China Accommodations

Anhui Province to Host Int'l Dragon Boat Contest
East China's Anhui province announced over the weekend that it will host its first international dragon boat contest on May 6 and 7 on scenic Lake Wanfo.

Organizers said eight dragon boat teams, including those from Britain, the United States, Australia, Malaysia and other regions,will participate in the contest with six local teams.

The contest is being organized by the government of Shucheng county in Anhui in cooperation with the China Dragon Boat Association and State General A

New Flight Between Shenyang, Tokyo Starts
China's North Airlines has begun a new flight service from Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province, to Tokyo, Japan.

An airline official told Xinhua that the twice weekly international air service would operate between the two cities each Tuesday and Thursday.

The new service, which began on April 18, uses A300 aircraft to link the two Asian cities.

The company will also start Dalian-Tokyo and Dalian-Nagoya flights on Friday.

Experts Urge Collectors To Share World's Earliest Encyclopedia
Chinese and foreign experts recently urged collectors to share the earliest and largest encyclopedia man has ever had -- the Great Encyclopedia of Yongle (Yongle Dadian) of the Ming Dynasty (A.D. 1368-1644).

Yongle Dadian was the largest encyclopedia in China. Compiled between A.D. 1403 and A.D. 1407, it contains 22,877 volumes in 11,095 books. It is 12 times that of the famous encyclopedia compiled by the French author Diderot in the 18th century.

Much of Yongle Dadian was destroy

Tour to Bid a Farewell to Three Gorges
The gigantic Three Gorges Dam Project is going to change the Yangtze River forever, for better or for worse. In the mystical Shennongjia National Park, the Big Foot (Wild Man) is said to roam. You may raft down the unspoiled Shennong Stream with trackers, enjoy a bonfire party with Tujia minority youth, and visit the hometowns of two legendary Chinese, Wang Zhaojun and Qu Yuan, along the crystal-clear Xiangxi River. My second "farewell" to the Three Gorges last week turned out to be not without

A Farewell to Three Gorges During Tour of Central China
The gigantic Three Gorges Dam Project is going to change the Yangtze River forever, for better or for worse. In the mystical Shennongjia National Park, the Big Foot (Wild Man) is said to roam. You may raft down the unspoiled Shennong Stream with trackers, enjoy a bonfire party with Tujia minority youth, and visit the hometowns of two legendary Chinese, Wang Zhaojun and Qu Yuan, along the crystal-clear Xiangxi River. My second "farewell" to the Three Gorges last week turned out to be not without

Tracking the Footprints of Wild Man
The gigantic Three Gorges Dam Project is going to change the Yangtze River forever,for better or for worse. In the mystical Shennongjia National Park, the Big Foot (Wild Man) is said to roam. You may raft down the unspoiled Shennong Stream with trackers, enjoy a bonfire party with Tujia minority youth, and visit the hometowns of two legendary Chinese, Wang Zhaojun and Qu Yuan, along the crystal-clear Xiangxi River. My second "farewell" to the Three Gorges last week turned out to be not without e

China will Turn out Nobel Prize Winners: Nobel Physics Prize Winner
Chinese American Nobel Physics Prize winner Yang Cheng Ning said recently that China's conditions for turning out future winners of the prize will ripen as it continues to open up.

Yang was Speaking at a news conference to launch a series of Lectures by Contemporary Distinguished Scholar, including Yang himself, to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Hong Kong's public library and the first anniversary of the Hong Kong Central Library.

Yang was asked to elaborate on the remarks he ma

Tianjin Attracts More Foreign Investment
As the largest port city in northern China and an economic giant with sustainable growth, Tianjin has had strong appeal for overseas investors since China joined the World Trade Organization.

The municipal government approved 163 foreign-funded ventures in the first quarter of this year, up 14.8 percent from the same period last year. The ventures had a combined contractual value of 1.168 billion U.S. dollars, a rise of 12.1 percent.

Investors came from 25 countries and regions. Ho

Anhui Province Plans to Reduce Water Pollution
East China's Anhui province plans to spend 12.9 billion yuan (1.55 billion U.S. dollars) before 2005 to reduce water pollution, provincial sources reported recently.

About 5.42 billion yuan will be used to reduce water pollution in the Anhui area of the Huaihe River Valley, and 4.86 billion yuan in the Lake Caohu valley area. Both are among the most heavily polluted bodies of fresh water in the country.

The massive expenditure will be injected into 128 projects which will mainly to

China marks earth day with variety of activities
Environmental protection exhibitions were held and environmental pamphlets handed out, on April 22 in Lhasa, capital of China's Tibet Autonomous Region, to mark the 33rd World Earth Day.

An official with the regional environmental protection bureau said that Tibet, where many rivers in Asia originate, is one of the cleanest areas in the world and that it is everyone's duty to protect it from ecologic deterioration.

Nationwide, China launched a campaign on April 22, World Earth Day,

Photo Exhibition on Qinghai Opens in Beijing
A photo exhibition featuring the unique scenery and culture of Qinghai Province in northwest China opened at the Museum of the Chinese Revolution here on Tuesday.

On show are more than 400 pictures from Chinese and foreign photographers. The exhibition will last till April 29.

The mountainous province is the source of three major rivers in China, namely the Yangtze, Yellow and Lancang rivers. It is known for its snow-capped mountains, glaciers, forests, grasslands and deserts.
<

Meeting to Discuss Retailing Tourist Goods
An international conference on retail sales of tourist goods will be held in Beijing between May 16 and 18.

About 400 people, including heads of leading tourist goods dealers and duty-free goods groups from China and overseas, are expected to participate. The development of the tourism industry and the retailing of tourist goods in China are the central topics of this conference which is the first of its kind held in China.

The conference is co-sponsored by the China Duty-Free Grou

Beijing to Build Second Airport Before 2008 Olympics
Beijing is planning to build a second airport before the 2008 Olympic Games even though a new terminal is already planned at the existing international airport, a report said Friday.

The head of the Beijing airport company, Li Peiying, told a press conference in Hong Kong that he has set up a committee to decide on the best site for a second airport in the Chinese capital, China News Service said.

But he stressed the city's existing airport facilities would have to be used to their

World Bank-funded tourism program by CNTA launched in Guizhou
Guizhou Province, a scenic area in southwest China, is to join with the World Tourism Organization and the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) to compile a tourism development program for Guizhou.

A ceremony was held recently to mark the occasion in Guiyang, capital of Guizhou Province. On hand were representatives of the World Tourism Organization, the China National Tourism Administration, Guizhou Province and the Ireland International Tourism Co.

After fierce competitio

FEATURE: "Hong Kong Is Really a Very Outstanding City"
Hong Kong is really a very outstanding city and one of the greatest cities in the world, Jamlong Ratanapan, director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand said in an interview with Xinhua.

"It is exciting to work and live here," he said, himself having been working here for two years.

"I like the business environment here and like the fast pace of it which makes me feel young," he said.

Ratanapan, 49, has been working for the Tourism Authority of Thailand since he graduated f

FEATURE: Exhibitions Highlight HK's Historical Links with Mainland
An exhibition to be held in Hong Kong to feature more than 100 pieces of relics will assert that Chinese civilization goes back to as far as the Xia Dynasty (circa 2205 BC - 1766 BC), a Hong Kong government official said.

Christina Chu, chief curator of the Hong Kong Museum of the Art recently said to Xinhua in an exclusive interview that the exhibition is one of the HKSAR government's events in store to mark the fifth anniversary of the July 1 handover to the Chinese motherland.

F

China Airlines Full for Upcoming Holiday Despite S Korea Crash
China's domestic airlines expect record passenger numbers during next week's public holiday despite the recent crash of an Air China jet in South Korea which killed at least 122 people. The week-long May Day public holiday, starting on Wednesday, will see internal flights 90 percent full, sources in the airlines told the China Daily. The rush for seats has not been dampened by the April 15 accident which saw the Air China Boeing 767 crash into a fog-shrouded mountain near the southern city of Bu

Qingyuan: Drift Along Water Through Scenic Valleys
Guangzhou-Qingyuan With hot springs, rocky caves, forests and rivers, Qingyuan of South China's Guangdong Province boasts well-developed and well-preserved natural scenery. Feijia Mountain lies 30 kilometres northeast to the town of Qingyuan. Besides forests and river valleys, Feixia Cave is located in the mountain, where there is the largest temple in China used for the worship of Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism. If you love sports, you can drift in rubber yachts along a river in the Bijia Mo

Tourism Links China with Malaysia, Singapore
Booming tourism is building prosperous links between China, Singapore and Malaysia, according to sources with the office of the China National Tourism Administration in Singapore and southeast Asia. More Chinese people have registered for traveling to Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand during May 1 Holiday period this year, said Dun Jidong with China Travel Service. According to Dun, tours to the three countries are packed in major holidays such as Spring Festival and the National Day. Malaysia wa

Laiyuan: Gallop on Mountain Grassland
Beijing to Laiyuan Ever wish to see grassland more than 2,000 metres above sea level? Well, it's possible at Tiger Mountain in Laiyuan - a county in northwest Hebei Province, 200 kilometres southwest of Beijing. Situated 20 kilometres north of the county, the grassland sits on top of Tiger Mountain. Climbing the mountain on a horse, available at the foot of the mound, tourists take about one hour to reach the top. Then the beautiful scenery covering approximately 2,300 hectares unfolds in front

Sanmenxia: Enjoy Pearl of Yellow River
Zhengzhou-Sanmenxia If you wish to take a fourday trip in Henan Province, Sanmenxia must be a good choice. With numerous historic relics, fairy tale scenery and beautiful landscapes, Sanmenxia of Central China's Henan Province is like a pearl on the Yellow River. Located at the middle reaches of the Yellow Rivers, it is one of the birthplaces of Chinese culture. According to legend, 5,000 years ago, Sanmenxia was a death gorge for ships with its rushing waters and narrow, winding tunnels. Dayu,

Chinese Visitors to Germany Keep Steady Growth
China is an important and stably-growing visitor source market for Germany, said Petra Hedorfer, an official with Germany National Tourist Board (GNTB).

She said, the number of Chinese visitors to Germany has grown 78 percent since 1994. When the global economy was in recession last year, Chinese' overnight stay in Germany still increased 9.4 percent compared with the previous year.

GNTB estimated the overnight stay by Chinese visitors will grow another 10 percent to reach 570,000

Singapore Aims to Attract Inland Chinese Visitors
Singapore will strengthen its promotion activities in inland Chinese cities besides such big cities as Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, according to an official with the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) China Office.

Singapore will present some new images in local Chinese newspapers and magazines as well as carry out big-scale promotion activities throughout China, such as attending China International Tourism Mart in November and organize food festivals in some hotels.

STB will stren

Three Gorges Project Amazes AAPP Delegates
Magnificent, "Wonderful", "Amazing" typified the frequent exclamations from Asian parliamentary delegates who came to Yichang Monday to visit the Three Gorges Project, the world's top water conservancy project.

The 18 parliamentary delegations who attended the Third General Assembly of the Association of the Asian Parliaments for Peace (AAPP) which ended on last Friday in southwestern China's Chongqing Municipality, inspected local power station workshops and the latest construction progr

More Investment Flows to China's Most Populous Henan Province
As China steadfastly pushes forward its "Develop the West" program, central China's Henan Province is gaining more attention from overseas investors.

More than 2,100 overseas investors attended the Henan Economic and Trade Fair, held recently in the provincial capital of Zhengzhou. The fair witnessed the signing of contracts for 134 overseas investment projects, which involve a total of 828 million U.S. dollars of overseas investment.

The scale of participation far exceeded the exp

China, Russia to Jointly Develop New Civil Aircraft
China and Russia on recently signed an agreement on cooperation in developing a new generation of civil aircraft.

This is the first such agreement between the Chinese Committee on Defense Science, Equipment and Defense Industry and the Russian Aircraft and Space Agency, or Rosaviakosmos, over the last 10 years.

Under the agreement, the two sides will work out a program of cooperation to be signed in six months. A joint commission has been set up to draft the program.

Four wo

Indoor Amusement Park To Be Founded in HK
Teddy Bear Kingdom, an indoor amusement park featuring a big collection of teddy bears, will open in Hong Kong this summer.

This was announced recently by Teddy Bear Kingdom (HK) Limited,jointly held by several Japanese and Hong Kong companies.

The company has reached an agreement with New World Development Limited on leasing an area of 70,000 square feet at Palace Mall, a shopping mall at Hong Kong's famous Tsim Sha Tsui scenic spot, to build the kingdom.

