An Introduction to Chongqing 重 庆 市 简 介

Abbreviation : Yu渝
Area: 82,300 square kilometers
Population: 31.14 million
Location: In southwestern China

Chongqing became China’s fourth municipality on March 14, 1997 when the National People’s Congress approved a motion by the State Council. Like the municipalities of Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai, Chongqing now runs its own affairs under the direct control of the central government, instead of Sichuan Province. It administers 14 districts, 4 cities and 19 counties. Of 30.90 million people in Chongqing, over 24.4 million are farmers, accounting for 79 per cent of the total population of Chongqing; minority people number more than 1.7 million, accounting for 5.5 per cent of the total population in Chongqing.

As early as the Shang Dynasty (1600-1046 BC) and the Warring States Period (475-221 BC), Chongqing was the capital of the Ba State. It became the wartime capital of the Kuomintang government during the War of Resistance Against Japan (1937-1945). In the early years after the founding of the Piople’s Republic of China, Chongqing was a municipality directly under the authority of the central government.

Because of its buildings on hillsides and mountains surrounding the city, Chongqing is nicknamed “Mountain City.” The central part of the city is located on a peninsular-shaped ridge, which is the result of an abrupt ending of the Huaying Montain Range at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing rivers. Commanding by Pipashan (Mount Loquat) and Eling , it is overlaid with buildings climbing the hills and roads snaking their way along the hills. Its altitude varies as much as 220 meters. The lowest is 160 meters above sea level at the tip of Zhaotianmen in the east and the highest is 380 meters by Futuguan in the west. Looking up from the riverside, visitors can see tall buildings in big blocks kissing the sky. On a commanding height, visitors can find distant surrounding peaks rising one higher than another. As the winding Jialing River meets the east surging river, the city is cut into three parts, the middle part facing the waters on three sides. Looking from afar, visitors can find the city resembling a goose floating upon the waters. As the sun shines, the buildings are all reflected in waters, offering a spectacular view of a mountain city as Chongqing is called.

Chongqing’s terrain varies in elevation. The Yangtze River flows through the city from southwest to northeast. The city proper is located on the confluence of the Yangtze River and the Jialing River; it is overlaid with buildings climbing the hills and roads snaking their way among the hills. Chongqing has a couple of names. Houses and apartment blocks built their way up mountains from an undulating pattern. Standing at the confluence of the Jialing River and Yangtze River, it is also nicknamed “the River Town.”

Chongqing is China’s important synthesized industrial city. Its heavy industry is of a big scale, especially as of iron and steel, machinery and automobiles. There is a balanced development of agriculture. Chongqing is famous for orange plantation area along the Yangtze River area, hence the “Golden Corridor.”

Endowed with a convenient communication in the water, air and land transportation, Chongqing has become an economic, commercial, financial centre and a communication hub on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. Cheng-Yu (Chengdu-Chongqing), Chuan-Yu (Sichuan-Chongqing) and Xiang-Yu (Hunan-Chongqing) railways connect the city. Chongqing has a complete network of highways, of which the most significant one is the Cheng-Yu Expressway regarded as Chongqing’s main artery of transportation. In terms of the water transportation, the city is an important wharf on the upper reaches of the Yangtze River, and ships and boats can now navigate their way on the Jialing River. The Jiangbei Airport is an important air transport hub in the southwestern part of China.

The city has a solid industrial foundation. The three pillar sectors include machinery, chemical and metallurgical industries. And the food processing, building materials, real estate, electronic and tourism industries are developing rapidly.

The city is proud of its splendid natural scenery with a representation of hills, rivers, forests, springs, waterfalls, gorges, and caves. The city’s culture is a combination of Ba and Yu culture, migration culture and Three Gorges culture. Famous scenic spots and relics include the Three Gorges of the Yangtze River, and the Dazu Grottoes, which was inscribed by UNESCO on the World Heritage List in 1999.

Chongqing boasts 25 colleges and universities and about 1,000 scientific research institutes, employing 560,000 scientific and technological personnel. The city has established economic and trade relations with more than 140 countries and regions. It has more than 2,000 foreign-funded enterprises. Chongqing is also the embarkation point for cruisers through the famous Three Gorges and on down to Wuhan, Yichang, Nanjing or Shanghai.

Welcome to China2Go, the talking Chinese phrase book for Windows Mobile Pocket PC and Palm OS. Featuring crystal clear voice recorded by a real person, this product is a great travel companion and an ideal tool to learn Chinese! With our cutting edge voice compression technology, this product includes more than 1000 phrases, their Chinese translation, and the voice in only a few megabytes. Supports all Windows Mobile Pocket PCs. H&H China2Go Talking Phrase Book for Windows Mobile