As usual we conclude our S3 Newsletter with information that is unrelated to the business world.
We continue with the two themes that we have already started in previous editions. Firstly, we finish the theme of interesting books about China and secondly, we continue our profiling of large but little known Chinese cities.
1. The 10 best books on China
After having reviewed a book on the political relations between China, the U.S.A. and Europe, we end our series of publications on the Asian giant with an audiobook about the history of China.
‘A Brief History of China’ (Jonathan Clements, author & Julian Elfer, narrator) tells of the development of a rich and complex civilization where the use of inventions like paper, writing, money, and gunpowder were widespread in ancient times and where silk, ceramics, tea, metal implements, and other products were produced and exported around the globe.
It examines the special conditions that allowed a single culture to unify an entire continent spanning 10 billion square kilometers under the rule of a single man – and the unbelievably rich artistic, literary and architectural heritage that Chinese culture has bequeathed to the world.
2. Large but little-known Chinese cities
After placing Wuhan (center), Shenyang (northeast), Guiyang (southwest), Shaoxing (east), Chengdu (west), Fuzhou (southeast), Hainan Island (south) and Xi’an (northwest) firmly on the map, we now move to the east of the country, where we find the capital of Jiangsu Province: Nanjing.
Nanjing was not only an imperial capital, but thanks to the mighty Ming Dynasty, its name will be associated forever with the Nanjing Massacre, perpetrated by the occupying Japanese troops in 1937 and during which it is estimated that more than 300,000 people died.
Today, it is a vibrant metropolis with more than 8,500,000 inhabitants. It is the also the capital of Jiangsu; China’s most densely populated province.
Nanjing and its surroundings are the epicentre of a huge variety of attractions for visitors interested in China’s millennial legacy.
The Mausoleum of Dr. Sun Yat-sen in Nanjing is significant because he is considered to be the ‘Father of the Nation’, for his role in the end of imperial China, just over a century ago.
But Nanjing is much more than just history.
It is now considered the ‘Capital of Education, Science, Culture, Art and Tourism’ and is the second largest city in the eastern region of the country, after Shanghai.
Its economy is highly diversified and continues to attract domestic investments like Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo, etc. and foreign investments like Siemens, Volkswagen, Ericsson, Sharp, etc..