Taiwan's slow boat to China takes 50 years

A Taiwanese boat has arrived in the Chinese port of Xiamen on the first legal and direct crossing from Taiwan in more than 50 years.

The ship travelling from Matsu, a second Taiwanese island just off China's southeastern coast, arrived almost simultaneously, Taiwanese media reports.

The ships are the first to cross legally from outlying Taiwanese islands since Taiwan and China separated in a civil war that ended in 1949.

Taiwan relaxed a ban on travel between the two islands and China on New Year's Day.

Many Taiwanese hope that the relaxing of travel restrictions from the two islands will ease tensions with China.

Earlier, a large crowd celebrated as the Tai Wu ship left Kinmen for the Chinese mainland.