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Located on the alluvial plains on the middle and lower reaches of the Yellow River, Kaifeng, a key tourism city along the banks of the river, is under the direct jurisdiction of the Henan provincial government. It is 70 kilometers from Zhengzhou in the west, 10 kilometers away from the Yellow River in the north and Longhai Railroad in the south. The No.310 Tianshui-Lianyungang Expressway, the No.106 Beijing-Shenzhen National Highway and the Zhengzhou-Bianliang Road all run through it. Five counties and five districts are under the jurisdiction of Kaifeng City. The five districts are Gulou District, Longting District, Shunhe District, Nanguan District, and the suburb district; the five counties are Kaifeng County, lankao County, Tongxu County, Qixian County, Weishi County. With a population of 4.3 million, Kaifeng covers an area of 6,444 square kilometers in total, 359 square kilometers of which is urban area. The major nationalities here are the Han, Hui, Manchu, Mongolian, Tibet, Korean, and Zhuang, of which the Han accounts for 95% of the total population.

Kaifeng, known as “the Capital of Seven Dynasties”, is a famous city with a long history, splendid traditions, and a great number of cultural relics and historic sites. It was proclaimed as one of the 24 famous historic and cultural cities by the State Council. Kaifeng was once called Daliang and Bianliang in history. According to the records of the ancient times, people started to inhabit here as early as in the Neolithic Era. The establishment of Kaifeng City dates back to more than 2,700 years ago in the Xia and Zhou dynasties. The prosperity of Kaifeng begun in 364BC with the establishment of the Wei Kingdom, which chose the city, then known as Daliang, as the capital. From then on, the Houliang, Houjin, Houhan and Houzhou all had their capitals in Kaifeng. Of the seven dynasties that have had their capitals here, it was not until the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127) that the city really took off. This was Kaifeng’s finest period of history, when the city boomed to become the cultural, economic and political center of the country with a population of more than one million. Trade during this time especially came to the fore. Kaifeng became an unrivaled metropolis even in the whole world. In the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Kaifeng was the capital city of Henan Province, and the economic, political and cultural center of the Central Plains. In the Republic of China Period (1912-1949), Kaifeng remained the capital city of Henan Province. In October 1948, Kaifeng welcomed its liberation and was designated as a special city. In 1954 when the capital city of Henan Province was moved to Zhengzhou, Kaifeng became a city directly under the jurisdiction of the provincial government. In 1983, there were no more districts in Kaifeng, as districts were all changed into counties and under the administration of the city.

Kaifeng retains a lot of the traditional architectural features with the favor of all the dynasties of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Besides the many historic sites like the Dragon Pavilion, the Iron Pagoda, the Xiangguo Temple, the newly built Imperial Song Street with a feature of the capital of the Song Dynasty. Kaifeng also won fame for its paintings and opera. The founders of Su Huang Mi Cai (family names of the four most famous calligraphists in the Chinese history) representing four styles of calligraphy were all from Kaifeng. The well-known Hebei cuisine originated in Kaifeng. The steamed stuffed bun of the No.1 Restaurant, the lightly fried dumpling of the Daoxiang Store, and the steamed dumpling of the Youyixin Restaurant are listed as excellent snaps of China.

(Source: chinaculture.org)

Jingdezhen, formerly known as the “Porcelain Capital ” of China, is one of China’s most famous cultural and historic cities. It is situated in the northeast part of Jiangxi Province of East China. Endowed by nature with a network of rivers and hills, Jingdezhen is a municipality directly under the provincial government with a total area of 5,200 square kilometers and a population of 1.4 million. Leping City, Fuliang County, Changjiang District and Zhushan District are under its jurisdiction, among which Changjiang and Zhushan districts make up the urban area with a land area of 124 square kilometers and a population of 380,000.

Ever since the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420), with old names of Xinping and Fuliang, the seat of Jingdezhen was a town. People there began to produce ceramics as early as in the Eastern Han Dynasty (25-220). In the Jingde reign (1004-1007) of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), Emperor Zhaoheng decreed to produce the porcelain used by the imperial court. From then on, people began to call this place as Jingdezhen. In the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Jingdezhen and other three towns, Zhuxianzhen in Henan Province, Hankouzhen in Hubei Province and Fushanzhen in Guangdong Province, were listed as the Top Four Towns of China.

The best porcelain of the world is in China, and China’s best is in Jingdezhen, the Chinese writer Guo Moruo once said. The ceramic industry experienced a long-time development in Jingdezhen. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the technique started to mature. Jingdezhen became a major porcelain producer in the Song Dynasty (960-1279). The kiln in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) boasted the highest porcelain-making techniques. Thereafter, the Liangfu porcelain office was set up. Since the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), it has been the center of the ceramic industry. In the Ming and Qing dynasties when skills became perfected and the general quality being more refined, governmental kilns were set up to cater exclusively to the need of the royal families. In the long-time development, the artists and craftsmen in Jingdezhen brought their full talent into play and created numerous masterpieces. Jingdezhen porcelain has formed four special features, which are white like jade, bright as a mirror, thin as paper, sound like a chime. With its elegant form and unique technique, the art of Jindezhen porcelain is a bright jade in the Chinese civilization.

Jingdezhen, the ancient porcelain city, has been revived with new vigor now. Besides the porcelain industry, Jingdezhe has also developed other industries, such as automobile, refrigerator and food production. In recent years, Jingdezhen made remarkable achievements in industries like mechanics, electronics, chemistry, aviation, building materials and pharmacy. Encouraged by the opening up policy and the market economy, Jingdezhen has developed into an industrialized city while keeping its title of “the Porcelain Capital” of China.

The unique porcelain culture of Jingdezhen is attributed to the abundant porcelain relics, the valuable porcelain art, the excellent porcelain techniques and the intelligent porcelain artists. This culture was, is and will be a treasure for Jingdezhen’s tourist industry.

(Source: chinaculture.org)