Perched on the Liáodōng Peninsula and bordering the Yellow Sea, Dàlián

(大连) is one of the most relaxing and livable cities in the northeast, if not

all of China. Tree-lined hilly streets with manageable traffic and fresh air,

a surfeit of early 20th-century architecture and an impressive coastline,

complete with swimming beaches, are just some of its charms. Toss in a

decent restaurant-and-bar scene and serious shopping, and that frequent

Dàlián epithet, the ‘Hong Kong of the North’, looks like more than just

bluster.

The impression Dalian gives to the world is of a city of lawns, squares,

fountains and gardens. People say it is 'A City Built in Gardens'. Running

from downtown there is a 40-kilometer (25-mile) road known as Binhai

Lu winding along the coastline, northeast to southwest. This coastal area

is a paradise for beach vacationers. The famous scenic spots

of Bangchuidao Scenic Area, Tiger Beach Ocean Park, Jinshitan Scenic

Area and Xinghai Square are scattered around this region. In addition to

the stunning cliffs and scenic parks, numerous places along the coastline

are good for beach resort visitors and water sports lovers. Meanwhile,

you can sample the authentic Dalian-style seafood in a fisherman's house

at an incredibly low price. Besides, there is a large entertainment park

- Discoveryland Theme Park, inside Jinshitan Scenic Area, where you can

feel the excitement of adventures.

Zhongshan District, originally the colonial residential area of the

Russians and containing Nicholas Square, (Zhongshan Square) is a

bustling downtown area of the city. The square (Zhongshan Square) has

ten avenues radiating from it and is one of the most famous squares in the

city. Renmin Square, originally called Stalin Square and marked out to be

the administrative center of the Russian colonists, now houses the

government's financial institutions in Euro-style buildings. The old

tramlines built by Japanese colonists and left behind through the ages tell

the history of the city.

History: Dalian, compared to ancient capital cities such as Beijing,

Xi'an, Nanjing or Luoyang, is a young city with only a 100-year history.

Situated at the tip of China's Liaodong Peninsular, it is a trading and

financial center in northeastern Asia and has gained the name the 'Hong

Kong of Northern China'. The old name was first used by an official in

his memorial to Emperor Guangxu in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911)

referring to the present Dalian Gulf. In the early 20th century, the gulf

area developed quickly and expanded into a city of significant size and

importance. After the Opium War in 1840, the area was plunged into

warfare. At the end of the 1800s, Japanese and Russian invaders

successively set their feet on the Chinese mainland here. In 1894, Japan

invaded the Peninsular and in 1897 Russian troops occupied Lushun Port

(Port Arthur) and imposed upon the Qing government an unfair contract,

in which they ceded Lushun as a colony to Russia. Seven years later,

Lushun was again transferred to Japanese rule, when the Russians lost in

the Japanese-Russian War. From then on the city suffered from the

colonial rule of Russia and Japan for decades. It was as recently as 1955

that the Chinese government took over sovereignty of Lushun and the

hardest times in this city's history ended.

Both the Russian and Japanese colonists dreamed of establishing a city of

their own on this land in those colonial periods. A group of Russian

architects fascinated with French culture came to the city with their

construction blueprint of Paris and built all sorts of elegant squares with

artistic sculptures, lush lawns and western-style fountains. These formed

the architectural basis of the present city - taking squares as the center and

radiating outwards. Today, the stylish women troopers patrolling the

squares have become a feature of the city.

Local Foods: Surrounded by the Yellow Sea and inland Bohai Sea, this

city has rich marine resources. The seafood here is equal to its southern

counterpart in Guangdong Province and there are numerous restaurants in

the city providing a wide variety of top-quality seafood at very reasonable

prices.

Nightlife: Numerous bathing places and beaches in the city are

popular venues for the locals to relax from everyday work and stress.

Young people, like those in many other metropolitan cities in China are

trend pursuers who spend their evenings in bars and pubs throughout the

city.

Festivals: There are two things that have earned the city a great

reputation. One is Football and the other is Fashion. Given the name

of 'Oriental Brazil', it hosts many Chinese football matches and has

the most successful football teams in China. The enthusiastic fans in

the football club of the four-star Wanda International Hotel tell

everyone how much the Chinese like this game.

Another carnival event in the city is Dalian International Fashion

Festival, during which thousands of dazzling celebrities, designers,

pop stars and clothing merchants from both home and abroad get

together to present an In-Fashion feast to the world. Consequently, the

city stirs shopping lovers' blood with all sorts of skyscraper shopping

malls and markets.