Shanghai, also named "Hu" or "Shen" in short, is situated in the middle of China's east coastline. Bordering on Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces on the west, Shanghai is washed by the East China Sea on the east and Hangzhou Bay on the south. Yangtze River pours into the East China Sea at north of the city.
Culture
Before the formation of Shanghai city, the area was part of Songjiang county, governed by Suzhou prefecture. From the time of the Song Dynasty (AD 960–1279), Shanghai gradually became a busy seaport. A city wall was built in AD 1553, which is generally accepted as the start of the city of Shanghai. During the Qianlong era of the Qing Dynasty, Shanghai became an important regional port for the Yangtze and Huangpu rivers. The importance of Shanghai grew radically in the 19th century, as the city's strategic position at the mouth of the Yangtze River made it an ideal location for trade with the West. During the First Opium War in the early 19th century, British forces temporarily held Shanghai. The war ended with the 1842 Treaty of Nanjing, which saw the treaty ports, Shanghai included, opened for international trade.
Due to its cosmopolitan history, Shanghai has a rich blend of religious heritage as shown by the religious buildings and institutions still scattered around the city. Taoism has a presence in Shanghai in the form of several temples,including the City God Temple, at the heart of the old city, the Wenmiao, dedicated to Confucius, and a temple dedicated to the Three Kingdoms general Guan Yu. Buddhism has had a presence in Shanghai since ancient times. Longhua temple, the largest temple in Shanghai, and Jing'an Temple, were founded in the Three Kingdoms period. Another important temple is the Jade Buddha Temple, which is named after a large statue of Buddha carved out of jade in the temple.
Shanghai is well known in the world not only for its prosperous cosmopolitan feature but also for its rich humanistic resources. In recent years, a number of modern buildings have been added to the city, such as the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, Shanghai Museum, Shanghai Library, Shanghai Stadium, Shanghai Grand Theatre, Shanghai Circus City, Shanghai City-Planning Exhibition Hall and Jin Mao Tower, Shanghai Science & Technology Museum. They have become new scenic sights in Shanghai. Colorful festivities, like Shanghai Tourism Festival and Shanghai China International Art Festival, have attracted an increasing number of tourists from home and overseas.
The 2000 census put the population of ShanghaiMunicipality at 16.738 million, including the migrant population, which made up 3.871 million. Most registered Shanghainese residents are descendants of immigrants from the two adjacent provinces of Jiangsu and Zhejiang who moved to Shanghai in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, regions that generally also speak Wu Chinese.
Transportation
Shanghai has an extensive public transportation system, largely based on buses, taxis, and a rapidly expanding metro system. All of these public transportation tools can be accessed using the Shanghai Public Transportation Card, which uses radio frequencies so the card does not have to physically touch the scanner. Shanghai also has the world's most extensive bus system with nearly one thousand bus lines, operated by numerous transportation companies. Taxis in Shanghai are plentiful and market competition has driven taxi fare down to affordable prices for the average resident.