Guangzhou
Located near the South China Sea, Guangzhou has long been known as the "southern gate of China." As the alternate terminus of the Maritime Silk Road, Guangzhou has always been an important port city for China's foreign trade. During the Tang and Song dynasties, Guangzhou was a world-renowned oriental port with a special agency tasked with managing foreign trade matters. During the Ming and Qing dynasties, Guangzhou was the only window for trade and cultural exchange between East and West. The thirteen trading houses ("the Thirteen Hongs in Canton"), the only legal institutions designated by the Qing government to specialize in foreign trade, developed direct trade relations with major countries in Asia, Europe, and the Americas. Guangzhou was the conduit for most Western technologies, industries, religions, and cultures to spread to China. Chinese artefacts, ideas, and culture also traveled from Guangzhou to other parts of the world.
Since ancient times, Guangzhou has been the political, economic, and cultural center of Guangdong and the wider Lingnan region (south of the Five Ridges). A gathering point for Western envoys, missionaries, and merchants to China, Guangzhou was a vanguard for welcoming Western civilizations and facilitating Sino-foreign cultural exchange and assimilation.
广州
广州，濒临南海，素有中国“南大门”之称。作为海上丝绸之路的起点城市，广州一直是中国对外商贸的重要港口城市。唐宋时期，广州是世界著名的东方大港，开设了管理外贸事务的专门机构。明清时期，广州是东西方贸易往来和文化交流的唯一窗口，广州十三行作为清政府指定专营对外贸易的唯一合法机构，与亚洲、欧美主要国家都有直接贸易关系。西方的科技、工业、宗教和文化大多经由广州向中国传播。来自中国的器物、思想、文化等也通过广州走向世界。
自古以来，广州是广东乃至岭南区域政治、经济和文化中心。广州集散了来华的西方使臣、传教士、商人等，成为中国接纳西方文明的先行地和中外文化交流融合的枢纽。
