Shanghai Overview
Situated at the junction of the Yangtze River and the Huangpu River pouring into the East Sea, Shanghai is the largest economic and trade center in China. With a tremendous success achieved in reform and development, Shanghai has now become not only the China's center of economy, finance, trade and navigation, but also an international metropolis in the world. As the most energetic city in China, Shanghai is attracting more and more guests from home and abroad to experience its unique charm.
Famous Landmarks in Shanghai are considered the Name Card of Shanghai, like the Bund, Oriental Pearl TV Tower and Huangpu River, etc. ancient and new. They somehow demonstrate a certain character or role Shanghai played to the world. Come with TopChinaTravel, to witness and appreciate those famous Shanghai Landmarks.
Shanghai is one of the four municipalities directly under the Chinese central government. Literally known as 'the port on the sea', Shanghai also be one of the world largest seaports and China major industrial and commercial center and one of the most populous city in the world with a total population of more than 24 million in 2017. In the history, Shanghai had been an important marine silk road port and had been one of the five treaty ports forced open to foreign trade following the British victory over China in the First Opium War. Nowadays, along with the deepening open and reform policy carried out by the communist party government, Shanghai is crowned as the financial, economic and trade hub of the country, playing a leading role in boosting economic development of China. It is a global financial centre and transport hub, and sitting in the Yangtze River Delta has enabled she turned into the world's busiest container port of China.
Shanghai has a humid subtropical climate and you can experiences four distinct seasons. Winters are chilly and damp, and cold northwesterly winds from Siberia can cause night-time temperatures to drop below freezing, although most years there are only one or two days of snowfall. Summers are hot and humid, with an average of 8.7 days exceeding 35 °C annually; occasional downpours or freak thunderstorms can be expected. The city is also susceptible to typhoons in Summer and the beginning of Autumn, none of which in recent years has caused considerable damage. The most pleasant seasons are Spring, although changeable and often rainy, and Autumn, which is generally sunny and dry. The city averages 4.2 °C in January and 27.9 °C in July, for an annual mean of 16.1 °C.
Shikumen is a traditional Shanghainese architectural style combining Western and Chinese elements that first appeared in the 1860s. This kind of building in Shanghai also called "lane" by the local people in Shanghai. The statue of Shikemen buildings in Shanghai, or the so called lane, is the same as Hutong in Beijing. Due to the popularity of Shikumen architecture in town, there were 9000 shikumen-style buildings in Shanghai, comprising 60% of the total housing stock of the city. However, with the fast development of this international metropolis today, the proportion is much lower, for most Shanghainese prefer to live in large apartment buildings than in these old buildings.Shikumen-style houses formed the basis of the "Li Long" (lane) community where private spheres and public spaces overlapped. In this community, everyone knew everyone else's business. As the density of the community rose, some family activities were often moved to public spaces.
