, one side is Cangshan Mountain, the other side is the sea, you can wait for the sun to rise here in your spare time, when a round of red sun jumps out of the clouds, the golden light will shine in an instant, and the peaks will be dyed.
Liugong Island
East of Jiaodong
02
Encounter the most beautiful coastline
The sea and the sun are all the beautiful imaginations of many people. There is no better place to watch the sunrise and sunset than Chengshantou. Chengshantou Cape, at the easternmost end of the mainland stretching out to the ocean, is the place where the sun first emerges on the coastline of thousands of miles in China. China National Geography rated it as one of the “Eight Most Beautiful Coasts in China”. Together with Liangshan on the Korean Peninsula, it forms the dividing line between the north and the south of the Yellow Sea.
From downtown Weihai to Chengshantou, this winding sightseeing road is full of mountains and seas, among which beaches, cliffs and parks complement each other. From April 20th to October 30th every year, the No. 46 bus runs on this Huanhai Road on time, at a slow speed of 30 kilometers per hour, and the panoramic sightseeing glass windows capture all the beautiful scenery.
In order to travel around Weihai better, a special bus line has also been opened. It departs from Weihai North Station, goes through Huanhai Road, and goes straight to Huoju Eighth Street. This is a small street that appears in Japanese animation scenes. Walking along Huoju Eighth Street, passing the colorful bungalows on both sides, turning a corner, and going down the slope, a blue sky suddenly appeared at the end of the road. Probably no one can refuse the freedom of “driving all the way to the sea”.
Accompanied by the sea and golden sandy beaches, the richness of seaside entertainment is doubled. In Weihai International Bathing Beach, people bask in the sun and bathe in the sea on the natural beach, experience motorboats, sailing boats, wake surfing, speedboats, and kayaks in the bay; bathe with seagulls in the Golden Beach Beach; On the beach of the sea bathing beach, the grand Naxianghai Kite Cultural Festival opened around May 1st, with “dragons” and “giant sharks” floating around, and the world of the ocean turned upside down in the sky.
The sea recedes in the evening, which is the best time to catch the sea. Muddy beaches and reefs, especially island coasts, are the old nests of coastal creatures such as crabs, razor clams, oysters, and snails, and are also the best places to catch the sea. When the sunset turns red, continue along the Huanhai Road and merge into the 221 Coastal National Highway. The windmills along the way are picturesque, and the black pines are forested by the coast. If you finish the whole course of Weihai’s winding coast, it is equivalent to walking one-third of the coastline of Shandong Peninsula.
In Weihai, the summer and the sea are unparalleled.
Whether enjoying the sun on the beach or listening to the waves lapping on the reef, the long and rich Weihai coastline is undoubtedly a fishing paradise. According to statistics, most of the world’s fishing rods are produced in Weihai, which is a veritable “Fishing City”. The headland of Maotou Mountain is named for its resemblance to a big cat crouching on the seashore. It gives people the most comfortable place to watch the sea. However, because of the dense reefs and cliffs, there are relatively rich aquatic organisms. A place for fans of rock fishing enthusiasts. Rock fishing is a type of fishing, but compared with ordinary fishing, it is more exciting and challenging than ordinary fishing. If you are not satisfied with the coast, fishing on a fishing boat on the island is also popular among fishing enthusiasts. You can also enjoy the vast and endless sea near the sea, where fish jump out of the water, seagulls fly and the sun floats.
Liugong Island, Huang Island, Qingdao, Hei Island, Chu Island, Xiaoshi Island, and many nearby islands and reefs form the 185 scattered islands in Weihai, which are undoubtedly indispensable scenery of Weihai’s thousand-mile coastline. In addition to the silent sea and rocks on Sea Donkey Island, there are thousands of seagulls flying all over the sky. Chu Island, the second largest island on the northern coast of Weihai, is an island with no original inhabitants near the mainland. It has rare offshore deep water and strange-shaped coastal terrain.
Among the many islands, the most well-known is Jiming Island. As one of the filming locations of Hunan Satellite TV’s popular program “Where Are We Going, Dad”, it has entered the field of vision of thousands of households overnight. On the cliff of Jiming Island, a special “cliff coffee shop” is inlaid. This urban work that is infinitely close to nature sells coffee, desserts, as well as birdsong, tree shadows, and blue waves, staying in the time of passers-by.
Weihai trip
03
Achieving seafood and fruit freedom
When you go to a city with sea, you must taste seafood.
