旅游城市英文简介

One

of

China's

most

enduringly

popular

holiday

spots,

H

á

< br>ngzh

ō

u's

(

杭州

)

dreamy

West

Lake

panoramas

and

fabulously green hills can easily tempt you into long sojourns. Eulogised by poets and applauded by emperors, the

lake has intoxicated the Chinese imagination for aeons.

Kept spotlessly clean by armies of street sweepers and litter collectors, its scenic vistas draw you into a classical

Chinese

watercolour

of

willow-lined

banks,

mist-covered

hills

and

the

occasional

sh

í

k

ù

m

é

(stone-gate

house)

and old l

ǐ

l

ò

ng (residential lane).

Wonderful as it is, H

á

ngzh

ō

u's charms are by no means limited to West Lake scenery

–

delve further into the

city to climb ancient pagodas and discover blissfully quiet temples.

Away

from

the

tourist

drawcards

exists

a

charismatic

and

buzzing

city

in

its

own

right,

with

wide

pedestrian

walkways

to

wander, an

unpretentious

and

exciting

food

scene,

upbeat

nightlife and

increasingly

cosmopolitan

population.

Gu

ǎ

ng zh

ō

u,

once

better

known

to

Westerners

as

Canton,

is

China's

busiest

transport

and

trade

hub

and

the

third-largest city in the country.

A

giant

metropolis,

Gu

ǎ

ngzh

ō

< br>u

is

home

to

both

gleaming

towers

and

leafy

alleys,

and

its

history

as

a

strategic

trade

port

to

the

South

China

Sea

has

afforded

it

a

colonial

background

and

culturally

diverse

population

that

combine to give Gu

ǎ

ngzh

ō

u a cosmopolitan flair.

Additionally,

the

China

Import

and

Export

Fair

(more

commonly

known

as

the

Canton

Fair)

–

China's

largest

trade

fair

–

sees

thousands

of

international

visitors

flocking

to

Gu

ǎ

ngzh

ō

u

twice

a

year.

And

its

proximity

to

Hong Kong means it is one of the most well-connected cities in China.

Ch

é

ng d

ū

(

成都

)

is

no

great

draw

when

it

comes

to

major

tourist

sites

–

pandas

excepted,

of

course

–

but

many visitors find its laid-back pace and diversity of cultural scenes unexpectedly engaging.

It

could

be

its

relaxing

teahouse

culture,

with

favourite

local

institutions

serving

the

same

brews

across

generations. Maybe it's the lively nightlife, with a strong showing of local partiers bolstered by large student and

expat populations that gather at craft beer bars and super-hip clubs.

It might be the food: famous for heat, history and variety even in the cuisine-rich cultures of China; and very much

a point of pride. It is, after all, Unesco's first-ever City of Gastronomy.

长沙

For three millennia, this city on the Xi

ā

ng River (

湘江

; Xi

ā

ng Ji

ā

ng) flourished steadily as a centre of agriculture

and intellect.

In the 1920s it was still so well preserved that British philosopher Bertrand Russell is said to have compared it to a

medieval town, but not long after, the Sino-Japanese War and a massive fire in 1938 gave Ch

á

ngsh

ā

(

长沙

) an

irreversible facelift, leaving little of its early history.

These

days

it's

a

modern,

energetic

city,

known

mainly

for

sights

relating

to

Mao

Zedong,

but

with

its

magnolia-lined streets and riverine aspect, it's a pleasant enough stopover and provincial capital.

The

capital

of

Li

á

on

í

ng

province,

prosperous

Sh

ě

ny

á

ng

(

沈阳

)

has

made

enormous

strides

in

overcoming

its

reputation as a postindustrial 'rust- belt' city.

True, Sh

ě

ny

á

ng is still a sprawling metropolis, but the metro is easy to navigate, and there's a buzz on the streets

and in the designer malls as locals grow confident, positive and urbane.

For the traveller, Sh

ě

ny

á

ng boasts its very own Imperial Palace, a tomb complex and decent museums, as well as

several fine parks. Given its strategic location as a transport hub for the north of China, Sh

ě

n y

á

ng is well worth a

stopover on your journey.