Guangzhou: From Ancient Silk Road to Modern Bay Area Hub

Imagine a city where ancient merchant ships once docked with spices and silk, now buzzing with futuristic ferries connecting one of the world's most dynamic economic zones. Welcome to Guangzhou!

Known as a starting point of the Maritime Silk Road over 2,000 years ago, this southern Chinese metropolis has always been a crossroads of global trade. Foreign vessels once navigated the Pearl River Estuary to exchange goods—a tradition reborn today through the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area initiative.

The newly opened Pazhou Ferry Terminal is the latest link in this chain, cutting travel time to Hong Kong to just 2 hours by high-speed boat. 'This isn’t just about speed,' says a local entrepreneur. 'It’s about creating a live-work-play ecosystem across 11 cities.'

From tea ceremonies to tech hubs, Guangzhou proves history doesn’t just repeat itself—it upgrades.

Reference(s):

Live: Past and present of the millennium commercial hub

cgtn.com