Chongqing
(Source: nipic.com)
Chongqing is the largest municipality located in southwest China. It is a port city in the upper reaches of the Yangtze River at the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers. With an area of 82,400 square kilometers (31, 800 square miles), Chongqing is a famous “mountain city” which shares a border with the provinces of Hubei, Hunan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Shaanxi. Besides the Han, who form the majority of its total population of 30.9 million, numerous ethnic groups reside in Chongqing including Yi, Tibetan, Miao, Qiang, You and Tujia.
Since its founding 3,000 years ago, Chongqing has been called Jiangzhou, Yuzhou, and Gongzhou, before receiving its present name nearly 800 years ago. Since the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-206 BC), many dynasties have set up administrative institutions that have endowed the city with brilliant cultures. Perched beside the Yangtze, or the "Golden River", Chongqing symbolizes Yangtze River civilizations and is the cradle of the Bayu culture.
Today Chongqing is a modern city; China's fourth municipality after Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin. Within its borders, Chongqing encompasses a wealth of water reserves, mineral resources, dense forests, and abundant flora and fauna. One of its focal points is the unique Yangtze Three Gorges Dam, making Chongqing a tourist attraction as well as a commercial city.
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