Discover China

Tai’er Zhuang, a city in Shandong Province, is renowned for a successful campaign against the Japanese invaders in 1938. Now the city has a new tourism attraction – an Ancient Town. The Town has so far created 80,000 jobs and has helped raise the city from the least economically-active to the second most active one in the Province. Step inside and find out more in the CNTV Culture Express story Historic town reinvented in Shandong Province.

In the China Daily life article Singing the praises of Xibaipo Mike Peters writes that a tour of the revolutionary sites of Hebei province ideally takes in Xibaipo Museum, an interactive guide to China’s civil war, Ranzhuang’s Underground Tunnel Museum account of the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, and the military base of Handan – leaving time for the attractions of Baiyangdian Lake and Goddess Nuwa’s Temple as a natural counterpoint to history.

In the further China Daily article The light at the end of the tunnels of war, Angela Shen writes that visiting the Underground Tunnel Museum in Ranzhuang is easily one of the most stimulating ways to experience China’s War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945).

Shenyang is most famous for being the birthplace of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the last dynasty of China. The city now boasts a comprehensive industrial system – hailed by many as the “Ruhr of the East” – and the capital of Liaoning province has developed into a modern and prosperous metropolis. The China Daily article Fit for royalty profiles some of Shenyang’s most attractive places – Shenyang Imperial Palace, Zhongjie Street, Nanguan Catholic Church, Qipan Mountain and North Imperial Tomb.

Words of wisdom have flowed through the streets of Handan, located in Hebei province, for thousands of years. There are more than 3,000 famous Chinese chengyu (four-word idioms) that are still widely used in modern conversations, scholars attribute the source of more than 1,500 chengyu to Handan. Places to see include Wu Ling Cong Tai three-story terrace, Huangliangmeng town, Wahuang Palace, Daming county and Jingniang Lake. Find out more in the China Daily article City of the idiom.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1911 Revolution, which began with the Wuchang Uprising on 10 October 1911. The great revolution led by Dr. Sun Yat-sen led to the collapse of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and brought an end to the imperial rule in China. Learn more in the CNTV Special Feature 100th Anniversary of 1911 Revolution.