Quick Facts
Capital: Bejing
Location: China is situated in eastern Asia on the western shore of
the Pacific Ocean, with an area of 9.6 million square kilometres.
Language : Chinese is commonly used in the modern China. It is one
of the five working languages designated by the United Nations. The majority
of the 55 other ethnic groups have their own languages.
Climate: China is characterized by a continental climate. The
latitudes span nearly 50 degrees, its southern part is in the tropical and
subtropical zones, and its northern part near the frigid zones. The northern
part of Heilongjiang province has long winters but no summers; while Hainan
Island has long summers but no winters. The Huaihe River valley is marked by
distinctive seasonal changes, but it is spring all year round in the south
of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. China's high tundra zone is situated in
Qinghai-Tibet, where the temperature is low in all four seasons.
Currency: Renminbi.
Wildlife Of China
China is one of the countries with the greatest diversity of wildlife in
the world. There are more than 4,400 species of vertebrates, more than 10
percent of the world's total. There are nearly 500 animal species, 1,189
species of birds, more than 320 species of reptiles and 210 species of
amphibians. Wildlife peculiar to China includes such well-known animals as
the giant panda, golden-haired monkey, South China tiger, brown-eared
pheasant, white-flag dolphin, Chinese alligator, and red-crowned crane,
totaling more than 100 species.
Stacking Your Postcards
The Great Wall of China
The Great Wall of China is one of the greatest wonders of the world. It
winds its way westward over the vast territory of China from the bank of the
Yalu River and ends at the foot of snow-covered Qilianshan and Tianshan
mountains. It is seldom that we see such a gigantic project in China or
elsewhere in the world.
Summer Palace
Located in the suburb of Beijing, The Summer Palace was formerly an
imperial garden and palace for the Qing emperors. It is one of the four
famous gardens in China. It is a big place and now divided into three
sections, political, living and sightseeing. The Old Summer Palace and the
Summer Palace are both historical sites to all Chinese. The palaces remind
all Chinese about Opium War and the fact that the foreign powers, including
Britain, America, Japan, German and France, once burned down and rubbed the
palaces at the turn into 20th century .
The Silk Road
Two thousand years ago, the threads of commerce were established and the
Silk Road connected Xi'an to the Middle East and Europe, opening China for
the first time to the Western world. It was in 138 BC that the Han emperor
Wudi sent an emissary westward, not for trade, but to seek allies to defend
China against the Huns. From that time until the 14th century, caravans
carrying spices, fruits, and all manner of goods from the West routinely
crossed the deserts in search of silk, transforming forever China's frontier
towns into cosmopolitan trading centres.
Modern day Marco Polos may follow the path of these ancient caravans all
the way from Xi'an, in China's interior, to Kashgar near the former Soviet
border (the present border of the republics of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan).
Numerous tour companies offer various Silk Road Tours that include one or
more of the major cities (Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou or Hong Kong) and
then venture out across western China, where the majority of people still
follow a way of life largely unchanged since the days of early traders.
Tours along the Silk Road pass through areas where 12 of China's 56 ethnic
minorities still live. Unlike the caravans of the past however, today you
can travel in comfort by air, train and motor coach.
The Tiananmen Square
Tiananmen Square is a modern creation, China being a land where large
public gathering places were not traditionally built. Its construction broke
down walls of the Forbidden City to make way for the large thoroughfare,
Chang'an Jie. Previously Tiananmen Square was occupied by imperial offices
which were inside the Forbidden City and connected the Temple of Heaven to
Qianmen and the palace.
Destination Guides
Beijing
As the capital of the People's Republic of China, Beijing is the nation's
political, economic, cultural and educational center as well as being the
most important center in China for international trade and communications.
It has been the heart and soul of politics and society throughout its long
history. By the time of the Warring States Period (476 BC - 221 BC), it was
serving as the capital of the Yan Kingdom. Because of its role in the life
and growth of China, there is an unequalled wealth available for travelers
to discover as you explore Beijing's ancient past and enjoy its exciting
21st Century world. In 2008 when Beijing hosts the Olympic Games, Beijing
will show the world something so special that everyone will be awestruck by
Beijing's latest accomplishments combined with its ancient history.
Chongqing City
Based around a crowded, comma-shaped peninsula at the junction of the
Yangzi and Jialing rivers, CHONGQING is southwestern China's dynamo, its
largest city both in scale and population. Formerly part of Sichuan Province
and now the heavily industrialized core of Chongqing Municipality - which
stretches east from Dazu to the Hubei border - the city is also a busy port
, whose location, 2400km upstream from Shanghai at the meeting point between
eastern river traffic and overland trade routes with Tibet and Burma, has
given Chongqing an enviable commercial acumen. It oozes the atmosphere of a
typical waterfront city: dirty, seedy and not particularly attractive, but
bursting with life.
Based around a crowded, comma-shaped peninsula at the junction of the
Yangzi and Jialing rivers, CHONGQING is southwestern China's dynamo, its
largest city both in scale and population. Formerly part of Sichuan Province
and now the heavily industrialized core of Chongqing Municipality - which
stretches east from Dazu to the Hubei border - the city is also a busy port
, whose location, 2400km upstream from Shanghai at the meeting point between
eastern river traffic and overland trade routes with Tibet and Burma, has
given Chongqing an enviable commercial acumen. It oozes the atmosphere of a
typical waterfront city: dirty, seedy and not particularly attractive, but
bursting with life.
Dubhuang
Dunhuang is the hometown of flying Apsaras. So the tourist symbol of this
city is two lithe and graceful flying Apsarases inlaid in double rings with
the words of Dunhuang Tourism both in Chinese and in Dnglish. These words in
the double rings symbolize that the international and domestic tourist
businesses for Dunhuang help each other forward and develop together in
order to make this city world-famous. Flying Apsaras is the Xiangying God in
Buddhism and takes charge of welcoming and seeing off the visitors. It
symbolizes the profound cultural connotation. The Dunhuang tourism is a high
level one in conjunction with culture. The ardent and honest local people of
this place will welcome all visitors of China and foreign countries. The
slowly up-going flying Apsarases symbolize that the Dunhuang tourism will
become more and more prosperous and thriving
Nanning
Nanning, with a glorious tradition, is remembered as a heroic city in the
minds of Chinese people. For thousands of years, the city has undergone
countless tests in battle. In the old days, Su Jian, head officer of this
region in song Dynasty, once led the army and people throughout Yongzhou
City to resist the Vietnamese aggressors, who were waging war against China.
In modern times, the famous generals Liu Yongfu and Feng Zicai bravely
safeguarded the region against French aggressors in a bid to defend their
homeland. Moreover, the city has also witnessed glorious deeds by locals as
following: the 1911 Revolution, the May 4th Movement in 1919, dispatching
troops to aid the Northern Expeditionary Armies, the founding of the Seventh
and Eighth Armies of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, the Baise
Uprising paving the way for establishing the Zuojiang and Youjiang
revolutionary bases, the Longzhou Uprising and the bloody Kunlunguan
Campaign which gave a heavy blow to the Japanese aggressors. The local
people have added an illustrious chapter to the history of defending the
homeland and pursuing social progress by safeguarding the South Gate of the
motherland and participating in the socialist construction of New China
