A hidden viewing platform by West Lake, offering some other perspectives of West Lake

🌟 Quanzhou West Lake Park: The healing backyard of a thousand-year-old ancient city 📜 The healing history of Minnan water charm "Gather your strength to nurture yourself; it's more worthwhile than changing others." — This proverb suddenly took on a vivid meaning while standing on the wooden boardwalk of Quanzhou West Lake Park. Established in 1996, this urban park is actually an "emotional container" holding a millennium of Minnan wisdom. The park's site was originally a low-lying, flood-prone marshland, part of the "Sunjiang" water area during the Song Dynasty. Ancient people built the "Yanpu Dai" water conservancy project here, transforming the wild forces of nature into gentle nourishment for all living things, much like how modern people convert internal struggles into self-healing energy. 🏯 The healing philosophy hidden in the covered bridges and waterside pavilions 1️⃣ Citong Pavilion This five-story ancient-style building is named after Quanzhou’s nickname, "Citong City." From the pavilion, you can see both Qingyuan Mountain and modern skyscrapers. The couplet inside the pavilion reads, "Lake light and mountain scenery all enter the painting; bird songs and floral fragrance always bring spring," revealing the Quanzhou people's lifestyle aesthetic of "30% viewing the scenery, 70% savoring the charm." On sunny days, elders often practice Nanyin music here, with the sounds of strings and pipes carrying the lingering charm of the Tang and Song dynasties. 2️⃣ Twenty-Four Bend Bridge This winding stone bridge, like the twists and turns of life, connects the lake island. The railings are carved with reliefs of figures from Quanzhou’s overseas trade history. When crossing, take a close look at the Zheng He treasure ship patterns; this famous navigator’s departure port, Houzhu Harbor, is only 15 kilometers away. After heavy rain, the bridge surface forms a natural mirror, reflecting the Minnan red brick buildings as a "Water Palace Museum." 3️⃣ Peach Blossom Island In spring, you might encounter art students sketching by the ancient-style waterwheel; their paintings of the Casuarina trees always carry a Monet-like play of light and shadow. On the island’s west side, Tinghe Pavilion is an excellent spot to observe Quanzhou’s "slow life": in the early morning, grandmothers set up a "doorstep tea stall" on stone benches, selling a pot of Tieguanyin tea for five yuan paired with three mung bean cakes. The tea fragrance carries the Minnan spirit of "win or lose, just smile." 🌿 The contemporary "emotional water conservancy project" The bald cypress forest in the park’s northern area is the most wonderful sight — the tree roots are half-submerged in water but grow straight up toward the sky, much like modern people maintaining vitality under urban pressure. At dusk, you can often see office workers in shirts strolling here; the sound of their leather shoes on the wooden boardwalk seems like a metronome for self-reconciliation. Quanzhou West Lake Park, by its very existence, tells us: healing doesn’t require traveling far. Along the waterfront of this thousand-year-old ancient city, every corner hides a dock where the soul can find harbor.