China Nanjing
(From 1994 to now)

• Location : Located on the side of the Yangtze River and in Jiangsu near Shanghai
• Population : 8,216,000
• Area : 6,597㎢
• Website: http://www.nanjing.gov.cn

Nanjing is the capital of Jiangsu Province. The city also has the painful history of the Nanjing Massacre.

Nanjing is one of the four oldest cities and one of the three hottest cities in China. But the city is cooled off and refreshed by sycamores lining the streets and green zones d by fortress walls.

The Ming Dynasty began in Nanjing and enjoyed peacetime for 11 years. Sun Yat-Sen destroyed the Qing Dynasty and established the interim government of the Republic of China in modern times. Although the massacre was perpetrated in Nanjing later, the city still boasts a long history as a time-honored city.
The Nanjing Fortress wall the old downtown area is 13 to 25 meters high, runs for 34 kilometers and is the longest fortress wall in the world. Originally, Nanjing was a consumption-oriented city. Besides its traditional textile industry, which is about 20 years old , the growth of the machinery, steel, food and chemical industries enables Nanjing to grow into the largest industrial city in Jiangsu Province. The city is the academic and cultural center of the Huazhong region. The city is also home to Nanjing University and other higher education institutions and famous historic sites that suggest Nanjing’s historic background. To the south of Purple Mountain is the Zhongshan Mausoleum, the tomb of Sun Wen. To the south of the mountain is the Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum, the tomb of the Hongwu emperor.

Climate

This area belongs to the humid subtropical zones and has four distinct seasons and much rain. Its average temperature is 15.6℃ while its average rainfall is 1106㎜. Its rainy season is June and July.

Tourist Attractions

• Xuanwu Lake Park

  Xuanwu Lake served as a resting place for many kings in the Southern Song period. The lake was turned into a park around the end of the Qing Dynasty. Five islands belong to the park, which boasts a palace, a pavilion, gardens and a zoo. Xuanwu Lake is the largest lake in Nanjing and is d by cities and mountains. On a boat cruise you can look at the willows that line the lake’s bank.

• Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge

  The Nanjing Yangtze River Bridge is the longest bridge in China. People walk across and cars drive on the 4.5km-long upper bridge of the double-decked bridge, while the 6.7km-long lower deck is part of a railway. The entrance is decorated with 22 double arches. At both the ends of the bridge are two 70-meter-tall towers. At night, 1,900 lamps light up the bridge.

• Linggu Temple

  Linggu Temple was built in the east of Zhongshan Mausoleum in 514 and moved to the current location. The temple has nine-story octagonal Linggu Pagoda and famous buildings of the Ming Dynasty. The temple is the only Buddhist building still remaining intact in China.

• Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum

  Ming Xiaoling Mausoleum was built as the tomb of Emperor Hongwu, the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty, in 1383. The mausoleum was significantly damaged when the second emperor Yongle moved the capital to Beijing. Most of the structures that ringed the tomb were destroyed during the early period of the Qing Dynasty, but a few of them still remain.

• Nanjing Museum

  Nanjing Museum is famous for having the biggest collection in China. People can easily learn the history of Jiansu Province at this museum. Notable among about 3,000 items that the museum houses is a 300-year-old duck egg, funeral clothes studded with green jadeite and a map that shows about 300 years of Nanjing.

History of Exchanges