Shenzhen
Shenzhen is located in Guangdong province in southeast China. From a poor fishing village, this city has turned into the largest prosperous metropolis. Today it is easy to get lost in a shopping center, make up a brand new smartphone at the market, and even release a batch of tablets of your brand. Shenzhen may be the way you want to see it because there is entertainment for every taste. This is a place where skyscrapers and factories stand side by side with green parks and flowering gardens. It has many theme museums, markets, authentic establishments, and natural areas. This city is ahead of time but never forgets about old traditions.
Population
Most Chinese traditionally adhere to Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism, while a small portion adheres to Christianity and Islam.
History
In 1979, Deng Xiaoping (Chinese politician and statesman) chose Shenzhen as a place to create a new economic zone as part of his large-scale reforms. Each year, industrial districts appeared in the city, and its population grew rapidly. As early as 1999, Shenzhen hosted the most important event — the China High-Tech Fair. Since then, it's been held here regularly. The modern city boasts many large industrial facilities, cultural complexes of world significance, as well as huge shopping and entertainment centers.
The best time to visit Shenzhen
Winters are short, lasting from January to February. This season is considered the most comfortable to travel to Shenzhen. The average temperature is +19-21°C. Winter weather will be very mild and most suitable for long walks.
In spring, the weather tends to be unstable. However, at this time, you can see a stunning scenery with flowering trees. The temperature scale during this period does not drop below +22°C.
Shenzhen regularly hosts large-scale events, concerts, exhibitions, and parades. Traveling in winter, you can catch the celebration of the Chinese New Year or get acquainted with the country's traditional crafts at the exhibition Craft:The Reset. In the summertime, the city often hosts beach music festivals.
Useful notes
It is most convenient to move around the city by subway or bus. If you plan to use public transport often, it's better to buy a universal travel card. There are three types of cabs in Shenzhen: red (ride around the city and suburbs), green (only on the outskirts), and blue (electric cars, which operate in the same areas as the red ones). When planning a trip by cab, it is better to have the address written in hieroglyphics.
If you want to save some money on restaurants, go to street food courts. Here you can find dishes for all tastes and get closer to the national culture without affecting your wallet.
The locals speak a Chinese dialect called Mandarin. Many of them understand English, but it is better to get a good translator on your smartphone to be on the safe side.
Shenzhen never sleeps. By the way, at night the city looks even more beautiful than during the day. Nightclubs and bars are always open here, so fans of noisy parties will not be bored.
It's not customary to leave tips in restaurants. Moreover, you will probably get your tip back in most places.
You can always bargain in the markets and stores. You can try to bring down the price of any item if you want to.
In order to access Telegram, Facebook, or Whatsapp, you will have to install a VPN.
The official currency of China is the yuan(￥). You can exchange cash dollars or euros in banks and some hotels. You must bring your passport to exchange in a bank.
Things to do in Shenzhen
- Go shopping. In addition to a large number of shopping centers, Shenzhen has one of the world's largest electronics markets. There you can find spare parts for any smartphone and assemble it on the spot. The price of such a pleasure will be extremely attractive. You will find a guide near the market who can help you choose the right parts for a small fee.
- Go to Shenzhen Window of the World. This is a theme park where you can see about 150 world landmarks in scaled-down replicas. There is the Eiffel Tower, Piazza San Marco, the Colosseum of Rome, the Pyramids of Egypt, and much more. At nightfall, guests of the park will be treated to a light show.
- Admire the beautiful scenery from the OCT East Shenzhen observation deck.
- Explore the extraordinary achievements of science and technology at Shenzhen Science Museum. The museum's exhibits focus on biology, medicine, environmental protection, telecommunications, energy, and transportation. You can interactively explore many of them.
- Rent a bike and ride around the city, and admire the panoramas along the way.
- Enjoy the beauty of nature at the Xianhu Botanical Gardens. It is home to many fragrant plants, walking paths, and pavilions with sculptures and fountains. There are picnic zones and quiet rest areas within the garden.
- Climb the Wutong Mountain. It takes a few hours to get to the top along long winding paths, but the views of the city from 973-meter-high are worth it. Plus, there are several scenic waterfalls along the way.
- You can indulge in exotic national cuisine at local restaurants, cafes, or street food courts. If you are skeptical of fried insects, beef giblets, or pork tongues, you may prefer the simpler dishes. There are hot salads, fried rice or noodles with meat and vegetables, seafood, rice rolls, and soups. Be sure to try Chinese tea, such as tieguanyin, longjing, or pu-erh.
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