Guangdong province made history in 1983 when a garden designed in Guangzhou won two gold medals at the International Garden Exhibition in Munich, Germany. It was the first time a garden designed in China had ever won a global prize.

The winning design was a unique landscape garden expressing the harmony between man and nature by creating an idealized miniature landscape. Southern Chinese cities are famous for the classical gardens dotted around them.

A replica of the history-making garden now stands inside Orchid Garden (Lanpu) at Jiefang North Road in Guangzhou. Fanghua Garden covers the west side of Orchid Garden, which occupies an area of 540 square meters.

Fanghua Garden epitomizes traditional Chinese garden design with its focus on water and integration of archways, pavilions, terraces, halls and boats. Flowers, trees and fences entwined with green plants make it possible to see scenery from all four seasons together in one place. Small bridges, stone rockeries and tranquil lakes also contribute to the garden's secluded atmosphere.

The debut of the garden on the international stage proved a great success at the time and was crowned as a "pearl" at the garden exhibition. Over 8 million visitors came for a look at its unique Chinese garden style and sophisticated architecture in 180 days.