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The Peoples Republic of China is situated in eastern Asia, bounded to the east by the Yellow Sea, East China Sea, South China Sea and sharing borders with North Korea, Russia, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgystan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Burma, Laos, Vietnam, Macau and Hong Kong. The third largest country in the world, next to Canada and Russia, it has an area of one-fifteenth of the world's land mass. The border stretches over 22,000 kilometers on land and the coastline extends well over 18,000 kilometers.
There are 6,536 islands larger than 500 square metres, the largest is Taiwan and the second, Hainan. The South China Sea Islands are the southernmost island group of China.
China is a huge country of great cultural and ethnic diversities. The country is made up of 56 ethnic groups. The national language is Mandarin, but most of the 55 minority groups have their own language. O ne of the four oldest civilizations in the world, it has a written history of 4,000 years and boasts rich cultural relics and historical sites. It is the inventor of compass, paper, gunpowder and printing. The Great Wall, the Grand Canal and the Karez irrigation system s are three great ancient engineering projects built 2,000 years ago, now the symbols of the rich cultural heritage of the Chinese nation. China has gone through a long history of primitive society, slavery society, feudal society and semi-feudal semi-colonial society and the present socialist society.
The land has everything from Mount Everest, the highest mountain in the world to deserts, mighty rivers like the Yangzi, caves, Imperial ruins, the famous Great Wall, the historic Silk Road, Macau, Taiwan and of course the shopper's paradise of Hong Kong.
Beijing has been the capital city of China since 1057 B.C. Subsequently, the city has gone by the names of Ji, Zhongdu, Dadu, and finally Beijing when the Ming Dynasty Emperor ChengZu chose the name in 1421. Beijing was also known as Peking by the Western world before 1949. With a population of about 12 million, Beijing is an independently administered municipal district situated in the northeastern part of the country. With so much to see in the city (The Forbidden City and Palace Museum, Imperial Gardens, Great Wall, Ming Tombs, Tiananmen, numerous museums, the list goes on and on) a guided tour is a good idea.
Hong Kong is a dazzling blend of east and west. Traditionally, the gateway to China, the bustling harbour has a mix of ocean going liners and Chinese junks, tall skyscrapers and narrow cobblestoned streets, shops and markets where anything can be bought, this city is not only a delight for shoppers but also for food lovers, with mouth-watering smells on every street corner and every type of food imaginable. Hong Kong is an experience of the senses.
Shanghai, located on the East China coast, just to the south of the Yangtze River mouth, is China's largest city, largest port and largest industrial base. Shanghai was the first China coast port to be opened to Western trade in 1843.
Shanghai in olden days was such an attractive place for sailors that ship's captains often had difficulty putting together a crew when it came time to leave port. So they would go down to the bar district, drug likely candidates and haul them back to the ship. When the sailors awoke, they found themselves on the high seas. The term "to be shanghai-ed" grew out of this practice, meaning to be carried away against one's will. Nowadays this city with numerous bars, restaurants and shops, is still attracting visitors, the best times being Spring and Autumn as temperatures can be extreme in Winter and Summer.