A total of 5,000 hikers from across the country explored the ancient charm of Quanzhou in Southeast China's Fujian province on Dec 16.

The starting point of the ancient Maritime Silk Road in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Quanzhou is an important harbor and renowned historical and cultural city in the province.

In 2014, it was selected as the permanent host city of the Maritime Silk Road International Art Festival, a national level cultural program under the umbrella of the Belt and Road Initiative, a key project that aims to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along ancient trade routes.

The event, an important part of the ongoing festival in the city, enabled more people to get to know the unique cultural charm of the ancient city through hiking around in it.

The 5,000 participants were spread across three separate races, with 500 braving the 50-kilometer-course, 2,500 taking part in the classic course (25 km), and 2,000 attending the mini course (6 km).

In addition to the old residential communities, the race routes also passed by many scenic spots in the city, including Fuwen Temple, Kaiyuan Temple and Lingshan Islamic Cemetery.

Hikers explore the ancient charm of Quanzhou in Southeast China's Fujian province on Dec 16. [Photo/Xinhua]