A bird's-eye view of Putian.

PUTIAN, a small city in Fujian Province on the west bank of the Taiwan Straits, is hometown to countless overseas Chinese. It is also where the Mazu Culture originated, and is site of the South Shaolin Temple. In 2002, Putian's GDP had an increase of 11.6 percent over the previous year, making it second in the province. Its growth in gross industrial output value and in the disposable income of its urban inhabitants is top in the province.

Creating Strong Industries

Walking through Putian's streets and lanes, the city's extensive urbanization becomes apparent. Wide streets, neatly laid out multi-story buildings, clean, peaceful residential districts, and pedestrian malls lined with buildings in classic architectural style embody the harmonious blending of tradition and modernity.

Putian is rich in marine resources from 150 neighboring islands, such as Pinghai, Zhongmen, and Meizhou, as well as from the three bays of Meizhou, Pinghai and Xinghua. It has a coastline measuring 343.6 kilometers, making up 10.3 percent of the province's total length.

Sacrificial rituals worshiping Mazu on Meizhou Island.

Meizhou Bay is situated between Fuzhou and Xiamen harbors, and also in the middle of Shanghai and Zhanjiang, and Manila and Tokyo harbors. Xiuyu Harbor is a deep-water ice-free port capable of building more than 150 10,000-ton class berths. It is situated on a 30-kilometer length of coastline 10 meters deep. Ships of a 100,000-tonnage come and go freely, as do those of a 200,000-tonnage when the tide is high. It is one of China's four international entrepots, as designated by the Ministry of Communications.

Putian's pillar industries of shoe-making, brewing, electronics, garments, foodstuffs, and machinery have earned the city its epithets "Shoe City," "Beer City," and "Electronic City."

The city's foreign-funded Jiatong Tire Co., Ltd., ranks first nationwide in this trade in terms of sales volume, and the Fujian Xuejin Beer Group Co., Ltd., is among the top ten in its field. Putian High-tech Industrial Park, which houses 149 enterprises from 13 countries and regions, is the largest electronic calculator production base in Asia. The Xinwei Electronics Co., Ltd., produces 400,000 electronic calculators daily, and its products are sold to Southern and Western Asia, the Middle East, Africa and Russia, making up 30 percent of the international market.

Putian's agriculture has been industrialized, forming five major production bases in aquatic products, fruits, livestock, edible mushrooms, and vegetables. In 2001 and 2002, its annual output of loquats exceeded 30,000 tons, making up 40 percent of the national total, and ranking first in Fujian Province for ten successive years. Putian also takes the lead in raising eels. China's largest eel trading center is located in a street in Putian's Hanjiang New Port, which also serves as China's largest eel pricing and information center.

Sites of Interest

Meizhou women.

Wenjia Dock is 35 kilometers south of the city proper and Meizhou Island, the birthplace of Mazu, is a 20-minute ferry ride from here. Every year on the 23rd day of the third lunar month (Mazu's birthday) and on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month (when she became an immortal) grand sacrificial ceremonies are held on Meizhou Island. Mazu followers from all over the world gather here to worship this goddess of the sea. Meizhou Island is therefore called "Mecca of the Orient." There are more than 3,000 Mazu temples in more than 20 countries throughout the world.

Other famous historical sites include the South Shaolin Temple on Mount Linshan and the 1,000-year-old Guanghua Temple.

China's Shaolin martial arts are in two schools: north and south. The Shaolin Temple on Mount Songshan in Henan Province is famous for its leg techniques, while the Shaolin Temple on Mount Linshan is famous for its fist techniques. In 1992, a press conference was held in Beijing's Great Hall of the People, announcing the reconstruction of South Shaolin Temple. Construction of the first-phase project, lasting four years, is now complete.

Seeking Roots

Aquatic cultivation.

Putian is the famous hometown of overseas Chinese. Emigration overseas started in the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127).

According to statistics, overseas Chinese and foreign nationals originating in Putian amount to 600,000, and reside in more than 40 countries and regions on the five continents, 90 percent of them in Southeast Asia.

In the Jinjiang Industrial Zone in the center of Jiangkou Town, is an eye-catching pale green building -- the Yunyongsheng Hotel. The owner of the hotel is Chen Zhenrong, now the "auto tycoon" of Brunei.

Fifty years ago, at age 16, Chen Zhenrong went abroad to make a living. He ran an auto shop, and served as an agent for British and Japanese autos. Following the burgeoning of the auto market, his enterprises also flourished.

He is now the largest auto agent in Brunei, and his businesses also include real estate, shopping malls and hotels. Chen has invested in China, Singapore, Australia and Malaysia. Yet, "a Chinese emigrant always thinks of his hometown," says Mr. Chen fervently.

According to the Jiangkou Town Overseas Chinese Affairs Office, Mr. Chen has donated more than 2 million yuan towards public welfare in his hometown, in areas such as water and power supply, road building, and construction of the overseas Chinese memorial hall. He has been awarded the title "honorary citizen of Putian City."

There are many classroom buildings, science-technology buildings, outpatient buildings and senior citizens' homes named after overseas Chinese in Putian. Many overseas Chinese have invested in factories in their hometown, thus making substantial contributions to Putian's prosperity.