RWANDA: RwandAir Goes To Guangzhou

RwandAir Monday launched its long-awaited flights to the Chinese city of Guangzhou.

It was ecstasy as the Rwandan national carrier’s Airbus A330 took off from the Kigali International Airport at exactly 00:52a.m, embarking on a 15-hour flight to China’s third largest city.

The inaugural flight on the new Kigali-Guangzhou route had been fully booked by mid-day Monday.

It had 234 passengers onboard, including State Minister for Transport Eng. Jean de Dieu Uwihanganye and RwandAir’s chief executive Yvone Makolo.

RwandAir will be operating three flights to what is now its third Asian destination – after Dubai and Mumbai.

The flights will be making stopovers in India’s commercial capital of Mumbai before making their way to Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport in Guangdong province.

Guangzhou becomes RwandAir’s 28th destination and comes after the airline launched flights between Kigali and DR Congo’s capital of Kinshasa in April.

A 29th route to Israel’s city of Tel Aviv is on the horizon with the national carrier expected to open that route next week.

Guangzhou, known as the Canton City, is a port city northwest of Hong Kong on the Pearl River.

It is one of the major shopping destinations for merchants, is known for popular tourist attractions such as the iconic Canton Tower and Guangzhou Chimelong Tourist Resort.

Zhang Wenping, the director of the political section at the Chinese Embassy in Rwanda, said the flights will make travel between the two countries shorter and more convenient.

It has been taking up to 24 hours to travel from Kigali to Guangzhou, but the new route will reduce this time, she said.

She added that RwandAir’s flights will make it easier for Chinese and Rwandan businesses and tourists to travel either direction, thus boosting economic activity between the two countries.

I think this will be a catalyst for stronger tourism relations between China and Rwanda, she said. We have noted that more and more Chinese are coming to Rwanda and can only expect more to come in the future especially now the new route makes travel easier.”

In July last year Rwanda signed a raft of agreements with Beijing during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s state visit to Rwanda – the first visit to the central African nation by any Chinese Head of State – to step up bilateral ties across various sectors, including civil aviation transport.

Later in November, the country also signed three deals with China’s leading e-commerce conglomerate Alibaba Group to help scale up trade and tourism ties between the two countries.

The development is expected to boost Rwanda’s reputation as a top investment destination, with Chinese companies initiating more than 21 projects, worth US$420 million, between 2006 and 2008, according to Rwandan government official figures.

In Rwanda, most Chinese investors are involved in tourism, mining, hospitality and construction, among other sectors.

Guangzhou, a major source of merchandise for the African market, including Rwanda, is regarded as China’s transport, industrial and commercial hub.

Benjamin Gasamagera, a Rwandan businessman and former head of the country’s private sector umbrella body, is one of the many Rwandan traders who deal in goods imported from China.

He says the Kigali-Guangzhou flights will make it easier for people like him to travel and do business between the two countries.

This is exciting for us because some of the biggest problems we have been facing recently are delays and cancellation of flights. There was no predictability of our travels and this was hurting business, he said.

With RwandAir, it will be easier to be certain about when to travel and when to reach to the final destination. Even if there are delays and cancellation, it is easier to find out than using a foreign airline, he added.

Figures show that Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport was China's third-busiest and world's 13th-busiest airport by passenger traffic in 2017, handling 65,806,977 passengers that year alone.


Tourism Observer

RWANDA: RwandAir Goes To Guangzhou In China Begining June 18th 2019

National carrier RwandAir is expected to commence flights to Guangzhou, the provincial capital of Guangdong and the third largest city in China, effective June 18, 2019.

RwandAir will fly to Guangzhou three times a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.

Guangzhou will be tagged to the existing Mumbai route and will be operated by Airbus A330, the national carrier said.

The long-haul flight will bear features such as triple class cabin and equipped with state-of-the-art technology, Wi-Fi onboard, inflight entertainment and extra legroom in an attempt to make the long flight bearable.

Yvonne Manzi Makolo, the Chief Executive Officer of RwandAir, said that the route was informed by the growing traffic between Africa and China in the recent past.

With the increasing volume of trade between African countries and China, the need to meet the high demand of businessmen and traders travelling between Africa and Guangzhou is strongly felt.

The new route will open new business opportunities and increase RwandaAir passenger and cargo traffic.

Guangzhou, popularly known as the Canton City, is an expansive port city northwest of Hong Kong on the Pearl River.

The city, which is one of the major shopping destinations for merchants, also features popular tourist attractions such as the iconic Canton Tower and Guangzhou Chimelong Tourist Resort, which offers an amusement park, international circus, water park, safari park, a bird park and a hotel.

