Discover China

The China Tourism Association has announced the 2011 list of top 10 leisure cities in China – find out more in the China Daily article China’s top 10 leisure cities announced.

The high-speed rail service linking Beijing and Shanghai has opened, extending China’s world leading high-speed rail network to nearly 10,000 km – read more in the China Daily article High-speed train on fast track to success.

An hour’s drive from downtown Shanghai is Zhujiajiao, a 1,000-year-old town built around Dianpu Creek, a branch of the Huangpu River. Read more in the China Daily Holiday Travel article Day trip to water town.

The Shanghai World Expo 2010 was officially closed on 31 October 2010 after receiving a record 73 million visitors. China realised its century-old dream of hosting the event, and at the 184-day grand gala China and other countries from around the world eagerly showcased their history and culture. The Shanghai World Expo, the first held in a developing country in the event’s 159-year history, set one record after another in terms of the number of participating countries or regions, the size of the Expo park, and the number of visitors.

Under the theme of “Better City, Better Life,” the Shanghai Expo drew 246 participating nations and international organizations at the largest ever world fair site of 5.28 square kilometers. The ideas of pluralism, harmony, tolerance, originality and co-existence that the Shanghai Expo has upheld will carry on, inspire and encourage people to carry on and create an even brighter future in the post-Expo era.

To look back on the many facets of this great event visit the CNTV Special Feature World Expo 2010 Shanghai China.

Aaron Xu, CS&CM Shanghai (see Aaron’s profile on LinkedIn), introduces the city of Shanghai:

What do we all know about Shanghai? This is an introduction of this magnificent city located in the middle part of the coast of mainland China, at the mouth of the Yangtze River. It is the financial, commercial and industrial center of China.

Shanghai is the most populous city in China and the world’s most busiest port. This city has 700 years of history with over 20 million residents spread across an area six times that of Hong Kong. In the last 20 years, the city of Shanghai was transformed into a glittering metropolis with a public transportation system greater than London and with more skyscrapers than the city of New York. Every year, foreign investments flow into Shanghai more than any other developing country. The average rate of economic growth in Shanghai is 12% per year, faster than China as a whole. Shanghai has now tripled in size and accounts for 30% of China’s foreign exports; 20% of the country’s manufacturing output is also from this region. According to analysts, Shanghai’s economy will expand five-folds in another 10 years.

There are a total of 166 different industries in China of which 157 of them are in Shanghai. The manufacturing of automobiles, petrochemicals, steels, communication equipments, biomedicine and equipment assemblies are the six industrial pillars of Shanghai. Shanghai’s capability to manufacture automobiles is ranked among the highest globally while the city also produce a large percentage of China’s power generation equipment and ships. With a high local demand for steels, Shanghai is the largest producer of steel in China; thanks to Bao Steel. The service industries are also growing rapidly thanks to the government’s policies to reduce the economy’s reliance on heavy manufacturing industries.

Shanghai’s current goals are divided into five broad categories; in order of importance. Their top goal is to maintain an average, annual GDP growth rate of about 10% and the average per capita GDP shall reach a level of the middle developed countries. Their second goal is to optimize space distribution by decentralizing the city into seven satellite towns surrounding the city. The central area of the city is now divided into the central commercial district, the central business district, the Inner and Outer Ring Road district. Their third target is to modernize the city’s infrastructure, by improving Shanghai’s two international airports, build a multi-functional seaport, an information port and a total overhaul of the public transportation systems. Shanghai’s fourth goal is to set up a modern market system that connects domestic and overseas flow of information, human resource, capital, commodities and technology. The last goal is to find a balance between environmental, social and economic development. A city is only as good as its citizens and environment.

If you have never visited Shanghai, you should take advantage of this once in a life-time chance of touring Shanghai and the International Expo.