Old Canton a city full of history

With direct China Southern Airlines flights between Perth and Guangzhou, and then connections to 190 destinations in 40 countries, there's a good chance of a stopover in the city previously known as Canton.

Here are a few building-block sights on which to build an interesting couple of days.

GUANGZHOU TOWER

In Guangzhou's Tianhe District in the central business district, this 600m tower opened in 2010 and is one of the tallest in China. The tower's design is based on two ellipses. They "twist" against one another forming a waist in the middle. There is an open-air skywalk at 180m, outdoor gardens and an observation deck on top. There are views over the Pearl River and Heart of the Sea Island.

SHANGXIAJIU STREET

For a moment in Shangxiajiu Street, I think I hear the vague echo of old Canton - from when it was on the end of the great sea trading routes, perhaps through Singapore to Oman. There are old buildings and teahouses which are a century old (like Taotao and Lotus Scent) and it is famous for having makers of Cantonese mooncakes - usually small, round pastries with a filling of red bean or lotus seed paste and usually taken with Chinese tea. They are popular gifts but it is said that, during Mongol rule of China, local Ming revolutionaries smuggled messages in them as they plotted to overthrow their Mongolian rulers. Word was spread that eating mooncakes was the only cure for an outbreak of plague - a good way to ensure their quick dispersal.

THE SQUARE OF THE CHEN CLAN ACADEMY

This big, open square is surrounded by old walls, antique houses and an ancestral temple. There are sculptures, brick carving, carved inscriptions and relief walls - and the roof of Chen Clan Academy itself has a distinctive pottery ridge crest. The academy, in Zhongshan 7th Road, was built in the 1890s to house those preparing for the imperial examinations used to find the best prospects of Imperial China's formidable bureaucracy. It is now home to the Guangdong Folk Art Museum.

BAIYUN MOUNTAIN

Baiyun Mountain is 15km north of the centre of Guangzhou. Translate the name to English and you have "White Cloud Mountain". The name was given for the view it provides (particularly in the clear skies of late spring) of the peaks around it, shrouded in white clouds. The Chinese have long come here for its scenic beauty - there are records in Chinese texts of visits here as early as perhaps 450BC, and by the time of the Tang Dynasty, between AD618 and AD897, it was quite a tourist attraction. Today it is as popular at night as in the daytime, when people come to watch the Moon. The vast majority of the area is covered with greenery, and it has been calculated that Baiyun Mountain's flora can release 2100 tonnes of oxygen a day, while absorbing 2800 tonnes of carbon dioxide. Hence the nickname: "Lung of the city".

The Baiyun cable car, from Yuntai Garden (see the lanterns here in the evening) raises visitors nearly 200m over 1670m to the top. Cable cars pass scenic spots like "Initial Probe into the Cloudy Valley".

PEARL RIVER

As with so many of the world's cities, a river is crucial to Guangzhou's story. And the romantically named Pearl River was its lifeblood. The Pearl River Delta is formed by the convergence of the East, West and North rivers, as they make their way to disgorge into the South China Sea. The delta now is a very heavily populated place. And here Guangzhou sits, its heart still clinging to the river, even as it sprawls. Evening cruises on the river are popular, with the city brightly lit, casting a kaleidoscope across the water.

LIUHUA LAKE

People gather around the lake just to be outdoors, and this is the place for tea ceremonies. Look out for desserts made of tea leaves. This is, of course, not only the land in which the tea plant was endemic but a place where unwilted, unoxidised green tea abounds.

FACT FILE

For more about China Southern Airlines, its services, routes and bookings, visit csair.com/au/en/, phone 1300 889 628 or see travel agents.

Travellers can stay in Guangzhou for up to 72 hours without a visa if travelling to a third country.