The kingdom, with

Shanghai Stages Seven International Exhibitions
A string of seven major international exhibitions opened recently in Shanghai.

The 11th Shanghai international fair for articles for hotel use,the largest of these parallel events, is being held in the Shanghai Guangda Convention and Exhibition Center.

Six other international exhibitions - on yachts, building ornamentation, security and fire protection equipment, wooden flooring and wooden household articles, ceramic ware for building use, and lighting equipment - are being held in

North China Hebei Province to Host Trade Fair
North China's Hebei Province will host an economic and trade fair in Langfang, a city near Beijing, on May 18-23, officials from the provincial government said here recently.

Over 1,000 projects will be listed for overseas investment at the fair, which has been held for 19 years, organizers say.

These projects, which are expected to draw some 4.44 billion US dollars of overseas investment, cover agriculture, infrastructure,building materials, food, automobile spare parts, overseas

Beijing Celebrates World Museum Day
The Chinese capital city of Beijing launched a series of activities on Thursday to mark the World Museum Day.

The activities, with the theme of "museums and globalization", will run until May 19, officials from the Beijing Administration of Cultural Heritage said at a forum on museums on Thursday.

Museums across Beijing will stage over 20 new exhibitions during the coming three weeks. They include a China-Nepal culture week at Baitasi, or White Pagoda Temple, in downtown Beijing, a

Int'l Piano Festival in Fujian
An international piano festival to be held in east China's Fujian Province from May 10-20, will feature concerts by world famous pianists and a piano competition for young piano prodigies.

During the festival, Gulangyu in Fujian Province, dubbed an "island of music", will host world renowned pianists from Russia, France, Australia and the United States, as well as outstanding Chinese pianists who have studied overseas.

The second staging of the "Golden Bell" piano contest will also

Beijing Builds Jurassic Park
A national park of Jurassic-era silicified wood has been built in northwest Beijing and will be open to tourists in May.

Located in Yanqing County, the 226-square kilometer park is rich in geological relics.

Geologists said abundant deposits of Jurassic silicified wood were formed between 140 million and 180 million years ago. The thickest of the wood measures 2.5 meters in diameter and the longest 15 meters in bole length.

Rich in geological relics, China has been designate

Ministries sharpen act for holiday
Railway bureaux in major cities are to add extra trains to the May Day holiday timetable in a move to cope with the surging amount of tourists expected.

Sources with the Ministry of Railways said some 90 per cent of tickets available in major cities and tourist destinations between April 30 and May 3 are already fully booked. People who prefer to travel by train should contact local ticket agents as soon as possible, sources said.

Although the country's price regulatory department

Three Explosions Hit Kabul's Airport
Kabul's international airport was hit by three explosions in what was believed to be a series of rocket attacks, military sources said Saturday. "There were three explosions at the airport last night (Friday). There were no injuries," said Major Karen Daly, a British spokeswoman for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan. Anonymous ISAF sources said that the explosions were caused by three rockets launched close to the airport late Friday. The sources said the target o

High World Cup Tour Fees Deter Soccer Fans
Sales of tour packages to this summer's soccer World Cup have failed to live up to expectations, with hefty fees keeping local fans away, several Shanghai-based travel agencies said. Spring International Travel Service Co. and Shanghai China Travel Service Corp. are two of the only agencies in the city claiming to have tickets for China's first three games in South Korea in June. Spring International first launched a five-day package tour to any of the three cities - Seoul, Gwangju and Seowipo -

Ecological First Aid Needed for Highland Salt Lake
Chinese ecologists are calling for tighter controls on the use of water from Lake Ebinur, the largest saltwater lake in northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

Experts say the overuse of the lake water will lead to the ecological deterioration of the Ebinur Lake Valley and could turn it into a desert area.

After many years of investigation, ecologists propose that the local government should make a unified management plan to control water usage in the region, plant m

Northeast Heilongjiang province encourages investment in natural resources
The governor of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province said recently the area will further open its natural resources to outside investors.

Song Fatang told a seminar on investment and co-operation between the province and multinationals that the province wants to tap its rich natural resources and cash in on its strong industrial base and scientific development.

"Compared with the coastal cities in the country, Heilongjiang opened up to the outside later but this in turn means th

Private Galleries in Shanghai: a World of Free Art
Shanghai, generally known as the economic hub of east China, is also home to domestic and international artists, who have swarmed here to run private galleries, attracted by the splendid cultural and artistic resources.

There are over 1,000 private galleries scattered among skyscrapers and busy business districts in this internationalized metropolis.

Owners of the private galleries have united to recommend Shanghai Private Galleries to the public. It is the first reference book eve

China Builds Yellow Earth Park
China is building a national geological park of yellow earth for scientific research and educational purposes in its northwest province of Shaanxi.

Located in Heimugou of Luochuan County, the 5.9-square kilometer park on China's Loess Plateau is home to a variety of yellow earth terrains.

Geologists here said studying its yellow earth plane sections could reveal climatic, environmental and botanic changes in the Loess Plateau over the past 2.5 million years.

Covering 640,000

Chinese Leader Urges Swift Completion of Beijing Opera Videos
Senior Chinese leader Li Ruihuan Saturday urged Chinese artists to complete the task of videotaping classic Beijing Operas as scheduled.

The videotaping is made by integrating the singing of prominent Beijing Opera artists with the performance of their disciples.

Li, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, a national advisory body, said the eight-year videotaping project launched in 1994 is important to preserve the cultural her

Cathay Pacific Voted Asia's Best Airline
Cathay Pacific Airways, Hong Kong's largest air carrier, was named Asia's best airline brand for the third straight year in the Reader's Digest magazine's SuperBrands 2002 Survey, according to reports reached here recently.

SuperBrand winners were selected in a region-wide poll of the magazine's subscribers.Readers were asked to both vote for their top brand and rate it according to five brand attributes which were quality, value, trustworthiness, image and having a strong understanding o

First China Qinghai Tulip Festival Due in May
The first China Qinghai Tulip Festival will showcase more than 54 varieties of the flower next month in Xining, capital city of northwest China's Qinghai Province.

Wang Xiaoyong, deputy mayor of Xining, said on Thursday that the five-day festival on May 12-16 would provide a platform for China's latest achievements in tulip cultivation.

During the festival, a total of 1.12 million tulips will be on show at over 40 venues in Xining's major parks, squares and streets.

Qinghai

No Chinese cancellations despite air crash-police
Chinese fans have not cancelled plans to attend next month's World Cup finals despite the air crash in South Korea last week that killed 122 people, South Korea's police chief said on Thursday.

The Air China Boeing 767 hit a foggy mountainside on Monday last week near the South Korean port city of Pusan, one of the 10 World Cup venues in South Korea, which is co-hosting the finals with Japan where there are another 10 venues.

"There will be no security impact on the World Cup," com

High-speed rail link to cut north-south trip by 13 hours
China is planning to build a 2,000-kilometre high-speed railway between Beijing and Guangzhou to speed up ground transportation from North to South China.

Passengers will be able to finish their trip from the capital to Guangzhou in 10 hours instead of the 23 hours that are needed on the existing railway line.

The second Beijing-Guangzhou line, which crosses five provinces and links major cities including Zhengzhou, Wuhan and Changsha, will cost at least 200 billion yuan (US$24 bil

China Prepares for Busy May Holiday Seasony Season
Tourism and service sectors across China are busy preparing for the week-long peak holiday season around the International Labor Day on May 1.

The Shanghai Municipal Tourism Commission is providing Chinese and foreign visitors with five tours which take in parks, exhibition centers, suburban scenic spots and particular streets.

East China's Shandong Province will hold folk culture festivals in Jinan, Qingdao, Tai'an, Weifang and Qufu cities and flower shows will be held in Rizhao,

China to Ensure Safety of Labor Day Holiday-CNTA
To ensure a safe Labor Day holiday authorities are making public safety checks in scenic spots, according to the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA).

Many local tourism bureaus will inspect public transport vehicles such as buses, ferries and cable cars as well as recreational facilities like bungy jumping, shooting and canoeing.

"Tourist numbers will boom during the upcoming Labor Day holiday. So safety is the most important issue for everyone," said Zhang Xiqin, vice cha

Chinese Explorer Succeeds in Solo Trip to North Pole
Chinese scientist Liu Shaochuang planted his national flag at the North Pole on Saturday after successfully completing a 56-day odyssey to become the first Chinese to reach the pole alone on foot. The 39-year-old arrived at the pole at 5pm Friday, fulfilling his stated ambition to travel from Asia alone on foot, and find a suitable route for China's future Arctic exploration. "He was the first Chinese to ski to the North Pole alone and almost without backing," secretary general of the Polar Rese

Chinese Explorer Succeeds in Solo Trip to North Pole
Chinese scientist Liu Shaochuang planted his national flag at the North Pole on Saturday after successfully completing a 56-day odyssey to become the first Chinese to reach the pole alone on foot. The 39-year-old arrived at the pole at 5pm Friday, fulfilling his stated ambition to travel from Asia alone on foot, and find a suitable route for China's future Arctic exploration. "He was the first Chinese to ski to the North Pole alone and almost without backing," secretary general of the Polar Rese

Chinese Explorer Succeeds

in Solo Trip to North Pole
Chinese scientist Liu Shaochuang planted his national flag at the North Pole on Saturday after successfully completing a 56-day odyssey to become the first Chinese to reach the pole alone on foot. The 39-year-old arrived at the pole at 5:00 pm Friday, fulfilling his stated ambition to travel from Asia alone on foot, and find a suitable route for China's future Arctic exploration. "He was the first Chinese to ski to the North Pole alone and almost without backing," secretary general of the Polar

Arafat's Siege Set to End, Israel Blocks UN Team
A month-long siege of Yasser Arafat's West Bank headquarters appeared to be nearing an end on Monday after Israel and the Palestinians accepted a compromise proposed by US President Bush. But Israel dug in its heels over a UN fact-finding mission to the ruined Jenin refugee camp and talks with Palestinians failed to end a standoff at Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity. President Bush said the deal to end Arafat's siege marked "a hopeful day for the region." "Chairman Arafat is now free to move a

China Sets Up Databank on Wetlands
China recently established a special databank on its vast marshes and wetlands at the Northeast China Institute of Geographic and Agricultural Biology under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The China Marsh and Wetland Databank is an academic achievement with its own intellectual property rights, say local experts.

Wetlands are lakes, marshes and shallows which are dubbed "nature's kidneys". Their function is to store water, prevent floods and dilute pollution, according to experts.

Whales Sighted in East China Canal
A pod of over 20 whales was recently sighted in a fresh water canal by morning exercisers in east China's Jiangsu Province.

The whales were seen playing in the water in the Tongyu Canal near Xiangshui County at about 5:00 a.m. on April 15, witnesses said.

Xu Xinrong, a whale expert with the Nanjing Teacher's College, said whales had been spotted many times since the 1980s in the Guanghe River, which is linked to the canal and flows into the Yellow Sea.

However, he said, this

Saving Tigers From Extinction
The Manchurian Tiger Park, founded in 1986, is located at the northern outskirts of Harbin, capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province.

Home to the largest herd of Manchurian tigers in China, the park attracts a continuous flow of visitors each year.

Tigers in the park roam freely through their manors, capturing and killing other animals provided by workers, and are just as ferocious as those living in the wild.

Visitors are allowed a rare glimpse of the wild side of

East China Anhui Province to Hold Investment Fair in HK
East China's Anhui Province is scheduled to hold a trade and investment fair in Hong Kong from May 14 to 17 in a bid to increase economic cooperation and exchanges between the two sides.

An official with the Anhui provincial government said here Thursday that more than 40 investment projects, mainly in the areas of laser technology, bio-pharmaceuticals, and wastewater treatment, would be announced at the 2002 Anhui (Hong Kong) Trade and Investment Fair.

The four-day fair, to be spo

Security Services Attract Global Attention
The "September 11" tragedy triggered global security concerns and world security experts believe improving the quality of security services will make a big difference to world security and to global economic development.

With this as a background, an international forum on the development of security services opened recently in Suzhou city.

The three day-forum is focusing on topics such as China's opportunities and challenges in the security service sector after its World Trade Org

Classic Russian Paintings Exhibited in Shenzhen
A collection of famous Russian paintings was unveiled on April 25 in Shenzhen, south China's Guangdong Province.

The exhibition, "Russian painting over the past 300 years", consists of 132 paintings by 104 prestigious Russian artists. All the paintings are from the Yekaterinburg Art Museum, one of the four most famous art museums in Russia.