37 degrees north latitude is the golden latitude belt for seafood. Weihai is located here. The geographical characteristics of being surrounded by the sea on three sides endow Weihai with a low salinity in the sea water, which makes the texture of seafood more plump. The Yanwei Fishing Ground in the north of Weihai, where ocean currents meet, is the only way for various fish and shrimp to migrate in the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea, and it is also a habitat for fish and shrimp to spawn. During the spring flood season, there are countless small yellow croakers, octopus, mackerel, mackerel, and mackerel, as well as local special aquatic products such as eagle claw shrimp, swimming crab, midge shrimp, jellyfish, and sea cucumber.
The freshly caught seafood is screened, dried, and marinated to become the midge shrimp paste that everyone in Weihai is familiar with. The shrimp paste is served with bean noodle soup and midge shrimp scrambled eggs. There are also delicious mackerel dumplings, Weihai clear soup (sea cucumber soup, three delicacies soup, fish curd soup), sea vegetable buns, etc. For Weihai people, seafood has been integrated into daily life.
At the same time, the fishermen’s sea production also started. In order to pray for the smooth sailing of fishing boats and return with a full load, fishermen will hold a grand sea sacrifice activity on the day of Grain Rain. This grand ceremony has continued to this day, and has gradually changed from praying for good weather to the “Fishermen Opening the Ocean and Xie Ocean Festival” today to showcase the sea culture. Fishermen’s drums in Shidao, fishermen’s chant, lion and dragon dance… various programs are very lively. Fishing boats return, full of seafood, or berth at the seafood wharf, or quickly flow into the market. Director Chen Xiaoqing said, “The best way to understand a city is to visit its vegetable market.” Just before dawn, the Tashan morning market was already packed with everything from daily vegetables and fruits to the freshest seafood. The vegetables were stained with mud, and the seafood was alive and kicking.
Since May, the waters of Weihai have entered a four-month fishing moratorium, and on the opening day in September, thousands of fishing boats gather at various piers in Weihai, ready to go. When the fishing boats returned in the afternoon, the Heqing Wharf near Haiyuan Park quickly became one of the most popular seafood wharves in Weihai. The fish and shrimps were brought to the table non-stop as soon as they were caught from the sea.
The gift of the ocean is more than that. The temperature difference between day and night accumulates abundant sugar, and the sea breeze leaves a piece of moisture. The 37-degree north latitude and the terrain surrounded by mountains and seas have brought unique endowments to the agriculture of the Shandong Peninsula. The famous Shandong cherries have been introduced to my country by American missionaries since 1871, and have evolved into different varieties such as Meizao, Hongdeng, and Huangmi. Weihai is the last place where Shandong’s big cherries mature. In April, the cherry blossom season in Weihai has just passed. In late May, Kunyu Mountain will soon be covered with big red cherries in Weihai. By then, Weihai Wendeng will become a colorful world of thousands of green and red pearls.
Weihai also has the largest green-skinned fig production area in the country. Green-skinned figs are a fruit variety introduced by the British a hundred years ago. They are called “sugar buns growing on trees”. Its red flowers are hidden under the green skin. The sweetness of the juice is hidden in the rich aroma, and the sea breeze mixed with the freshness of figs fills the salty and humid air of Weihai, which is the unique taste of Weihai. If it is in the season of figs, no matter which fruit stand you are at, the figs with green skin and red hearts are well-deserved protagonists.
Weihai also has a three-point world of Korean food. In 1989, Shidao Port in Weihai was officially opened to the outside world. In 2002, Shidao Port opened a Korean international passenger line. Departing from Shidao Commercial Port on the Yellow Sea, you can go directly to Incheon, South Korea. Right now, Weihai can be said to be the port city with the shortest sea transportation time between my country and South Korea, the highest route density and the lowest transportation cost. It has the fastest air route between China and South Korea. It only takes 45 minutes between the two countries. Such convenient conditions attract Many Koreans and Korean companies. As the closest city in mainland China to South Korea, nearly 100,000 Koreans have settled here.
Korean signs can be seen everywhere, and Korean restaurants are scattered all over the streets and alleys of Weihai. Different from the Northeast Korean cuisine, the Korean food in Weihai is an authentic modern Korean food, Korean home cooking, Korean barbecue, spine soup, seafood pot containing shrimp, crab, razor clams, squid and other seasonal seafood. all available. The Korean food street on Binhai Road not only gathers Korean restaurants, but also Korean supermarkets, Korean folk experience halls, etc. The fusion of Korean flavor and Weihai seafood has long been inseparable from the taste of Weihai.
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