Dalian and around Clean, modern and rich DALIAN is a large, sprawling city on the Yellow Sea. It’s one of China’s most cosmopolitan cities, partly because it has changed hands so often; as the only ice-free port in the region it was eagerly sought by the foreign powers that held sway over China in the nineteenth century. The Japanese gained the city in 1895, only to lose it a few years later to the Russians, who saw it as an alternative to ice-bound Vladivostok. In 1905, after decisively defeating the Russian navy, the Japanese wrested it back and remained in control for long enough to complete the construction of the port facilities. After World War IL, the Soviet Union occupied the city for ten years, finally withdrawing when Sino-Soviet relations improved. Today Dalian is busier than ever, the funnel for Iongbei’s enormous natural and mineral wealth and an industrial producer in its own right, specializing in petrochemicals and shipbuilding. The city is booming as fast as any in Cline and, though the “foreign devils” are still here, they’re now invited: Dalian has been designated a Special Economic Zone, one of’ China’s “open-door” cities with regulations designed to attract overseas investment.

To see more information about China history .

To see more information about China .