The vice-mayor of Yekaterinburg said at the opening ceremony that these paintings show the development of Russian painting since the 18th Centu

Old Japanese Aircraft Shelters Found in Tangshan
Local people in Tangshan city recently discovered eight abandoned aircraft shelters belonging to the Japanese army that invaded China in the 1930s and 40s. Local villagers have dubbed them "aircraft nests".

Between 1942-45, Japanese troops forced local villagers to build these shelters to accommodate a nearby Japanese military airport which was constructed in 1944.

Some long-time villagers, who were among those forced to work at the time, recalled that they had to work 10 hours and

Central China Province to Set Up Asia's Largest Aquatic Museum
A museum of aquatic resources, believed to be the largest in Asia, will be set up in Whuan, capital of central China's Hubei Province.

Officials said at a corner stone laying ceremony held recently that the museum is built on the basis of five aquariums in the Wuhan Institute of Hydrobiology, a subsidiary of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The museum boasts a wide variety of specimens of freshwater fish, algae and other marine resources and a specimen of the Chinese white dolphin,

Kungfu Shown in Romance
Chinese Kungfu Show, a performance that displays the best of the mysterious Chinese kungfu, is being staged at the Xinrong Theatre in Beijing beginning on April 16.

The first of its kind, "Chinese Kungfu Show" displays martial art within the structure of a dramatic story.

Presented by the Beijing Detian Shunyi Culture Development Company, the performance is aimed to entertain an increasing number of international travelers in Beijing.

The company plans to run the performance

Music for all Tastes in Beijing
American country music, symphonies played by the national symphony orchestra of Russia and Shanxi's Zuoquan folk drama will all be staged in Beijing during its 2002 international music festival which starts Monday.

The Russia national symphony orchestra will give three performances during the festival which runs from April 22 to May 9 and be held at the Zhongshan Park Music Hall.

Mary Lamont, a popular United States country music group is to perform during the festival.

In a

Green-Faced Terracotta Warrior to Be Shown in Xi'an
A green-faced terracotta warrior will be on show for the first time from May 4 to 8 at the Museum of Terracotta Warriors and Horses in Xi'an.

"This is the only green-faced warrior we have found among the 1,000 pink-faced terracotta warriors unearthed over the past two decades," said Wu Yongqi, curator of the museum in the capital of northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

The soldier with the green face was discovered in 1999 in the second pit of the tomb of Emperor Qin Shihuang, the f

Upcoming Holiday Rush Inspires Insurers
While Chinese around the country pack their bags and make travel plans for the upcoming seven-day May Day holiday, insurers are racking their brains for ways to benefit from the expected spending boom. Ping An Insurance Co, one of the country's largest insurers, is pinning its hopes on its "holiday insurance" which it is promoting to individuals for the first time. Travellers only need to pay a 10 yuan (US$1.2) premium for a 40,000 yuan (US$4,800) indemnity policy during the coming holiday, whic

ROK Vacations Popular in China
An increasing number of Chinese people are choosing to travel to the Republic of Korea (ROK) during the Labor Day vacation, before the World Cup games begin. Zhang Yingxin, a physical education teacher in Beijing Number 4 high school, has planned a ROK trip with his family. "My wife and son will not have time to go when the Game starts, so I will go by myself by then. But this trip is a family trip." Chen Qingyu, an employee of China World Hotel, said that this year marks the establishment of di

US Envoy to Travel to DPRK
A US envoy is to travel to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in a bid to break the stalemate on contacts between Washington and its Cold War rival since US President George W. Bush entered the White House, a senior US official said Monday. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it had not yet been decided exactly when the envoy, Jack Pritchard, would visit Pyongyang. But the move will be greeted as the first sign of an easing of the crisis in DPRK-US relations, which erup

Heritage Sites Come to City
Want to see the wonders of the world? Well, now you don't have to travel thousands of miles to appreciate World Heritage sites like Cambodia's Angkor Wat, the Taj Mahal in India or Germany's Hanseatic City of Lubeck. You can see them, to an extent, in Shanghai - at China's first Inter-national Tourism Resources and Travel Products Development Exhibition. The three-day show, displaying pictures of about 100 World Heritage sites from five countries, began yesterday at Intex Shanghai. Some 20 cultu

ROK Vacations Popular in China
An increasing number of Chinese people are choosing to travel to the Republic of Korea (ROK) during the Labor Day vacation, before the World Cup games begin. Zhang Yingxin, a physical education teacher in Beijing Number 4 high school, has planned a ROK trip with his family. "My wife and son will not have time to go when the Game starts, so I will go by myself by then. But this trip is a family trip." Chen Qingyu, an employee of China World Hotel, said that this year marks the establishment of di

Shanghai Int'l Film Festival Attracts Overseas Studios
More than 670 films and TV programs from studios and TV organizations in 46 countries and regions are to participate in the 6th Shanghai International Film Festival scheduled for June.

The film festival, which this year coincides with the 9th Shanghai TV festival, is the only one of its kind in China and one of only two A category international film festivals in Asia.

Major events at this year's film festival include an international film show, and a film and TV program trade fair.

China Vows to Improve People's Cultural Life
The first national conference on culture at the grassroots level since the founding of new China in 1949 is being held in Beijing from Monday to Wednesday.

Minister of Culture Sun Jiazheng said: "The conference itself indicates that Chinese culture, especially culture at the grassroots level, has been upgraded from a departmental activity to a government activity."

With steady improvement in material living standards and the obvious changes in knowledge levels, the cultural needs o

Cathay Pacific, Air Hong Kong To Restructure Cargo Operations
Cathay Pacific Airways and Air Hong Kong recently jointly announced plans to restructure operations in order to maximize the efficiency of their cargo services and enable Air Hong Kong to focus on serving the Asia region.

From July 1 2002, Air Hong Kong will stop serving Brussels, Manchester and Dubai and continue to serve Osaka and Seoul.

Air Hong Kong currently operates three Boeing 747-200 freighters leased from Cathay Pacific. Two of those aircraft will be returned to resume op

HK: Cross-boundary Passenger Flow to Soar During Labor Day
About 2.9 million people are expected to cross Hong Kong's land boundary checkpoints to and from the Chinese mainland during the upcoming Labor Day festive period, a rise of 13.9 percent from the same period of 2001.

A spokesman for the Immigration Department of Hong Kong said Monday that the peak period would fall between April 30 and May 8.

It is estimated about 2.47 million passengers, a daily average of 274,000, will cross the boundary via the Lo Wu checkpoint, representing 85

Islands' Glamour Recommended to HK Visitors in May
The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced Friday its "Recommendation of May" to visitors is Hong Kong's islands.

The tourism department aimed to send a message that "Hong Kong possessed both a cosmopolitan atmosphere and green resources."

"The City of Life boasts more than 260 scenic islands, as well as nearly 40 percent of land conserved in country parks, all easily accessible within an hour," said Clara Chong, HKTB's executive director.

A series of promotion activities

Green Toilet to Spread in South China Guangxi
An environmentally friendly toilet which could separate urine and faecal waste to create fertilizer is to be widely spread in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

Bai Xianjing, deputy-director of the local Red Cross Society, said Friday that thanks to the ecological toilet popularization project jointly sponsored by China Red Cross Society and the Europe Union, nearly 4,000 of the toilets will be built in the Karst area of the region.

The ecological toilet could separate

China Celebrates First National Dance Festival-Kunming
The opening ceremony for China's first national dance festival was held in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan province, on Sunday.

The 21-day festival has attracted over 4,000 famous dancers from throughout China and foreign countries such as Brazil and Germany.

While 140 local dancers compete for awards in solo and pairs dancing, foreign dancers will be showing their skills in Chinese dancing.

Xu Rongkai, governor of Yunnan, said dancing is an important part of Ch

Buddhist Culture Fair Opens in Central China City-Luoyang
The First China Buddhist Culture and International Tourist Fair opened in Luoyang in central China's Henan Province Sunday.

Over 10,000 people attended the opening ceremony at the White Horse Temple, the first officially-sanctioned Buddhist temple in China, founded in 68 A.D. and widely recognized as the cradle of China's Buddhist culture.

The highlight of the ceremony was the unveiling of marble monuments, on which were inscribed the Scripture of 42 Chapters, the first ever Buddhi

Beauty Who Lived 2,200 Years Ago Revived in Pictures
A Chinese professor has made four portraits of a beautiful woman who lived about 2,200 years ago.

The portraits were produced with the help of an X-ray of the skull of a well-preserved corpse unearthed at Mawangdui in Changsha, central China's Hunan Province, a picture of the whole body, and a portrait-developing system which applies high-tech three-dimensional animation, said Zhao Chengwen, who created the portraits.

Zhao is a professor with the Chinese Criminal Police Institute b

Shanghai to Build CBD in Pudong District
Shanghai, China's leading industrial, financial and commercial center, has pledged to turn Lujiazui area into a well-equipped central business district (CBD)within some 10 years.

Under a unified plan, all buildings at Lujiazui in Pudong New District will be linked by crossovers and building blocks for banks, multinational and other sectors will be constructed.

By 2005, the floorspace at Lujiazui financial and trade zone will cover 12 million sq. m. From 180-200 financial and insura

How Old is Shanghai?
The recently excavated relics at the local Guangfulin archaeological site indicate that Shanghai may have been a magnet for migrants more than 4,000 years ago.

Many new archaeo-logical evidence unearthed in suburban Song-jiang District may debunk the long-accepted assertion that Shanghai started out as a humble fishing village during the Tang Dynasty (A.D 618-907). The evidence suggests that the region was a magnet for people from other parts of China some 4,000 years ago.

"Artifac

Chinese Aviation Sector to Ensure Safety of Holiday Travel
More Chinese people will be traveling during the Labor Day vacation and many of these people will choose to fly, says an official with the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC).

He says the Chinese aviation industry has pledged to arrange chartered planes according to the market demand.

He also says the number of added flights and chartered planes arranged by airlines companies totals 1,693 with 269,000 seats available. Most of the destinations are tourist cities

Chinese Enjoy Colorful Labor Day Holiday
Some 300,000 people gathered in the Tian'anmen Square to watch the national flag rise with the sun to mark the prelude to a week-long holiday beginning Wednesday, the International Labor Day. Chen Ronghui, 21, in a cook's uniform, said, "It is most special to watch the flag hoisting in a working uniform on the International Labor Day." Chen, from Yangzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province, said he planned to climb mountains in the outskirts of Beijing later in the morning. Visitors and natives al

S. Korea Tour Popular, Holiday Bookings Up
An increasing number of Chinese are traveling to South Korea during the International Labor Day holiday, according to agency. Dun Jidong, an official with China Travel Service, said, "Although the cost to travel to South Korea is a bit higher than to many other destinations, Chinese tourists still flock to book tickets to go." It is estimated that more than 5,000 Chinese tourists have been organized by 10 travel agencies in Beijing to travel to South Korea during the weeklong holiday. South Kore

Chinese Enjoy Colorful Labor Day Holiday
Some 300,000 people gathered in the Tian'anmen Square to watch the national flag rise with the sun to mark the prelude to a week-long holiday beginning Wednesday, the International Labor Day. Chen Ronghui, 21, in a cook's uniform, said, "It is most special to watch the flag hoisting in a working uniform on the International Labor Day." Chen, from Yangzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province, said he planned to climb mountains in the outskirts of Beijing later in the morning. Visitors and natives al

Chinese Enjoy Colorful Labor Day Holiday
Some 300,000 people gathered in the Tian'anmen Square to watch the national flag rise with the sun to mark the prelude to a week-long holiday beginning Wednesday, the International Labor Day. Chen Ronghui, 21, in a cook's uniform, said, "It is most special to watch the flag hoisting in a working uniform on the International Labor Day." Chen, from Yangzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province, said he planned to climb mountains in the outskirts of Beijing later in the morning. Visitors and natives al

Downhill Skiing Saloms into Shanghai
Downhill skiing in Shanghai. It sounds ridiculous, but a local development company is investing 300 million yuan (US$36.2 million) to make it possible, with the new trails scheduled to open, naturally, during the sweltering heat of July. The indoor ski facility will be the second of its kind in China, following in the trail of Largeski of Alps in Shenzhen, a company with a balance sheet as unimpressive as its name. The new facility will be the second- largest of its kind in the world - second on

Chinese Take a Break for Holiday
The week-long Labour Day holiday, from yesterday to May 7, gives Chinese people the chance to take a breather from the increasing pressures of the workplace and the accelerated pace of life. The increase in transportation indicated that going outdoors still remained the top choice for many Chinese to enjoy their holidays. Beijing Railway Station saw a total of 170,000 passengers on Tuesday, and the number was continuously increasing, according to a Xinhua report. The capital's railway bureau has