Guangzhou will be RwandAir’s second destination in Asia following Mumbai, which has been operational since April, 2017.

This new route will extend RwandAir’s network to 28 destinations. Last month, the airline began flights to the Democratic Republic of Congo’s capital Kinshasa.

CHINA: Guangzhou Is The City of Flowers

Guangzhou Botanical Garden
Guangzhou is filled with gardens, both large and small, private and municipal, and a population whose green fingers have earned the city the moniker ‘City of Flowers’.

Underneath the soaring torsional structure of the Canton Tower that dominates the skyline, towering over the banks of Zhujiang River and overshadowing a city intersected by untamed rivers and pools of greenery, sprawling amongst busy streets, towers, temples and mosques.

Any trip must surely include an exploration of the most beautiful gardens in Guangzhou.

Liang’s Garden

Stroll freely in the Liang family gardens with its emerald waters, sculptured stones, little bridges and ancient calligraphy.

Explore the quiet pagodas and garden houses, built in the Qing dynasty by four local calligraphers – Liang Jiuzhang, Liang Airu, Liang Jiuhua and Liang Jiutu. Their peaceful legacy now sits walled by foliage for all to roam.

Million Sunflower Garden

Bringing a golden host to Xinken Town, China’s largest sunflower park holds 20 different varieties of sunflowers and other rare flowers.

Try to resist the bright-petaled faces, local symbols of hope and vitality, as you look out over 200,000 sunflowers, 20 varieties of pink, red, yellow, blue and white roses and a slight aside around 1,000 squirrels, adept in the art of shelling peanuts and handclapping.

Yuexiu Park

Scattered with romantic pavilions and monuments, this park is perfect for a day’s exploration. You can feed the resident fish in one of three green lakes encircled by trees, tucked away in the east, south and north.

You’ll also find flower gardens around the north lake and flower shows here in Spring and Autumn.

Keyuan Garden

One of four famous gardens dating back to the Qing dynasty – this neat courtyard is a cultural treasure with Lingnan architecture, snaking paths, carp-filled waters and sweet-smelling osmanthus shrubs.

Yu Yin Garden

Wrapped around the Yu Yin Mountain Villa, this winding garden features roofed walks, potted plants elegant pavilions, towers, halls, bridges and pools.

The serene atmosphere and manicured natural beauty have made it a favourite location for costume dramas.

Guangzhou Orchid Garden

In this unique garden, amongst the ponds, pagodas, creepers and bamboo, you’ll discover 10,000 potted orchids from the Parrot orchid to the song plum orchid and 300 other species of rare plant-life.

You can always wander amongst the ponds, sculptures, pagodas, bamboos and creepers after you’ve enjoyed the plant-life.

Guangzhou Botanical Garden

One of the largest of its kind in the world, the Guangzhou botanical garden spans 300 hectares and holds 6,000 different species of tropical and subtropical plants.

There are many interesting discoveries to be found here, including half-hidden tea, magnolia and azalea gardens and a humid tropical greenhouse.

Yuntai Garden

Perhaps the most popular of all the Flower City’s green spaces, this huge garden straddles Baiyun Mountain’s north entrance with a layout of artistic features and scenic spots beautified by 200 different species of rare flowers.

Qinghui Garden

Nestled in the built-up Shunde District, Qinghui is one of China’s cherished classical gardens. Wooded walks, calm waters, ancient works of calligraphy and shade-giving pavilions, this is a great place to unwind and escape the city bustle.

Baomo Garden

Finally, Baomo Garden in Zini Village is filled with traditional Lingnan architecture and works of art, including clay, porcelain, wood and stone carvings.

To get your nature-fix, seek out the koi carp in their limpid pools. You’ll also find tufts of water-foliage and a well-kept orchid garden.

Take advantage of the City of Flowers and explore the beautiful gardens of Guangzhou


Tourism Observer

CHINA: Canton Fair And The Popular Water Buses

Guangzhou is like a spring outing and is more interesting than participating in the exhibition online.The number of passengers who took buses and water buses reached 120,000 in five days, according to the city’s traffic department.

The most popular means of travel by Chinese and foreign exhibitors were the special water bus, the city tourist bus, or the Ruyue bus tours.

One trader of device accessories from Holland, Daan, who called himself "an old friend" of Canton Fair, was profuse in his praise of the water bus.

He said the boat took him directly to his hotel. During the river trip, he could view the Canton Tower, and his hour’s journey cost just a few yuan. Even during busy negotiations on board, he could drink Cantonese morning tea, eat dim sums and observe the scenery. He said the boat ride was convenient and comfortable and felt like poetry on the water.

