MY HOMETOWN
Méizhōu (Chinese: 梅州) is a prefecture-level city of eastern Guangdong province in the south of the People's Republic of China. It has an area of 15,836 km (6,114 sq mi), and a population of 5.05 million. Meizhou is honored with the Hometown of Culture, Hometown of the Overseas Hakka Chinese and Hometown of Football.
History
The name Meizhou comes from the Mei River and plum blossom (mei). Meizhou was established as a prefecturenamed Jingzhou in the Southern Han (917-971). It was changed into Meizhou in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) and Jiaying Prefecture (Chinese Postal Map Romanisation: Kaying) in the Qing Dynasty (1644–1911). After several subsequent shifts of jurisdiction, it became Meizhou City in 1988. Now Meizhou is a famous historical and cultural city.
Geography
Meizhou is located in the northeast of Guangdong Province, bordering Fujian Province in the northeast and JiangxiProvince in the northwest. The complex geological structure was formed mainly from granite, spouting rocks,metamorphic rock, shale, sandstone, red rock and limestone. Its administrative area ranges in latitude from 23° 23' to 24° 56' N and in longitude from 115° 18' to 116° 56' E, covering an area of 15,836 km (6,114 sq mi).
Meizhou has a humid subtropical climate (Köppen Cfa), with short, mild, overcast winters and long, very hot, humid summers. The monthly daily average temperature in January is 12.4 °C (54.3 °F), and in July is 28.6 °C(83.5 °F). From April to June, rainfall is the heaviest and most frequent. Though striking typhoons do not affect the area as much as the coast, the mountainous topography means that flooding is a serious concern.
Administration
The municipal government, Intermediate Court and CPC and PSB bureaux are housed in the district of Jiangnan (江南), on the right bank of Meijiang River.
A second district of Meizhou is Jiangbei (江北), on the left bank. The two urban areas are joined by many road and foot bridges.
Both of these are subdistricts of Meijiang District.
People and culture
Meizhou is considered the center for standard Hakka dialect, along with the neighboring Mei County and Dabu County.
Hakkas are a unique ethnic group of Han Chinese originally from around the Yellow River area, who later migrated south to avoid the chaos of war centuries ago. Due to hostility towards the new immigrants, many were forced into the mountainous regions ofGuangdong. The migratory tradition has continued with the redistribution of Hakka people to the most remote parts of the world. Many people in Meizhou emigrated during the last century to earn money for their families, with some returning to build their hometowns.
Many buildings are named after famous people in Meizhou, built by returning Hakkas.
As a mountainous area, Meizhou has many beautiful natural scenes and good air quality. Many visitors come to the Yannanfei Tea Garden to climb the mountain. On the mountain, the eyes are treated to a feast of greenery, and visitors feel as if "walking among the clouds". Here, one cannot avoid the flavour of the tea.
Hakka folk music is also a feature of the area. The folk songs sing of the Hakka people, their passion for their hometown, and of love.
Food
During the period after August or September, a sea of pomelos can be seen, especially in the village's orchards.
The salt baked chicken is one of the most famous Hakka food, which can also be bought in many other cities in China. Another local dish is Yong tau foo (tofu stuffed with meat), which has a very interesting origin. It is said that when Hakka people first came to the south, there was no wheat flour to make dumplings so they used tofu instead. They put meat and some other ingredients into the tofu and it made a good, special taste. It was handed down and became a special recipe of Hakka cuisine. Other foods like preserved beef and ginger candies are also very popular.
