Why it looks like this

Xiamen (Amoy) was one of the five ports opened to foreign trade in 1842, and its historic core grew on an island facing the sea. Across a 600-metre channel lies Gulangyu, where consulates, merchants and missionaries built villas along winding lanes — an island that still allows no motor vehicles, reached only by ferry, and famous for having produced generations of Chinese pianists.

Gulangyu was UNESCO-listed in 2017. Modern Xiamen bridged and tunnelled its island to the mainland, ringed itself with a seaside ring road, and became one of China's most liveable cities — but its heart remains two islands of arcaded streets.