MEIZHOU, Guangdong: Over 1,000 Taiwanese pilgrims flocked to southeast China's Fujian province this week for a religious festival, a rare instance of cross-strait cultural exchanges that threatens to be overshadowed by political tensions. On Meizhou island, home to a cluster of rural fishing villages, the deafening roar of firecrackers and gongs accompanied devotees of the sea goddess Mazu, a folk deity worshipped by millions in Taiwan and across southern China's coastal communities. The island,