Fujian

Fujian faces the Taiwan Strait across one of the world's busiest maritime corridors, with semidiurnal spring tides of 4.0–5.5 m funnelled through the strait's geometry to produce strong currents and significant tidal bores on the larger river estuaries. The Min River bore at Fuzhou is a seasonal spectacle on spring tides. Fujian's coast is heavily indented with rias and rocky headlands, and the province has been a maritime hub for over a thousand years — Quanzhou's UNESCO designation as a Maritime Silk Road heritage site reflects that history. Fishing and aquaculture dominate the inshore economy. Gulangyu Island off Xiamen — a car-free colonial-era island of European villas and piano culture — is designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Extensive oyster and razor-clam cultivation on intertidal stakes is visible at low water along the bay shores from Xiamen south to Zhangzhou; the harvest is a community event on every spring low tide.