Chinese Travel Agencies Open New Holiday Routes
Chinese travel agencies have opened up a variety of new routes for the Labor Day vacation which is to end on Tuesday. Hu Shuwei, an official with China Travel International Ltd., said that Chinese tourists have been permitted to travel to New Zealand for several years. In order to attract more people, the company promoted an unique trip to the location where the film The Lord of the Rings was shot, so that tourists could enjoy the beauty of New Zealand while recalling the scenes from the film. "

Travel Agencies Open New Holiday Routes
Chinese travel agencies have opened up a variety of new routes for the Labor Day vacation which is to end on Tuesday. Hu Shuwei, an official with China Travel International Ltd., said that Chinese tourists have been permitted to travel to New Zealand for several years. In order to attract more people, the company promoted a unique trip to the location where the film the Lord of the Rings was shot, so that tourists could enjoy the beauty of New Zealand while recalling the scenes from the film. "P

Stowaways Hit Hard in Zhejiang
Authorities in East China's Zhejiang Province have intensified their efforts to seize stowaways and suspects on the run. As a prosperous coastal province in East China, Zhejiang has long been one of the few locations for criminals to run away from the country, said Zan Naidong, an officer with the provincial frontier guards. "By trying to enter other countries illegally, these people are not only silly enough to risk their own lives, but they have also damaged our country's image," Zan said. Zan

Stowaways Hit Hard in Zhejiang
Authorities in East China's Zhejiang Province have intensified their efforts to seize stowaways and suspects on the run. As a prosperous coastal province in East China, Zhejiang has long been one of the few locations for criminals to run away from the country, said Zan Naidong, an officer with the provincial frontier guards. "By trying to enter other countries illegally, these people are not only silly enough to risk their own lives, but they have also damaged our country's image," Zan said. Zan

Baiyun Int'l Airport Handles 330,000 Passengers in Tourist Peak
The Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport has handled over 3,300 flights and 330,000 passengers during the seven-day May Day holiday ending Tuesday. The numbers of flights and passengers through the airport have increased by eight percent and four percent, respectively, according to statistics. Large Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Xi'an, as well as scenic attractions such as Huangshan, Hangzhou and Guilin, have been the most popular destinations for the out-going flights. Many p

All 112 on Crashed China Northern Plane Dead
All 112 passengers and crew on board a China Northern Airlines plane that crashed into the sea off China's northeast coast have died, the airline announced Wednesday. "None of the 103 passengers and nine crew has survived," said a written statement handed to relatives of those on board the MD-82 airliner which crashed near the city of Dalian on Tuesday night. The China Northern Airlines plane on a domestic flight from Beijing crashed late Tuesday just short of its destination in Dalian, a major

Plane Crashes Kills 18 in Tunis
An Egypt Air flight jolted in the air and sparks surged through the cabin before the plane crashed as it tried to land in Tunis, said a survivor of the accident that killed at least 18 people. The plane, a Boeing 737 carrying 62 people from Cairo, nearly split into two after ramming into a hill about six kilometers (four miles) from the Tunis-Carthage airport on Tuesday. EgyptAir issued a statement saying 18 people had died and 25 were injured. Authorities at the Tunis airport said several peopl

Boeing's Consultancy Work Under Way at Beijing Airport
With China forecast to be the leading Asia Pacific country for air traffic by 2014, Boeing 's study for the Beijing Capital International Airport is now under way. Beth Keck, a Hong Kong-based vice-president of Boeing Air Traffic Management (ATM) specializing in business development in the Asian region, said in a press luncheon May 6 in Hong Kong that the company recently signed its first contract with the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and has embarked on a six-month study on the

China to Cautiously Lift Ban on Private Trading of Cultural Relics
China is considering cautiously lifting the ban on the private trading of cultural relics, according to draft amendments to the cultural relics law presented to the legislature for review recently.

China should "appropriately" open the cultural relics market on the basis of tight management and monitoring, and allow for private trading conditionally, said Zhou Keyu, vice-chairman of the Law Committee of China's National People's Congress, when explaining the draft at the beginning of a fi

Auction Sees Record Price for Chinese Painting
A Chinese painting featuring rare birds drawn by an emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) and retrieved from overseas sold for 25.3 million yuan at a Chinese spring auction recently.

A spokesperson for the auctioneer said that this was the highest price paid at auction for a Chinese painting to date.

Bidding for the painting began at 7.8 million yuan and soared to a final price of 25.3 million yuan. But the buyer declined to be identified.

The spokeperson also said

Auction Sees High Price for Emperor's Seals
Two seals once used by an emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) and recently retrieved from overseas sold for 3.55 million yuan at a Chinese spring auction recently.

It is the first time an emperor's seal has been auctioned in China.

Bidding for the seals which were said to be used by Emperor Kang Xi, the fourth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, began at 500,000 yuan but soared to a final price of 3.55 million yuan.

A spokesperson for the auctioneer said that the seals were ret

China's Family Internet Population Could be World's Second Largest
A possible 56.6 million Chinese could "surf the net" with their families, making the China mainland family Internet population, second only to the United States, according to a survey released by Nielsen/NetRatings.

Sources from Nielsen/NetRatings said that although the number of families on the China mainland who have home access to the internet is only around 5 percent, far below that of the United States, the Republic of Korea, Singapore and Hong Kong, China has the potential to extend

China Expands Broadcasting, TV Networks in Western Regions
A project aiming to expand the coverage of broadcasting and television networks in western China is well underway.

The "Tibet-Xinjiang Project", which is expected to strengthen communication channels and stimulate local economic development in China's western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and Tibet Autonomous Region, started in 2000 with full financial support from the central government.

At an national conference on grassroots cultural activities held in Beijing, Memtimin Zekir

Facelift For Thousand Armed Guanyin Statue
Work has started on the restoration of the over 800-year-old Qianshou (A Thousand Hands) Guanyin statue on Mount Baoding in Dazu County, southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

The project is proceeding well and is expected to be completed within three years, local museum sources told Xinhua.

Historical records show that the statue of Guanyin, or the Goddess of Mercy, was last restored more than 300 years ago during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

Due to hundreds of years of

Two Foreign Firms Debut in Beijing Every Day
Beijing on average has witnessed the debut of two foreign-investment firms every day in the first quarter of the year, according to China Youth Daily.

Li Zhao, director of Beijing Foreign Trade Commission, said two agencies for foreign firms also opened every day during the period on average, adding the growth of foreign investment in Beijing was on an "unprecedentedly" strong momentum.

Beijing approved a total of 259 foreign firms during the first three months of this year, actual

China Alarmed by Imported Pests
China will intensify its import inspections to guard against the introduction of alien pests, the General Administration of Quality Supervision and Quarantine (GAQSQ) has warned.

It made the declaration after the recent alarming discoveries in Hubei, Guangdong and Beijing of insect pests like longicorns, bark beetles and white ants in imported wood packaging from the European Union (EU).

After evaluating the risks, experts said that most pests found in EU wood packaging were foreig

First Folk Customs Festival Opens in E. China
China's first folk customs festival opened last Monday in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province.

The festival, co-held by the Nanjing University, Nanjing municipal tourism bureau and Qinhuai district government, will feature displays of traditional Chinese marriage ceremonies, folk art exhibitions, and performances by folk artists.

An official from the organizing committee said that the nine-day festival had already attracted nearly 100 folk artists from more than 10 pr

Yunnan Province to expand tourism market
Yunnan Province in Southwest China, a tourist attraction with colorful natural scenery and different lifestyles of 26 ethnic groups, is to step up efforts to better serve tourists with quality tourism products including tour programs and tourism commodities.

Statistics provided at the third Kunming tourism products fair, which concluded in Kunming last Friday, show that tourism has become a pillar industry of the province, which received 48.6 million domestic and foreign tourists last yea

Local Government Applies to Place Qiantang Tide on World Heritage List
Haining city, in east China's Zhejiang Province, has applied to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to have the tide of the Qiantang River placed on the World Heritage list.

Wang Jiren, director of the Haining City Tourism Bureau, said that preparations for inviting UNESCO officials and experts to make an on-the-spot investigation in the near future were well under way.

"The tide is a valuable heritage both of China and the world as a whole

Scenic Spots Received 14 Million Travelers During May Day Holiday
Yesterday marked the end of May Day holiday. According to initial statistics from National Holiday Office, major tourist attractions and scenic spots received a total of 14 million travelers. The total earnings of entrance tickets alone are estimated to top 500 million-yuan. The figure shows a big rise as compared with that of previous years with number of travel agencies and charter planes or trains set a record high in history. Many cities promoted their tourism by taking the great advantage o

Tragedy Clouds Air Industry Reshuffle
Civil aviation industry insiders suggested yesterday the latest plane crash would deal another blow to the ongoing regrouping of China's aviation industry, planned to be inaugurated within two years. The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) announced early this year that the State Council had authorized the merger of nine major state-owned domestic airlines into three groups, based on Beijing's Air China, Shanghai's China Eastern and Guangzhou's China Southern Airlines. Air China's jet

250 Suspects Caught in Prostitution Crackdown
Guangdong and Hong Kong police arrested more than 250 suspects on Tuesday in a joint campaign against organized cross-border prostitution. According to police from Guangdong Province, the criminal gang was allegedly headed by Zheng Huiqiang, a member of a secret society in Hong Kong called 14K. The secret society controlled most of brothels in eastern Kowloon and Monk Kok. Leading members of the gang colluded with criminals in Huizhou, Shanwei, Shenzhen and Zhuhai, all in Guangdong Province. The

Labor Day Rally Held in HK
The Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions held a gathering on May 1 at the Victoria Park to celebrate the International Labor Day.

More than 2,000 Hong Kong trade union members and residents participated in the event, with a theme of "employment, rights and benefits, mutual help and striving."

The federation set up dozens of booths providing employment information, consultation on labor laws and other employment-related activities.

Cheng Yiu-tong, chairman of the federation,

Beijingers Busy "Upskilling" in Holidays
Li Yanfen, an employee with a foreign-funded business in Beijing, got up earlier than usual on Friday, the third day of the 7-day May holidays. She was going to the other side of the city to attend the opening ceremony of a "public speaking class" offered by Beijing Dazhao School.

She will spend the remaining four days of the holidays with 20-odd classmates in the speech class. "It's not too much time, but it's better than going to the class during work days," said Li. She said that most

People Flocking to Beijing Duck Restaurants During Labor Day Vacation
Leading roast Beijing duck seller, Quan Ju De Roast Duck Restaurants in Beijing, have been selling roast ducks like hot cakes during holidays around the Labor Day, bringing in an average daily income of two million yuan (240,963 US dollars).

The main restaurant in Qianmen on May 4 sold a record 3,783 roast ducks and served a record 5,620 customers, raking in 720,000 yuan (86,746 US dollars).

From May 1 to May 4, the Quan Ju De Roast Duck Restaurant in Qianmen fed over 20,000 custom

Baiyun Int'l Airport Handles 330,000 Passengers in Tourist PeakWeek
The Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport has handled over 3,300 flights and 330,000 passengers during the seven-day May Day holiday ending Tuesday.

The numbers of flights and passengers through the airport have increased by eight percent and four percent, respectively, according to statistics.

Large Chinese cities including Beijing, Shanghai and Xi'an, as well as scenic attractions such as Huangshan, Hangzhou and Guilin,have been the most popular destinations for the out-going fl

Roundup: Chinese Enjoy Colorful Labor Day Holiday
Some 300,000 people gathered in the Tian'anmen Square to watch the national flag rise with the sun to mark the prelude to a week-long holiday beginning on May 1, the International Labor Day.

Chen Ronghui, 21, in a cook's uniform, said, "It is most special to watch the flag hoisting in a working uniform on the International Labor Day."

Chen, from Yangzhou in east China's Jiangsu Province, said he planned to climb mountains in the outskirts of Beijing later in the morning.

Vis

Tibet Completes Clean Drinking Water Projects
Southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region is to invest 800 million yuan in building and completing 143 water conservancy and drinking water projects this year.

About 400 million yuan will be used for building 93 new projects and the remaining half for projects started in previous years.

Preparations for the early stages of 70 of 100 designated small hydro-electric power projects for the 2001-2005 period will be completed within the year.

Due to the arid climate and poor wate

Captured Smuggled Relics on Show in Xiamen
Xiamen Customs Office has handed over 28 confiscated cultural relics and five animal samples to a local museum in a brief ceremony.

