A distinctive twisting tower on the Pearl River, one of the tallest structures of its kind in the world, with observation decks and a rotating restaurant near the top — the clearest modern landmark in a city that's been a trading port for over 2,000 years.
An elaborate 19th-century ancestral hall and academy, dense with traditional Lingnan-style carving, ceramics, and woodwork — a strong contrast to the tower-and-riverfront modern skyline, and one of the best-preserved examples of Cantonese folk art architecture.
I reached Guangzhou to see my friend Huang Jiaqi — and Huang treated me like a younger brother in every practical way. He booked my bullet train and even my onward flight, then brought me into his family home with his mother, father, and younger sister. My stay happened to land during a cousin's wedding, so I saw that too; we went to a park with his cousins, and had lunch at a relative's house — my first taste of a truly large Chinese family gathering. We visited his newly bought apartment (he was getting married soon), then headed into the city to the Canton Tower, where he showed me around before we stayed the night near the airport. He woke me on time and drove me there himself.
Huang was a full-time student at VIT, and we'd even travelled the Golden Triangle together in India. In Guangzhou he booked my bullet train and my flight, took me into his family's home during a cousin's wedding, showed me the Canton Tower, and drove me to the airport himself. Family, by his actions.