Qianshan River
6 min readHe who has sailed the seven seas doesn’t think much of mere rivers
Qianshan River
Rising from the dense forests on the southeast side of Wugui Mountain in neighboring Zhongshan City，the Qianshan River feeds into the great mouth of the Pearl River Delta and is the only freshwater river within Zhuhai territory.The 4l-km waterway runs through three cities：Zhongshan，Zhuhai and Macao.with some 8 kilometers of that in zhu hai A major water clean-up campaign was launched by the city government in 2005 to restore the waterquality of the city’s”mother river（actually，that of both Zhuhai and Macao）.The success of that project，together with the city’s proactive implementation of many other water governance schemes，brought Zhuhai into the select group of”National Pilot Cities for Water Eco-civilization Construction in 2015.
Long, long ago, the Qianshan River was called the”Qianshan Sea”. In a vigorous wave of reclamation during the late Ming and early Qing times, this vast expanse of waters was reshaped into an inland waterway In both functional and psychological senses the river has always been the lifeline ofZhuhai and an important, if rather under-appreciated, part of the local consciousness and identity, gently nourishing this remarkable coastal settlement and presenting afantastic tale of two citieswith Zhuhai and Macao sitting on opposite sides of this shared river.
Let your heart be guided by the waters, and you will come to understand the symbiotic bond between a river and its people, and appreciate the resilient and enduring heart of a river that is often, dismissively, referred to as just a”waterway stressing its great utility but losing much of the romance and tradition The fact that the river was reduced to a polluted nuisance in the 1990s does not for a moment diminish its persevering vitality. The river’s rebirth in the new millennium, thanks to the city ‘s commitment to water ecology requlation only adds to its statureand renewed sheen. Through the clarity of the glassy water, one can see the gathering potential of the city’s future The meandering course of the river provides an ideal route for tourists who hope to get a convenient fish-eye view of the southwest side of the city’s bustling Xiangzhou District. An afternoon stroll along the delightful banks-in any kind of weather(but ideally stormy, speaking from our recent experiences)-provides all sorts of insights and revelations regarding the relationship between people and their”river.
A 1, 387-meter span opened to traffic in 2017, the quaint Baishi Bridge, immersed in dark clouds gathering and billowing overhead, feels at first sight like a mirage resembling the London Bridge.
We are all deeply connected to the land where we grew up but, if a river runs through it, like a seam of emotional gold, it attaches to you in a way that is deeperyet. A river that runs through a city, remaining essentially the same despite all thechanges that surround it over the years, has always got a whiff of magic about it. In the 1992 movie, A River Runs Through It, a young Brad Pitt is enchanted by the river running through his home town, and his family’s story is woven around it. Near the end of the movie, his brother returns as an old man and, discovering that most of the people from his youth are gone, he is simultaneously haunted and comforted by those waters. Indeed, to have a river to come back to and be haunted by for life is a blessing as all Zhuhai people may tell you Streaming eastward from the southeast side of Wugui Mountain in Zhongshan Cit nto the territory of Zhuhai, the Qianshan River steers southward abruptly when reaching the Zhuhai Bridge, as if giving way to some kind of spell. The undercurrents turn wilder as the river bumps into Macao, where the waters roll westward before determinedly hurrying off into the South China Sea Fengshui experts reason that Fenghuang mountain is the”provider”of Zhuhai(using fengshui terminology), and that the Qianshan River therefore brings fortune to the city. But the flow of fortune is “intercepted”by Macao at the estuary where the river joins the sea. Well, in the final analysis, Macao may be judged innocent; the way the two cities are connected is a natural and mutually beneficial creation that eventually puts all covetous thoughts to shame. Fortune”, however, does not seem sufficient to describe what the river has brought to the city. the calm waters may seem benign now, but rewind several decades and the scene greeting you would be entirely different. The bulk of massive urban redevelopment and sweeping westward expansion in the wake of Special Economic Zone status being granted in 1980 hingedon this stretch of the river, with developments that profoundly changed the social fabric on both banks. Long serving as a vital source for irrigation and drinking water, the site sizzled with a new sort of activity when a pumping station was launched there in 1980 to direct water into Macao for the city’s water supply Once upon a time, Qianshan River was also the city’s urban and countryside watershedFrolicking and catching fish in the rapids is a fond part of the childhood memory of the older generation there. When the Nanping Bridge opened for traffic in 1987, villagers living in beishan up the northern reaches of the river, returned home carrying gongs and”lions”after a hilarious day celebrating the opening of the 532 meter span. With the distance between their rural homeland and the “city lifeacross the river being shortened overnight, it was time to say goodbye to ramshackle ferries for commuting the bridge completed its mission on april 15, 2018, and is being replaced by an eight-lane passage, but the gurgling sound of water is still a reminder of the toil and industry that helped make this part of zhuhai the beating heart of city life that it is today.
In the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s，the rapids of the river became further tamed and shrunken amidst the headlong rush of urbanization，bringing more transportation conveniences and amenities to the life of the residents on the west bank of the river and indeed the wider community.With a bridge network taking shape，west bank villagers no longer had to ride their old bikes to the Qianshan Dock and await a bumpy ferry ride to the”city”on the other side of the river for the weekend”brunch feast.
Arrive on the banks some stormy day，and the view from the Qianshan Bridge，not far from the Guangzhou-Zhuhai Intercity Railway Station，is the river’s strangely unaccountable bend that seems oddly inbetween，as it eventually blends into the old town sprawl in the north.The quaint Baishi Bridge，immersed in dark clouds gathering and billowing overhead，feels at first sight like a mirage resembling the London bridge The gusts gain momentum with each passing second.You might feel noticeable changes in mood and the heart may be filled with a nostalgic kind of joy.Pull over to the side to inspect a particularly twinkling stretch of glassy water；you almost feel whisked away to another province，time or country Walk further southward from the Baishi Bridge，and the vista opens up as the river widens into the skylines of Macao in the distance.Even further southward along thebank，the water becomes a little more fierce，as if to brace up for a new territory Macao.The southern tip of the waterway is a prime viewing spot to take in the spectacular neon jungle of the”sleepless Las Vegas of the Orient once so close but so untouchable–now an easy walk away.
Today，the west riverfront that was once a vast unspoiled wilderness has been attractively remodeled with neat，wide decking for walkers and a forest of luxury river view condo complexes connected with chic malls and a handful of exuberant parkland.
On the east side the time-honored Qianshan River Construction Materials market and the Xiawan Night Market-a hot venue among the city’s night-owls-await to send you on a sentimental journey through the area’s inviting history if you can tear yourself away from the river front.As you make your way off the riverside path towards the depths of the riverfront residences，the surrounding flora close in around you in a scene that would be reminiscent of a Grimm brothers fairytale The river is not a river”in the strict sense of the word after it passes the changsheng Bridge（literally prosperity bridge），opened in 2003，in the southernmost portion of the route.The view from the bridge is dominated by the glistening facade of the Grand Lisboa casino，feeling close enough to touch.People living in one of the high rises in this neighborhood can relish the spectacle of the annual Macao International Fireworks Festival by just looking out of the window.