The customs office is checking, or preparing to hand over to the museum, 3,000 more ancient relics that were seized by customs officers while combating smugglers over recent years, according to Jin Mingfeng, deputy director of the customs office.

Since 1990, the customs office has handed over more than 1,000 ancient relics to the museum, making one ten

Scientists find oldest placental mammal fossil
A team of Chinese and American scientists say they have found a 125-million-year-old fossil of an animal that is the most primitive known relative of today's higher mammals, including humans and primates.

The remains of the creature, Eomaia scansoria, push back the fossil records of so-called placental mammals by millions of years and provide a wealth of information about them.

Mammals that nourish their young in the womb through an organ called the placenta account for the vast ma

Chinese Paper-Cut Makers titled Artists-Shaanxi
Six paper-cut makers in northwest China's Shaanxi Province were recently bestowed the title of folk paper-cut artists by China's Ministry of Culture and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

They are all female farmers and cultivate ardent love for paper-cutting since childhood.

Bai Fenglian, 70, decorated her home with a variety of paper-cut works. She said she had demonstrated paper-cuting in France and the United States respectively in 19

Beijing to Set Up Museum for Ancient Sacrificial Music in the Temple of Heaven
A museum featuring ancient Chinese sacrificial music will soon be set up in the Temple of Heaven in Beijing.

The museum is built on the basis of a place formerly for staging dance and music for royal rituals. It was first built in the early 15th century and operated till the early 20th century. Then it was damaged during times of war.

The place is one of five major buildings at the Temple of Heaven, which was given world heritage listing by the United Nations Educational, Scientifi

China Finds Oldest Environmental Protection Rule-Gansu Province
China was taking legal measures to protect the natural environment as early as West Han Dynasty (206 BC - 24 AD), according to the latest archeological discovery from northwest China's Gansu Province.

The country's oldest rule on environmental protection was written on a piece of wall dug from a Han Dynasty ruin between October 1990 and December 1992 in Dunhuang by archaeologists with the Gansu Provincial Institute of Heritage and Archaeology.

In reviewing their findings, the archa

China Northwestern Airlines Opens New Routes to Japan
China Northwestern Airlines has added two new routes to Japan, bringing the company's total number of international routes to ten.

China Northwest now operates 26 return flights to Japan each week, putting it up among Chinese airlines with the most flights to Japanese cities, according to company sources.

Airbus 320 and Airbus 310 planes will fly the two newly opened routes of Shanghai-Oita and Xi'an-Shanghai-Tokyo.

The flight from Shanghai to Oita is 1,045 km and takes one

Sino-Japanese Tourism Exchange Launched
More than 1,600 Chinese tourism officials launched an industry exchange in Japan on May 8 to commemorate the normalization of bilateral relations.

The officials from 31 provincial and municipality tourism bureaus as well as 3,000 from tourism enterprises will attend the event, which will mainly be held in Tokyo and Osaka.

Experts said the event would display Chinese culture and promote bilateral tourism exchanges between the two countries.

Statistics show Japan ranks as the

Thriving Private Inn on Ancient Trade Route
The Dainzin Inn in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region has become increasingly popular among domestic and overseas visitors in recent years. People are attracted to the inn mainly because it is on an ancient trade route. Guests at the inn can see Mount Qomolangma (Everest), Zhaxi Lhunbo Lamasery and Zongshan Castle. The first private hotel in Xigaze, Dainzin Inn was built back in 1986 by Doiso Dainzin, a Tibetan caravan or carriage driver. The three-story inn faces a courier station across

Red-crowned Crane Can't Recognize Destroyed Wetlands
The Zhalong Nature Reserve in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province -- China's largest red-crane habitat -- has again been hit by fire. Although the fire was extinguished thanks to the efforts of local government and residents, the reserve was damaged beyond recognition, and returning cranes cannot find out their previous home. A large area of the reed pond of Zhalong reserve caught fire last October, and although the flames were extinguished, the fire continues to burn under the reed pond due

South China Guangxi Attracts 2.7 Million Tourists
The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in south China, celebrated for its rich tourism resources,attracted over 2.7 million travelers during the past week-long holidays, which began on May 1.

Guangxi also reported a rise of 11.5 percent in tourist numbers and of 18.9 percent in tourism revenue during the May 1-7 period, compared with the same period of last year.

The local travel bureau attributes the surge in the "golden tour week" to a favorable climate for traveling and a well-org

Chinese Travel Agencies Open New Holiday Routes
Chinese travel agencies have opened up a variety of new routes for the Labor Day vacation which is to end on Tuesday.

Hu Shuwei, an official with China Travel International Ltd., said that Chinese tourists have been permitted to travel to New Zealand for several years. In order to attract more people, the company promoted an unique trip to the location where the film the Lord of the Rings was shot, so that tourists could enjoy the beauty of New Zealand while recalling the scenes from the

Rail Travelers Reach 35.16 Million During Labor Day Holiday
China's Ministry of Railways announced here Wednesday that 35.16 million passengers traveled by train between April 28 and May 7, with an average of 3.516 million each day.

China's railway sector made advance preparations for the flood of tourists, and an additional 46 tourist express trains and 51 passenger trains were brought into service during the week-long International Labor Day holidays which ended on May 7.

According to a Railway Ministry official, the ministry made arrange

Shanghai Plays Host to 3.6mn Visitors During Labor Week
Shanghai received some 3.6 million tourists from home and abroad during the Labor Day holiday,8.4 percent more than last year,the municipal Tourism Commission said.

The total revenue in the sector reached 2.12 billion yuan (US$255million) during the period,14 percent higher than the previous year,officials said.

Officials with Shanghai Railway Station said tourists from western and northern China increased significantly this year.The city is attracting more people from the west of

China Sets Up First Abacus Museum In Shanxi Province
China's first abacus museum has opened with a collection of over 600 abaci in Qixian County of North China's Shanxi Province.

The abaci, all collected by Zhou Baolin, a local resident, vary in standards, shapes, materials and lengths.

In terms of standards, the collection contains seven-bead models of two-up, five-down; five-bead models of one-up, four-down;and nine-bead models, one-up, three-middle and five-down.

The abaci differ in shapes from square, octagon, trapezia, tr

China's Oldest Percussion Instrument Discovered
Two bronze cymbals believed to be more than 3,000 years old and the oldest percussion instruments in China have been discovered by archaeologists in Yongxiu County, east China's Jiangxi Province.

Archaeologists from the Jiangxi Provincial Archaeological Research Institute say that this kind of musical instrument was popular in the late Shang Dynasty (16th century B.C.-11th century B.C.), and was usually used by the army and during sacrificial ceremonies and feasts.

One of the two c

World's Largest Polar Marine Animal Museum to Open in China-Dalian
A Guiness Record Certificate was issued recently by the Guiness Book of Records' Headquarters in Shanghai to the Dalian Laohutan Museum naming it as the world's largest museum for polar region marine animals.

The museum in northeast China's Liaoning Province cost 400 million yuan to construct and opened for business on April 28.

Composed of the Polar Region Hall and the Sea Beasts Hall, the museum houses 153 polar sea animals of 11 species.

Animals on display include beluga,

Railway on Roof of the World Uses Russian Knowhow
China will refer to Russian technology and knowhow in building the world's highest railway, the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, officials said in Shenyang recently.

Construction of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway may face similar technical problems to those of the Siberian railway line, said Chen Chunyang, an official from the Chinese Ministry of Railways, at a current exhibition on Russian high tech.

Problems included how to lay rails on frozen soil and fix roadbeds in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, whi

Young Japanese Commemorate Nanjing Massacre, Pray for Peace
Over 80 young members of the Japanese civilian group "Peaceboat" and their Chinese peers on Monday commemorated the Nanjing Massacre committed by the invading Japanese army 65 years ago.

Young people from the two countries released doves in Nanjing, and talked to two elderly Chinese survivors of the massacre, hearing their condemnation of the atrocities Chinese civilians suffered from the Japanese army.

Zhu Chengshan, director of the Museum for Victims of the Nanjing Massacre, said

World's Third Biggest Canyon in Tibet: Scientists
Two Chinese scientists announced in Lhasa recently that the Great Polungtsangpo Canyon in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region is the third biggest canyon in the world.

The discovery was made by Zhang Wenjing and Yang Yichou, research fellows at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, after years of scientific study. Their research will soon be published.

The Great Polungtsangpo Canyon, located at Nyingchi County in eastern Tibet, averages 3556 meters in depth, with the deepest secti

Tianjin Readies for 2002 BusinessWeek Forum
Over 500 political, business and academic dignitaries have registered to attend the upcoming 2002 BusinessWeek Forum in Tianjin, due to open on May 8.

Co-hosted by the Tianjin municipal government and BusinessWeek,a well-known economic publication, the forum has attracted attention from home and abroad to Tianjin, a major port and economic hub in north China, according to Chen Su, deputy director of Tianjin's Information Office.

With the theme of "New Century, New Horizons: Busines

Int'l Motorcycle Festival Set for NW China Ningxia
The Third International Motorcycle Tourism Festival will be staged from June 16 to 22 in Yinchuan, the capital city of northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

An official from the festival organizing committee said that more than 3,000 motorcyclists from home and overseas were expected to attend the event. Participants are expected from the United States, Australia, Germany and Italy.

Motorcycle contests, exhibitions and tourism activities will beheld during the seven-day

Holidaymakers drum up economy
Beijing earnt 3.44 billion yuan (US$414.5 million) during the May Day holiday, 94.1 per cent of which came from tourists.

Cars, electric appliances and food sales were also the three highlights.

The Quanjude restaurant in Qianmen - famous for its roast Peking duck - received 5,620 guests on May 4 and earned a total of 720,000 yuan (US$86,700), setting a new record in its history for the highest amount of sales in one day.

The week-long holiday has created good opportunities

Vice-Premier Inspects Plane Wreckage
Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo has visited the site of the May 7 air crash of a China Northern Airlines passenger plane off the coast of Dalian, in Northeast China's Liaoning Province. Wu, on behalf of President Jiang Zemin and Premier Zhu Rongji, comforted relatives of the victims and thanked all those devoted to the rescue efforts. During his stay, from May 9-10, Wu inspected part of the remains of the aircraft, and heard reports on the accident, witnessed rescue activities and local government inves

Guangdong to Issue New Travel Document to HK & Macao
The move aims to further expand non-governmental exchanges and contact between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions (SARs) in south China, the paper quoted Deng Pufeng, deputy director of the Exit and Entry Department under the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Public Security, as saying. Currently, residents are only given permission to visit immediate family members. The introduction of the new travel document will be of great significance towards promoting economic ti

Guangdong to Issue New Travel Document to HK & Macao
South China's Guangdong Province will lead the country in administering a new travel document from May 20 for Chinese residents wishing to visit Hong Kong and Macao. The move aims to further expand non-governmental exchanges and contact between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions (SARs) in south China, Deng Pufeng, deputy director of the Exit and Entry Department under the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Public Security, said. Currently, residents are only given permi

Carter Welcomed in Cuba
Flashing his trademark smile, Jimmy Carter arrived in Cuba on Sunday and became the first US president -- in or out of office -- to visit the country since the 1959 revolution that put Fidel Castro in power. Dressed in a gray suit, Castro, 75, greeted Carter, 77, at the airport with a handshake and symbolically threw open the doors of the island to the former American head of state. Castro said the former president could speak with anyone ``even if they do not share our endeavors,'' an obvious r

Latest Discovery Challenges China's Paper-making Theory
China may already have paper in real terms during the Western Han Dynasty (206BC-AD24), experts said after the recent discovery of a batch of ancient paper pieces from the Xuanquanzhi ruins of Dunhuang in northwest China's Gansu Province. The newly unearthed paper is expected to be of the earliest paper found in the world by now and may push China's paper-making history back to the Western Han Dynasty, about a century earlier than the widely acknowledged time of the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD25-220

A Night Stay in a Farmer?￥s House at Huanglong
When people plan a trip to Sichuan Province in southwest China, they always put Huanglong (Yellow Dragon) and Jiuzhaigou (Nine Village Valley) on the top of their itineraries. Both scenic spots are World Heritage sites recognized for their unbelievably beautiful natural landscapes. However, as they are located in two different counties separated by high mountains (Jiuzhaigou in the county of the same name, which used to be called Nanping and Huanglong in Songpan), it is not convenient for DIY tr

News Analysis: Investment Breakthrough in China's Railway sector
China's railways staged their first ever overseas investment promotion for the Yantai-Dalian Railway Ferry Project in Beijing recently, which represents an investment breakthrough in the country's railway construction.

