| Arguably the most important role that Dalian has played over the years is as an important and strategic port. This feature has helped to make this one of the wealthiest and most prosperous cities in the entire country.
Dalian boasts a unique geographical location at the southern tip of the Liaodong peninsular. Locals call the city the "Tiger", referring to the fact that a bird's eye view of the city gives the impression that the area resembles a Tiger's head. This is an ice-free port, rare for a coastal city at such latitude, and it is this factor that has made the port so attractive to invaders both in the past, and to investors in this cosmopolitan city today.
The new chapter of development in Dalian, as in most Chinese cities, began after the Cultural Revolution. Industries such as shipbuilding and petro-chemicals have also been boosted by Dalian's location and wealth. With the adoption of the open-door policy in 1978, Dalian was also designated a Special Economic Zone and now attracts huge amounts of overseas investment.
It is not all trade and industry however.
The cultural legacy left by years of foreign invasion
and colonialism is still evident today in the Russian
and Japanese architecture dotted around the city. Most
conspicuous of all however, especially to the modern visitor,
is the wealth and cosmopolitan atmosphere here. This is
a clean, modern, rich and sprawling city, that appears
to be looking forward with optimism to the future. |
