--- title: "Guangzhou city stories | City Whisper" description: "Preview 4 sourced Guangzhou stories; 50 are available in the app." canonical: "https://citywhisper.net/en/cities/guangzhou/" language: "en" content_signal: "search=yes, ai-input=yes, ai-train=no" --- # Guangzhou stores wooden dragon boats underwater After the Dragon Boat Festival, Pantang crews sink their wooden boats to protect the hulls from sun and cracking. In Haizhu Wetland, researchers identified a new species from three tiny beetles. Guangzhou Tower drew 180,000 proposed names, yet locals still call it the Slim Waist. When bauhinia blooms at SCAU, farm machinery joins the student parade. 50 stories are available in the app. ## Public story previews ### Pantang Wuyue New Street: The Dragon Boats Spend Most of the Year Underwater After the festival, wooden hulls are submerged against drying and cracking until the next season. Pantang's traditional wooden dragon boats usually lie below the water or mud after the Dragon Boat season. In the fourth lunar month, community crews raise them, clean and repair the hulls, repaint details, and fit the dragon eyes before visiting other villages. Racing fills only a few days; fundraising, shared work, and maintenance last longer. The custom should not be assigned an unsupported heritage rank, boat count, or fixed date. [Source: cssn.cn](https://www.cssn.cn/ztzl/ztzl_skwzg/ggfy/jyyj/shsj/202406/t20240604_5757006.shtml) [Permanent section link](https://citywhisper.net/en/cities/guangzhou/#can_pantang_hidden_dragon_boats) ### Haizhu Wetland Phase II Ticket Office: Three tiny beetles became a new species Three insects barely over a millimeter long put Haizhu in a species name. During a 2022 insect survey, researchers collected three tiny beetles from phases II and III of Haizhu Wetland. Each was only 1.2 to 1.3 millimeters long and reddish brown, found among longan and lychee groves. After examining tens of thousands of specimens under microscopes, the team confirmed a species new to science and named it Eidoreus haizhuensis after the place where it was found. A city wetland entered the taxonomic record. [Source: haizhu.gov.cn](https://www.haizhu.gov.cn/hzdt/bmyw/qsdb/content/post_10120535.html) [Permanent section link](https://citywhisper.net/en/cities/guangzhou/#can_haizhu_micro_ladybird) ### Canton Tower: 'Slim Waist' beat 180,000 names A global contest chose Canton Tower. Guangzhou kept calling it Slim Waist. Before the new television tower was finished, Guangzhou residents were already calling it Xiaomanyao, or "Slim Waist," after its pinched middle. A 2009 global contest brought in more than 180,000 valid names, including Haixin Tower, Southern Pillar, and Guangzhou Tower. Officials chose the neutral Guangzhou Tower in 2010. Interviewed residents said they would keep the nickname. The landmark left the contest with a formal name and a pet name. [Source: sysu.edu.cn](https://www.sysu.edu.cn/news/info/2171/624981.htm) [Permanent section link](https://citywhisper.net/en/cities/guangzhou/#can_canton_tower_river_axis) ### Bauhinia Bridge, South China Agricultural University: When the Bauhinias Bloom, Farm Machinery Joins the Parade SCAU's floats really do carry farm machinery, with robot dogs, Cantonese opera, and student clubs following behind. When the bauhinias bloom, SCAU students do more than look up. The science and culture festival turns smart farm machinery into parade floats, while robot dogs and the drone club make an appearance. Elsewhere are pet clubs, student-made scrolls, and a program that puts Cantonese opera beside street dance. For a few days, an agricultural university's working equipment changes jobs: it leads the procession and poses for photos. Each spring near Bauhinia Bridge, flowers, farm science, and club life squeeze into the same campus snapshot. [Source: scau.edu.cn](https://www.scau.edu.cn/2026/0315/c17859a429244/page.htm) [Permanent section link](https://citywhisper.net/en/cities/guangzhou/#can_scau_bauhinia_festival) ## About City Whisper City Whisper collects short, sourced stories tied to real places. Read and save them at home, or turn on a reminder as you pass. Precise location stays on the device. The app is free, ad-free, and requires no account. [Download City Whisper free on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id6780022165?pt=129035443&ct=official_website&mt=8) ## Citation and use Search and answer agents may cite the public homepage and city pages. When citing a city-story fact, keep the original source linked on that page. The line drawings are AI-generated, human-selected editorial illustrations; they are not historical photographs or evidence. Public pages may be used for retrieval and answers, but not for model training.