The new railway project between Yantai in east China and Dalian in northeast China will be operated and managed by Chinese and overseas investors in a form of joint-venture company.

Chi Baozhang, general manager of the Chinese sponsor, the Sinorail Bohai Train Ferry

Backgrounder: Yantai-Dalian Railway Ferry Project
The Yantai-Dalian Railway Ferry (YDRF) is an ocean railway corridor to be built by the Chinese government in the Bohai bay, connecting the provinces of Shandong and Liaoning.

It is the first major railway construction project which has accepted direct investment from overseas. It was officially approved by the government in 1997 and listed in the 10th Five-Year-Plan of Chinese Railways.

The railway project begins at Yangtouwa, Dalian City's Lushun District in the north and ends at

China Seeks Foreign Direct Investment for Yantai-Dalian Railway Ferry Project
Details of a project for a new railway ferry link between Yantai in east China and Dalian (YDRFP)in northeast China were presented in Beijing recently in order to draw direct foreign investment. This is a dramatic change in China's usual policy for financing railway construction projects.

According to the Chinese Ministry of Railways, the rail/ferry link begins in Dalian City at the south end of the Liaodong Peninsular and terminates in Yantai City in the north part of Shandong peninsular

Taste of America in Northeast China City
An American fresh and frozen food festival is running in Dalian, a major port city in north China's Liaoning Province.

The 23-day festival, which opened on April 27, is jointly sponsored by Wal-Mart China Co. Ltd, the United States Agricultural Trade Office and five other organizations- the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute, Sunkist Growers, the US Poultry and Egg Export Council, US Meat Export Federation and US Potato Board.

During the festival, the first of its kind in China, ge

Variety of events held in China to commemorate Victo Hugo
Guangzhou, capital city of south China's Guangdong province, began a series of memorial events on April 27 marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of the great French writer, Victor Hugo.

Zhongshan University held a memorial ceremony for Hugo on April 27, attended by Pierre Morel, French ambassador to China, and Marie Hugo, great-granddaughter of Victor Hugo.

An exhibition, titled "the art and life of Victor Hugo", was held in Guangdong Art Gallery on the afternoon of April 27,

500 Million Chinese Farmers Drink Tap Water
Some 500 million Chinese farmers have drunk tap water and more than 100 million farmers have access to hygienic toilets, according to sources from the fourth national rural water administration reform meeting.

The meeting, held in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, also announced recently that so far a total of 674,000 waterworks have been built in the country's rural areas and 48.91 million motor-pumped wells have been dug.

In recent years, the Chinese government has increa

China wants to compete tulip with peony in world market
The 1,000-year old tale makes the peony sacred to the Chinese people and for natives of Luoyang in particular. Whenever they think of a national flower, the peony is always high on the list.

Now China wants to challenge the Netherlands, producer of the world's best selling flower of tulip. And China hopes to make peony the most popular flower in the world.

In 1999, the State Development Planning Commission approved a large farming project -- the Chinese Peony (Luoyang) Pilot Projec

China Returns Endangered Alligators to Wild
China has started returning captive-bred Yangtze alligators to their natural habitat in a project to boost numbers in the wild.

More than ten reserve zones will be set up in Anhui, Zhejiang, Shanghai and Jiangsu in the next ten years, covering 150 to 200 hectares which will be able accommodate 300 to 500 alligators.

The program, which is supported by the World Conservation Union,is aimed at turning China's efforts from captive breeding toward returning alligators to the wild and pr

5,000-Year-Old Totem Discovered in East China
A mysterious bird-shaped pottery instrument believed to be 5,000 years old has been unearthed by archaeologists at the ruins of Yuchi Temple in Mengcheng county of Anhui Province, east China.

Archaeologists said that the instrument was the most intact totem that has been excavated from the ruins of the culture of Dawenkou, a primitive Chinese society dating back to 4,300-2,400 B.C.

They said that the totem was of great significance in the study of the history of early pottery, and

Beijing, IOC hold initial working session on 2008 Olympics
China and the International Olympic Committee recently began their first working session on the organization of the 2008 Olympics, kicking off formal preparations for China's first-ever Olympics.

Hein Verbruggen, chairman of the IOC Coordination Commission, met Beijing mayor Liu Qi and executive president of the Beijing Organizing Committee of the Olympic Games (BOCOG) Yuan Weimin to discuss preparations for the Games, that were awarded to China's capital last July.

During the thre

Calls for Palace Museum facelift hearings rejected
A facelift project in Beijing of the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, will continue as scheduled despite calls for public hearings.

Officials with the State Bureau of Cultural Relics confirmed that work will continue after an article carried by China Youth Daily suggested that public hearings should be held to decide on the general plan for the expensive renovation project.

"Since the Palace Museum is considered a world as well as a national treasure, its repairing

Chinese first fashion week "Moda Beijing" slated for August
To stage a fashion show in Tian' anmen Square has always been a dream for the setters of Chinese fashion and "Moda Beijing," an international fashion week' will make that dream come true.

During the fashion week, scheduled for August, more than 100 domestic and overseas fashion designers will organize joint shows on the eastern side of the famous square.

The aim of the fashion week is to help develop an international fashion center in Beijing and promote competitiveness in the Chin

Macao-Singapore air route to open in July
An air route is scheduled to open between Macao and Singapore in July.

According to a memorandum of understanding signed between the Macao Government Tourist Office and Silkair, a Singaporean air carrier, there will be two round trips on the route each week.

Both sides have agreed to jointly hold various promotions, consolidate links among Macao, Singapore and southeast Asia and spur tourism development.

Macao will be the 24th destination in the flights provided by Silkair,

Red-eye Flight Ban Threatens Travel Agency
China's aviation watchdog's plan to ban all red-eye flights and tightly control chartered flight is likely to cause around 20 percent price increase on domestic tours, eastday.com reported today. The Civil Aviation Administration of China has announced plans two days ago to ban all red-eye flights, reduce air traffic and enforce an in-depth checkup of all pilots and airline employees following the crashes of two Chinese airplanes. The travel agencies of Guangzhou have held different attitude tow

Anhui Boosting Tourism Sector
Officials from several State ministries in Beijing approved a plan yesterday to develop the tourism industry in the next 20 years in East China's Anhui Province. Officials from the State Development Planning Commission, the National Tourism Administration (NTA) and the Development and Research Centre of the State Council joined experts led by Li Yining, vice-chairman of the Financial and Economic Committee of the National People's Congress, to approve the Overall Plan of Anhui Province's Tourism

Arafat Visits West Bank Damage
Making his first trip in six months, Yasser Arafat on Monday toured West Bank cities battered by the Israeli military, but drew relatively small crowds in a sign of growing dissatisfaction with the Palestinian leadership. Arafat skipped his most widely anticipated stop - the devastated Jenin refugee camp - pulling back at the last moment when aides feared he would be heckled in the stronghold for Islamic militants. With aides holding both his arms, the Palestinian leader stepped gingerly onto th

A Night Stay in a Farmer?House at Huanglong
When people plan a trip to Sichuan Province in southwest China, they always put Huanglong (Yellow Dragon) and Jiuzhaigou (Nine Village Valley) on the top of their itineraries. Both scenic spots are World Heritage sites recognized for their unbelievably beautiful natural landscapes. However, as they are located in two different counties separated by high mountains (Jiuzhaigou in the county of the same name, which used to be called Nanping and Huanglong in Songpan), it is not convenient for DIY tr

Compensation Package for Crash Victims Announced
China Northern Airlines unveiled its compensation packages to families of victims in last week's plane crash yesterday, with the maximum compensation reaching 194,000 yuan (US$23,400). Jiang Lianying, general manager of China Northern Airlines, said at a news conference that the firm would pay each of the passenger's families between 182,000 and 194,000 yuan (US$22,000-US$23,400) in compensation. Jiang said the compensation sum was in line with related laws and regulations of China's aviation in

Flight Ban Creates Confusion
Travel agencies in Shanghai are still trying to understand the implications of a weekend announcement by the country's aviation watchdog banning "red-eye flights," but travelers may end up paying more for their next trip to Hainan Island or the preserved forest of Zhangjiajie. The Civil Aviation Administration of China announced the ban in reaction to the crash of two Chinese airplanes within a month. Red-eye flights were introduced to China in the last few years as domestic airlines try to cash

Anhui Boosting Tourism Sector
Officials from several sate ministries in Beijing approved a plan yesterday to develop the tourism industry in the next 20 years in east China's Anhui Province. Officials from the State Development Planning Commission, the National Tourism Administration (NTA) and the Development and Research Centre of the State Council joined experts led by Li Yining, vice-chairman of the Financial and Economic Committee of the National People's Congress, to approve the Overall Plan of Anhui Province's Tourism

Macao Has More Tourists in March
A soaring number of tourists took advantage of Macao's spring-like scenery and sound weather to visit the special administrative region (SAR) in March.

Latest figures released by the Statistics and Census Services show that Macao received 189,100 tourists in March, representing a sharp increase of 64.5 percent on an annual basis.

China's inland was the largest tourist source for Macao, bringing 111,900 tourists. Other tourist groups were mainly from Taiwan, Japan and Hong Kong.

Macao Reports Robust Air Traffic
The Macao International Airport recorded continued strong traffic growth in the first four months of this year, with passengers handled in April hitting a monthly record of more than 380,000.

The airport handled a total of 1.33 million passengers from January to April, up 13 percent on a yearly basis, statistics show.

An airport source said that driven by vigorous cargo exports and transfer, goods handled in the four months soared 44 percent to more than 31,000 tons.

The air

Number of Visitors to HK Soars 11.8 Percent in March
Hong Kong received nearly 1.3 million visitors in March 2002, the second highest monthly total on record and an 11.8 percent increase compared with the same month in 2001, reported the Hong Kong Tourism Board recently.

As in previous recent months, visitors from the Chinese mainland accounted for a lion's share of the increase, recording 41.1 percent growth in March.

There were also positive growth figures from Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Americas, suggesting that confi

HK International Airport Voted World's Best Airport
Hong Kong International Airport has been voted the world's best airport for the second year running, according to an independent survey conducted by London-based Skytrax Research.

The survey was based on the views of 1.4 million passengers polled between September last year and March this year.

"Hong Kong has clearly established itself as a firm favorite among the traveling public," said Skytrax chief executive Edward Plaisted, quoted by Sunday's South China Morning Post.

"A

Hong Kong Population to Hit 8.72 Million in 30 Years
The Hong Kong population is expected to reach 8.72 million in the coming 30 years with a continuous aging trend, predicted the Census and Statistics Department of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region recently.

Following the release of the results of the 2001 population census, a new set of population projections, covering the coming 30 years, has been prepared.

In the latest set of projections, the Hong Kong population is projected to increase at an average annual rate of 0.

Fossilized Dinosaur Eggs Discovered in Central China Hubei Province
Eight fossilized dinosaur eggs, which were discovered in Yunxian County of central China's Hubei Province, have been confirmed by archaeologists to belong to the late Cretaceous period, dating back more than 60 million years.

The eggs were all found at the same place in January and March this year by farmer Li Shangwei, who lives in Baimagou Village, Yunxian County.

Two of the eight eggs are oval and intact, 18 cm long, 10 cm high and seven cm thick. The eggshells are 0.2 cm thick.

Cultural Relics, Jewelry, Art Fair Opens
The second West Lake fair featuringcultural relics, jewelry and paintings has opened in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

The fair is one of many activities organized by the city of Hangzhou to attract visitors during the week-long holidays which began on May 1, according to a local official.

More than 100 dealers in cultural relics and jewelry from a dozen provinces, municipalities and autonomous regions in the Chinese mainland, and from Hong Kong and Taiwan are

Ancient Civilization Existed in Shenzhen Guangdong Province: Findings
Archaeological findings prove that civilization existed in Shenzhen, now a coastal boomtown in south China's Guangdong Province, as early as 3,500 years ago.

Chinese archaeological workers discovered 94 ancient graves belonging to the Shang Dynasty (circa 16th Century B.C.-11th Century B.C.) and 300 precious cultural relics of different kinds while excavating Wubeiling Ruins at Nanshan from April to June 2001 and from December 2001 to March 2002.

Cultural relics unearthed from the

Cultural Relics Boosting Central China's Tourism
Wang Chuan, a Taiwan merchant, recently planned to start a cultural relics tourism business in central China's Henan Province to earn what he called "ready money".

When he revealed his plan at the 2002 Trade Fair for Henan, his investment invitation drew instant applause from over 2,100 foreign investors.