Louis, who comes from New Zealand, prefers taking the city sightseeing bus. During the journey, he can enjoy the scenery and the landmarks of Guangzhou, including Canton Tower, Haixinsha Island, Yuntai Garden, Xinghai Concert Hall, Beijing Lu, Sun Yat-sen Memorial Hall, Shangxiajiu Pedestrian Street, and Chen Clan Academy.

He has a sketch book and composed pictures of the scenery as the bus passed various sites. The multiple languages offered on the bus enabled him to learn quickly about the scenery and history of Guangzhou.

Louis plans to use a computer with special effects when he returns home to make a travelogue of Guangzhou, that he can send to friends as souvenirs.

The Nansha International Cruise Home Port, currently under construction, is expected to open in 2019. Capable of accommodating 225,000-ton and 100,000-ton cruise ships, the port is projected to host 750,000 passengers per year, an official of the home port said.

The Nansha Cruise Terminal, located at the southernmost seashore of Guangzhou, opened service in January 2016 to cater to Chinese mainland travelers who have shown a growing interest in cruise travel.

The terminal launched 104 cruises carrying over 326,000 passengers last year. Those statistics helped catapult Nansha into China’s third-busiest cruise terminal in terms of annual passenger flow, after Shanghai and Tianjin.

Xu Manping, head of the School of Ship Engineering at Guangzhou Maritime University, said the city holds an edge in the cruise industry.

"Development of the cruise industry in an area depends on a number of factors, such as its climate and hinterland, which ensures a tourist base," he said. "But at the same time, sound facilities in ship manufacturing, maintenance and a developed transportation network are also essential for its development to ensure smooth operation of the whole business in the area. In this sense, Guangzhou has an edge."

The new Nansha Ferry Terminal and an extension of metro Line 4 will be constructed near the Nansha International Cruise Home Port, making it possible to arrive at most cities in the Pearl River Delta region within one hour.

As the first port open to the public in China, the home port will be equipped with high-end restaurants and duty-free shopping malls, as well as art exhibitions and displays. It will provide services not only for cruise visitors, but also for citizens living near the port, according to an official of the Nansha International Cruise Home Port.

After the bike sharing, car sharing is becoming popular in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen and other cities across China. Now a number of car sharing rental platforms are entering the Guangzhou market, among them are Yidu, Ur Car, Gofun Chuxing, Jiabei, and Dingdong Chuxing.

A newly established Car-sharing Special Committee of the Guangzhou Association of Highway Transportation recently issued China’s first service specification of self-discipline, includes two regulatory documents setting industry standards. One sets up service requirements for car sharing, while the other relates to credit management for the new operations. Both regulations are being enforced on a trial basis.

Guangzhou has 2,650 shared cars on the market as of today, but 13 electric car companies plan to put 20,400 cars on the road by the end of the year, according to data from the committee.

The committee will bundle the car sharing enterprises so that consumers only will need to pay a deposit once and then can use various types of sharing cars from different companies.

The companies also can share spaces for the cars, according to Cai Zhenbo, general manager of Guangdong Ding Dong Network Technology Co., Ltd, one of the committee members.

Gofun Chuxing is an app for renting cars. One customer tested the steps for renting a car on the app. After downloading the app and inputting a phone number for registration, you upload an identity card and driving license information and make a deposit. The process takes 10 to 15 minutes.

After the registration, the renter will have 15 free minutes to search for a car and unlock it. The system will recommend nearby vehicles. You then select a location for returning the car, click “Wo yao yong che” (I need to use the car), according to its location and license plate number, then click “Yi jian jie suo“ (Unlock by one key), and the door automatically opens.

The operator should buy insurance for the vehicle, according to the regulations.

The parking problem of car sharing has attracted much attention. The specifications stipulate that the operator should use electronic fences or other technological measures to prevent indiscriminate parking, and assure the safety and order of the city.

The specifications encourage the enterprises to use facial recognition, fingerprints and other biometric data to register and implement the actual driver verification system, to ensure that the actual driver of the vehicle is the registered renter.

All metro lines in Guangzhou will remain in operation an extra hour from April 29 to May 1 during the May Day holiday, according to metro officials.

They expect the average passenger flow to reach 8.6 million during the three-day holiday. The number of passengers on April 28 will exceed 9 million during rush hour. The peak surge of passengers will occur on May 1, when metro officials say 9.3 million people will ride the rails. Metro authorities have arranged 20 standby trains in cases of emergency.

About 125,000 extra tickets will be made available to ease the congestion of passengers during the holiday. Security checks will be implemented.

Passenger flow control and the temporary passing by of stations near tourist attractions, shopping centers and transportation hubs may be implemented when the trains are overcrowded. Authorities warned that passengers should plan travel by keeping abreast of the most recent information available.