Quanzhou was one of the greatest ports in the world, though few outsiders have heard of it. In the Song and Yuan dynasties, between the tenth and the fourteenth centuries, ships from Arabia, India, Persia and Southeast Asia loaded silk, porcelain and tea here, and Marco Polo, who called it Zaiton, claimed that for every ship of pepper that reached Alexandria, a hundred reached this harbour. The word satin may even come from Zaiton. In 2021, UNESCO listed the remains of this maritime city as Quanzhou: Emporium of the World in Song-Yuan China.
The old city still holds the traces of that cosmopolitan past. Kaiyuan Temple, a Buddhist monastery with two tall stone pagodas dating from the thirteenth century, stands near the centre, and its grounds contain Hindu carvings that were reused from a vanished temple. The Qingjing Mosque, founded in 1009, is among the oldest Arab-style mosques in China, with a ruined gate of granite and a courtyard that recalls its Persian origins. Tianhou Temple honours Mazu, the sea goddess who protects sailors, and across the city the lanes are full of small shrines and workshops.
Quanzhou is also the home of Minnan culture, with its own dialect, tea habits and puppetry. Visitors may see marionette performances, in which delicate wooden puppets act out stories from legend, and street stalls sell oyster omelettes, peanut soup and braised pork. The nearby county of Anxi is the home of Tieguanyin oolong tea, and a cup in a local teahouse is a pleasure.
China has complicated rules for foreign motorcyclists, with local licensing and registration requirements, and many cities restrict motorcycles in the centre, so the old city is better explored on foot or by local bicycle. If you are on two wheels, check the rules carefully and plan with a local guide.
Quanzhou is a city of nearly two hundred thousand, so fuel, hotels and food are easy to find. Visit in autumn or spring, when the humid heat of summer has eased.