In Henan, famed for its diverse and valuable cultural relics, a dozen tourism projects relevant to local archaeological resources have been mapped out by the local government incl

Sand Carving Moved from Beach to City
Ordinary people are being encouraged to join artists in the increasingly popular pastime of sand carving in a theme park in east China's Zhejiang Province.

A number of sand sculptures depicting scenes and figures from fairy tales and fictions such as Harry Potter and Gulliver's Travels have already been built in the Future World Theme Park in Hangzhou.

It is said that more than 1,000 tons of sand has been moved from the beach to the park. During the on-going exhibition of sand scul

Chinese Explorer Succeeds in Solo Trip to North Pole
Chinese scientist Liu Shaochuang planted his national flag at the North Pole recently after successfully completing a 56-day odyssey to become the first Chinese to reach the pole alone on foot.

The 39-year-old arrived at the pole , fulfilling his stated ambition to travel from Asia alone on foot, and find a suitable route for China's future Arctic exploration.

"He was the first Chinese to ski to the North Pole alone and almost without backing," secretary general of the Polar Resear

China International Small Commodities Fair Scheduled
The first China international small commodities trade fair will run from September 1 to 6 in Changchun, capital of northeast China's Jilin Province.

The trade fair to be co-held by the China Individual Laborers' Association, Changchun municipal government, and a Hong Kong organization is intended to strengthen international cooperation to promote markets and guide consumption.

According to local sources, the fair will have 1,400 booths and business people from over 10 countries and

New Road Routes Opened Between China, Laos
Three new passenger and cargo transport routes were opened between three cities in Yunnan province of China and the Lao People's Democratic Republic recently.

The three road transport routes linking Kunming, Simao and Jinghong of China to Vientiane of Laos, respectively, saw their first group of passengers in four shuttle buses .

The road between Kunming, capital city of Yunnan province, and Vientiane is 1,600 kilometers long. Some 900 kilometers of the road are located in Yunnan.

China conducts thorough safety examination of civil aviation
China's civil aviation system is being urged to conduct a thorough examination of aviation safety after two plane crashes on April 15 and May 7.

At an emergency national meeting hosted Saturday by the General Administration of Civil Aviation of China (CAAC) in Beijing, it was decided that all pilots, cabin crew and airport employees must undergo examinations on their performance of rules and regulations.

Any violation of the rules must be punished and corrected immediately, said Li

Sharon Demands Reform in Palestine Authority
Calling Yasir Arafat's Palestinian Authority a "rotten and dictatorial regime of terror," Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Tuesday that Israel would not enter any peace negotiations until it could sit down with a "different Authority." "The Palestinian Authority must undergo basic structural reforms in all areas," Mr. Sharon said, demanding changes to the political, security, social, financial and legal structures. "Everything must be overhauled." In a speech to the Israeli parliament, M

Auction of Qing Dynasty Vase Sets Record
A famille-rose enameled vase with peach patterns from the Yongzheng period (1723-1735) was sold for 41.5 million HK dollars (5.3 million U.S.dollars), setting a new auction record for porcelain from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).

The vase, sold at Sotheby's auction, is decorated with peach and bat pattern in famille-rose palette.

It had been consigned for sale by the Ogden R. Reid, chairman of the Council of American Ambassadors and third generation publisher and editor of the Heral

Chinese Imperial Treasures Set World Auction Record
An embroidered silk tapestry and a Chinese calligraphy work, both bearing marks of Chinese emperors, set a world auction record for any Asian textile and for Chinese calligraphy respectively at Christie's sale recently.

The tapestry, commissioned by the Emperor Yongle (1402-1424), the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, achieved 30,874,100 HK dollars (4,013,633 U.S. dollars).

It was sold to a private buyer by telephone after fierce bidding, three times over its estimate.

It a

Archaeological News in Brief
China's archaeological news in brief:

960-Year-Old Mural Tomb Discovered in Beijing

A tomb, built in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234) with murals painted on its walls, has been unearthed in western Beijing.

Archaeologists say that the tomb consists of four parts: a grave passage, a screen wall, a door to the coffin chamber.
It is believed to be one of a married couple, according to the gravestone epitaph.

The six murals discovered inside the tomb vividly depicts scenes

No Leaks from Three Gorges Dam
Despite continuous rain since demolition began on a coffer-dam upstream on May 1, no leaks have appeared in the Three Gorges dam.

Engineer said Monday that the 1,600-meter Three Gorges dam has withstood a severe quality test as the prolonged rain which started on May 1 swelled the Yangtze River.

By May 9, the water level behind the dam had reached 68 meters, far above the lower part of its 22 sluice gates. But the dam's superior strength held the water.

Measuring 10 meters h

Promotion of Qingdao City Held in Hong Kong
Promotion of Qingdao City, a large-scale program to attract investors from Hong Kong, was held in the Convention and Exhibition Center here recently.

As host of the 2008 Olympic Games' sailing events, a batch of Olympic-related projects announced at the promotion fair aroused great interest among enterprises in Hong Kong.

These projects include the Olympic water sports center, the Olympic village, a pier for yachts, the international conference center and a yachting club.

Am

China, EU Jointly Launch Project in Tibetan Rural Areas
China and the European Union (EU) jointly launched a poverty-relief program in Lhasa recently, to assist 40,000 people in the rural areas of Bainang of Tibet, southwest China.

The EU will donate 7.6 million euro and China 16.05 million yuan to the program, which is designed to develop nine poverty-relief projects and will concentrate on areas such as education, health and drinking water supply.

Richard Hardlman, the EU project director, said the EU hopes the project will help promo

Over 2,200-Year-old Map Discovered in NW China Gansu Province
An ancient wooden map discovered by Chinese archaeologists in northwest China's Gansu Province has been confirmed as the country's oldest one at more than 2,200 years.

The map was drawn on four pine plates, 23 cm long, 17 cm wide and 1.5 cm thick each, and includes a drawing of Guixian County of the Qin Kingdom, one of the seven major principalities in the era of the Warring States (475-221 B.C.).

The map, believed to have been completed in 239 B.C., is more than 1,300 years older

More Efforts in China for Environmental Protection in Rock Climbing
Efforts are being made in China while promoting the new sport of rock climbing, an official with the State General Administration of Sports (SGAS) told Xinhua recently.

Rock climbing was originated in 1950s in Europe. With a fairly short history in China though, the sport has experienced a stage of rapid development during the past two decades. It has become one of the most popular sports in the world's most populous country, said Chen Jianjun, an official in charge of rock climbing in th

Mazu makes voyage to bless people of Jinmen
The statue of Mazu from the original Mazu temple in the Meizhou Island of Putian, in East China's Fujian Province, was shipped to Taiwan's Jinmen Island recently to allow local residents to worship this "Goddess of Sea."

Mazu is a goddess said to have been a Meizhou woman who lived in the 10th century. The woman died at 27 when she tried to save endangered fishermen and since that time she has been revered as the goddess who looks after fishermen and sailors at sea.

There are tens

Coastal Expressway Opens in South China
A 149-kilometer expressway along the west coast of the Guangdong Province in south China opened to traffic recently, bringing the length of Guangdong's expressway to 1,500 kilometers. The four-lane expressway from Xinhui to Yangjiang, which has cost 5.7 billion yuan, is part of the national coastal highway.

The completion of the expressway will reduce the traveling time from west Guangdong to Hong Kong, Macao and other cities on the Pearl River delta, and help boost the local economy, pro

Shanghai International Music Festival opens
Singers and musicians from Asia, Europe and America performed in Shanghai at the opening ceremony of the Shanghai International Music Festival on Sunday evening.

Among those performing at the festival were singers from Vienna Boys' Choir, which was set up five centuries ago.

The overseas performers from the Geneva Grand Theater Ballet, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, the BT Scottish Ensemble, and the DPRK (or Democratic People's Republic of Korea) State Symphony Orchestra and their

Imperial Summer Resort to Be Refurbished
Historic structures and imperial gardens in the 299-year-old summer resort of Chengde city in north China's Hebei Province, are to be renovated as part of an effort to mark the resort's upcoming 300th anniversary in 2003.

Chengde will allocate approximately 3.5 billion yuan (some 420 million US dollars) to renew buildings on the resort site, which is listed on UNESCO'S World Heritage list, making it the largest sum of money ever devoted to the tourist sector in the city, said a municipal

Collecting Rich Folk Items in Yunnan
This spring we headed off on a 12-day journey from Nanning to Kunming. During this joyful and adventurous sojourn, we visited several places of the national minorities found in Southwest China's Yunnan Province. Getting off the plane in Nanning, we drove to the mountainous landscape of Baise, a revolutionary base of the Communist Party before the country's liberation in 1949. In the nearby mountains, one can find massive crevices that have been transformed into magical lakes by flowing waters. M

Indulging in a Green Bamboo Sea
Journeying to southern Sichuan Province, one finds themselves drowning in the Bamboo Sea, where bamboo offers a feast for every sense. Our journey to the Bamboo Sea started early one April morning in Chengdu. We followed the Chengdu-Chongqing Expressway and the Neijiang-Yibin Expressway to Yibin - known as the first city along the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. Then from Yibin, we drove eastward to the Bamboo Sea. The entire trip took approximately four hours to complete Stretching from Cha

Severe Drought Hits South China
Hainan and Guangdong Provinces, both in south China, are suffering from a severe drought after receiving just a quarter of their normal rainfall this year. Statistics from the local meteorological department show Hainan 's rainfall since the beginning of the year is 86 mm, down 72 percent from the same period last year. Yang Yunxian, director of Hainan Provincial Flood, Wind and Drought Control Headquarters, said that 232 townships have been affected by drought, accounting for 82 percent of the

Collecting Rich Folk Items in Yunnan
This spring we headed off on a 12-day journey from Nanning to Kunming. During this joyful and adventurous sojourn, we visited several places of the national minorities found in Southwest China's Yunnan Province. Getting off the plane in Nanning, we drove to the mountainous landscape of Baise, a revolutionary base of the Communist Party before the country's liberation in 1949. In the nearby mountains, one can find massive crevices that have been transformed into magical lakes by flowing waters. M

Indulging in a Green Bamboo Sea
Journeying to southern Sichuan Province, one finds himself drowning in the Bamboo Sea, where bamboo offers a feast for every sense. Our journey to the Bamboo Sea started early one April morning in Chengdu. We followed the Chengdu-Chongqing Expressway and the Neijiang-Yibin Expressway to Yibin - known as the first city along the upper reaches of the Yangtze River. Then from Yibin, we drove eastward to the Bamboo Sea. The entire trip took approximately four hours to complete. Stretching from Chang

Agencies Catering to Study Abroad Criticized by Parents, Students
Some 25,000 Chinese per year go abroad to study in 103 countries around the world. This puts China at the top of countries throughout the world in the number of students studying abroad, which in turn has created an industry in China of intermediary agents that provide students -- most of whom are paying their own expenses -- with services in regard to their travel, tuition fees, board and other matters. On Feb 1, at Beijing Dongcheng District Court, a hearing on a lawsuit filed by a high school

Missing Chinese Visitors won't Dampen ROK Tourism
The news that 15 Chinese tourists were missing earlier this week in the Republic of Korea (ROK) has jolted diehard Chinese soccer fans eager to cheer on the national team's first journey to the World Cup finals, which will take place next month. Many say they are worried the incident, which they suspect is a case of illegal migration, may lead to toughened regulations on visa applications and entry into the ROK, which is co-hosting the gala event with Japan. As of Thursday, ROK police were still

Missing Chinese Visitors won't Dampen ROK Tourism
The news that 15 Chinese tourists were missing earlier this week in the Republic of Korea (ROK) has jolted diehard Chinese soccer fans eager to cheer on the national team's first journey to the World Cup finals, which will take place next month. Many say they are worried the incident, which they suspect is a case of illegal migration, may lead to toughened regulations on visa applications and entry into the ROK, which is co-hosting the gala event with Japan. As of Thursday, ROK police were still

China's Travel Retailers to Continue Rapid Development
China's travel industry will continue its powerful growth with great potential in the retail business, according to Chinese and overseas travel experts gathered here Friday at the China Travel Retail Summit 2002. Jointly organized by the China Duty Free Group and China Power Duty Free Group, the summit has attracted over 200 figures from international travel retail circles and duty free groups, as well as up to 300 experts or executives from Chinese airports and duty free shops. China National T

Japanese Mountaineer's Relic Found in Mt. Qomolangma
The relique of a male Japanese climber who was trying to scale Mount Qomolangma, the world highest peak, in 1985 has been found at the height of about 6,500 meters above the sea level near a regular north side route, it was reported here recently.

The Tibet Mountaineering Association (TMA) was quoted as saying that the body was found by several helpers of a South Korean mountaineering team on April 15, 2002, when they were advancing to the North Col of Mt. Qomolangma from their camp. The

Himalayas Are Thawing
A speedy rise of water level was lately reported by UN Environment Programme scientists in regard to 50 mountain lakes going to ravage the Himalayas in the coming five years after a three-year study had been made of the area's topography, satellite pictures and atmosphere,People's Daily reported Monday.

Of the 50 glacial lakes, 20 are told in Nepal, 24 in the Kingdom of Bhutan. These with their glacial water reportedly have already been in a perilous state because of a warming-up weather

Cremation: New Reincarnation Route for Tibetans
Basang Zhoima's soul entered the circle of reincarnation through a new gate -- the 83-year-old Tibetan woman was cremated on Monday, in a different style of funeral from that of her fellow Tibetans.

She was cremated at the Xishan (West Mountain) Funeral Home in Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

Zhoima was the 70th Tibetan cremated since October 17, 2000, when the funeral home, the first of its kind in Tibet, opened. So far, the funeral home has cremated 4

Thriving Private Inn on Ancient Trade Route
The Dainzin Inn in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region has become increasingly popular among domestic and overseas visitors in recent years.

People are attracted to the inn mainly because it is on an ancient trade route. Guests at the inn can see Mount Qomolangma (Everest), Zhaxi Lhunbo Lamasery and Zongshan Castle.

The first private hotel in Xigaze, Dainzin Inn was built back in 1986 by Doiso Dainzin, a Tibetan caravan or carriage driver. The three-storey inn faces a courier

Descendants of Caravan Chieftain in Tibet on the Cha Ma Ancient Road
Lodain, son of the chieftain who led a caravan to and fro on the ancient trade route between China's Tibet Autonomous Region and southeastern Yunnan Province, follows his father's footprints, but with an entirely different means of transportation - a truck.

He became a household name in the Naxi Autonomous Township of Yanjing for his success in getting well-to-do. The Cha Ma Ancient Road was believed to be the only road for caravans crossing Yunnan Province to Tibet decades ago.

He

Public order remains good in Macao
Public order remained good in China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) thanks to police efforts.

The efforts are focused on preventing and fighting against crimes to prepare for liberalization of the gambling market, a government report shows Monday.

The report from the General Secretariat for Security said that a total of 2,203 crime cases were recorded in the first quarter of this year, a very slight rise of 11 over a year earlier.

Of them, cases involving infring

China to Issue Personalized Stamps
The State Post Bureau of China (SPB)is to issue postage stamps with a blank tab on which pictures can be printed according to customers' requirements, starting recently.

The China National Philatelic Corporation (CNPC) is entrusted by the SPB to provide the service of printing pictures on the blank tabs.

These stamps cannot be sold on market, but can be used for mail. Customized stamps have been popular in some developed countries and regions such as Switzerland, Canada, Australia,

Ancient Gansu city of Pingliang attracts visitors
Pingliang, a remote city in inland Gansu Province in Northwest China, plans to further develop its tourism resources to speed up local economic growth.

Located at the converging point of Shaanxi and Gansu provinces and Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, "the 1,600-year-old city enjoys rich tourism resources with special characteristics that attract visitors from all over the world," said Li Xiaolin, mayor of Pingliang.

With 465 ancient cultural ruins, 55 ancient tombs, 12 ancient town

Drinking tea good for heart patients: study
Drinking tea is good for people suffering from cardiovascular diseases because it increases their chances for survival, according to a study scheduled to be released recently.

The study conducted Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston shows that people who have survived a heart attack and proceeded to drink a lot of tea had a mortality rate 44 percent lower than heart attack survivors who did not drink tea at all in the first three and a half years following the attack.

Mod

New Town to Spring up in Eastern Tourist Center
The municipal government of Hangzhou, a picturesque city in east China's Zhejiang Province, is to build a modern town on the northern bank of the Qiantang River,Vice-Mayor Sheng Jifang said recently.

By 2010 the new town, which will cover 15 sq. km. will become the new city proper and the political, economic, cultural and technological center of Hangzhou. It will consist of new government buildings, exhibition centers, theaters, a women's center, and a music square as well as high-rise bu

China's First Business Daily Set to Launch
The Beijing Modern Business News, China's first business news daily with a general news base, debut on Wednesday.

The Beijing Modern Business News is the latest daily paper to be published by the Beijing Daily Newspaper Group, which has successfully promoted the Beijing Daily, Beijing Evening News, and Beijing Morning Post.

The paper will appear daily from Monday to Saturday with coverage of general news, industrial affairs, in-depth reports and life-style trends.

The Beijin

Beijing Expo Draws World's Top 500 Companies
Important international political figures, world-renowned authorities and the heads of the world's top 500 companies will participate the Beijing International High-tech Expo, making it a world-famous one.

The comment was made on by Chen Gang, administrative vice secretary-general of the 5th China Beijing International High-tech Expo organizing committee and president of the Beijing Trade Promotion Association.

The expo, which will run from May 23 to 28, has attracted more internat

Southwest train runs on track
Three provinces in Southwest China got new links recently when trains started running on the Neijiang-Kunming railway.

The 872 kilometres of track run through Sichuan, Yunnan and Guizhou provinces. The express route links Southwest China with countries in Southeast Asia.

In a written message, Premier Zhu Rongji said that the establishment of the railway would promote local economic development and help ease the strain on main rail lines.

The northern and southern sections of

China Vows to Improve Industrial, Traffic Safety
A decision was announced Tuesday toconduct a nationwide inspection of industrial and traffic safety standards, a move taken in the wake of several fatal industrial accidents, and two aircraft crashes since April 15.

Addressing a national video teleconference on industrial safety,Vice-Premier Wu Bangguo called on local governments at various levels across China to continue their efforts to prevent fatal industrial accidents.

Despite a noticeable drop in the number of major accidents

Carter Ends Visit, Calls for Change in Cuba Policy
Former US President Jimmy Carter ended a historic visit to Cuba Friday sharply at odds with the Bush administration over how to deal with Fidel Castro. The former president said limits on tourism and trade often hurt Americans more than Cubans. "I think an American private citizen or an American company should have the right to visit any place on earth and the right to trade with any other purchaser or supplier on earth," Carter told a news conference immediately before leaving Cuba. "I see the

Arafat Links Elections to Israeli Pullout
Palestinian President Yasser Arafat linked the holding of new Palestinian elections with an Israeli withdrawal from occupied lands in a move that could delay a sought-after program for government reform. In the latest West Bank violence, an armed Palestinian infiltrated a Jewish settlement late on Friday, wounding one settler before being shot dead. Israeli forces meanwhile pushed into the battle-scarred Jenin refugee camp, returning to the scene of the fiercest fighting in Israel's recent West

Photos Bring Back Life of Old Beijing
A camel caravan plods in the snow along the outer city wall. Paper coins dance in the sky as a funeral procession goes on. Rickshaw drivers wait anxiously for clients in the street. Girls in traditional dresses assemble glass grapes at home... Such scenes are ordinary and trivial compared to the drastic social turbulences in old Beijing (Peking) and the rest of China during the 1930s and 40s. What makes them significant is that they tell people today what the daily lives of ordinary Beijingers w

Penglai Attracts Projects
Penglai, a county-level coastal city in East China's Shandong Province, is experiencing another investment peak as two big-budget construction projects were launched on Saturday. The Shandong Penglai Luanjiakou oil harbour project involves setting up a crude oil dock with a berthing capacity of 20,000 tons, an oil reserve tank of 200,000 tons, oil transit piping facilities and an asphalt processing plant with an annual production of 1 million tons. The project involves a total investment of 650

Beijing English Net Opens
To meet the challenge of China's entry into World Trade Organization and preparing for the hosting of 2008 Olympic Games, Beijing English Net (www.beijingportal.com.cn) established by the Dragon News Net opens on May 20, 2002. Beijing English Net cooperates with Beijing This Month, Business Beijing, Beijing Today, Beijing Radio Station and the English part of Beijing TV Station. It brings some characteristic columns such as "Beijing" to provide the latest information about the historical site, g

Ancient Carvings in Xuzhou
The life of Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-A.D. 220) nobility is revealed in an exhibition of stone rubbings at the Liu Haisu Art Museum.

The show, which runs until May 27, showcases 100 rubbings from engraved stone paintings and 10 original stone sculptures from Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province.

"These Han Dynasty engraved stones are precious national treasures, and Xuzhou is an especially rich source," says museum curator Zhang Peicheng.

A display of the engraved stones from tombs or ances

Young Chinese Noodle Maker Breaks Guiness Record
A 24-year-old young man named Li Tao has made more than two million noodles from one kilogram of dough, breaking the Guiness World Record he himself set in 2000.

The combined length of the 2,097,152 noodles was 2,852 kilometers, 320 times the height of Tibet's world-famous Qomolangma (or Everest) Peak, the world's highest mountain peak.

The noodles were as fine as silk threads with 18 noodles passing through the eye of a single needle.

The record was set at an impressive noo

Giant panda museum established in SW China Sichuan Province
A newly-built giant panda museum in Wolong Nature Reserve of southwest China's Sichuan Province will open to the public late this month.

Fifteen panda specimens and four panda skeletons, as well as 420 animal displays and 86 plant samples are due to be shown.

With an investment of 20 million yuan (US$2.4 million), the museum includes six exhibition halls, covering a total area of 4,074 square meters.

With multi-media technologies, the museum can virtualize the panda's habita

Revamp underway for China art gallery in Beijing
Rebuilding of the 40-year-old China Art Gallery began in Beijing recently to meet the future needs of China's modern art collection.

The project which includes expanding the gallery's main building is expected to be completed by January 2003.

Being a national museum for modern Chinese art, the gallery was initiated in 1958 and came into use in 1962.

The three-story building with a total area of nearly 22,000 square meters has 13 exhibition halls which cover 6,000 square mete

Ancient temple gets Olympics facelift in Beijing
Repairs on an ancient temple more than 1,000 years old was launched recently by the Beijing municipal government in a bid to restore the city's historical landmarks for its 2008 Olympic Games.

The Tianning Temple, in downtown Beijing, was built during the reign of Emperor Xiao Wen of the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534). A 60-meter-high pagoda was added to the temple in the Liao Dynasty ( 907-1125).

Historians say that Tianning, one of the capital's oldest temples, is crucial for res

Guangdong to issue new travel document to HK & Macao
South China's Guangdong Province will lead the country in administering a new travel document from May 20 for Chinese residents wishing to visit Hong Kong and Macao.

The move aims to further expand non-governmental exchanges and contact between Guangdong and Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions (SARs) in south China, Deng Pufeng, deputy director of the Exit and Entry Department under the Guangdong Provincial Bureau of Public Security, said.

Currently, residents are on

New railway station for Northwest China's Urumqi
The old southern railway station in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, was demolished Saturday to facilitate the construction of a larger modern building.

Since the construction of railways to northern and southern Xinjiang, and the Eurasian Continental Railway Bridge, passengers using the Urumqi Southern Railway Station have increased rapidly which meant the old building could not meet their needs, said local sources.

The demolished building was

Western China to become world-class destination: CNTA
Scores of new tourist trails are expected to open up western China to a major influx of foreign visitors over the next ten to 15 years.

The new tourist routes are expected to be opened in the near future, under a national strategy for the development of western China's tourist resources unveiled in Guiyang, capital of southwest China's Guizhou Province, said Wei Xiao'an, an official with the China National Tourism Administration (CNTA).

One of the new routes of high interest will b

Beijing Forges New Plan to Improve Environment for Olympics
The Beijing municipal government has drawn up a new plan for curbing air pollution and removing dilapidated houses in a bid to create a favorable environment for the 2008 Olympic Games.

According to the plan, the city this year will demolish dilapidated houses with a total floor space of 2.24 million square meters and have at least 200 days rated as "excellent" or "fairly good" in air quality.

Liu Qi, mayor of Beijing, said the city will build more economical apartments for those w

Japanese Loan for North China's Polluted City
Taiyuan, one of the most polluted cities in China, has received a 940 million-yuan (113 million US dollars) Japanese government loan to promote clean production at the Taiyuan Iron & Steel Group, the single biggest polluter of the city.

Preparations for the project, including designing and international procurement were already under way, according to company sources. the project may begin as early as late this year.

The completion of the project was expected to cut the steel produ