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Shenzhen
( Shenzhèn) is a border town in Guangdong, China right
across from Hong Kong.
In 1979,
Shenzhen (then mostly underdeveloped countryside facing Hong
Kong) was designated the first of China's Special Economic
Zones (SEZ). The plan was to create a sealed off enclave to
experiment with market reforms and performance incentives
without posing a threat or risk to the established economic
system elsewhere in China. Shenzhen won the honor as it could
easily connect to the capital and management resources of
Hong Kong and serve as a buffer between a more open border
with Hong Kong and the rest of mainland China. Currently it
has a population of approximately 8 million, compared to only
300 thousand in the 1980s.
As
a purely economic creation, the city lacks much in terms of
historical sites but much like Las Vegas, if you have enough
money, anything is possible. Since the 1990s, Shenzhen has
cultivated tourism and shopping as another cash cow to supplement
industry. The various theme parks and shopping arcades attest
to all Shenzhen now has to offer to those with an interest
other than business.
In 2008,
Lonely Writers Publishing published the first China-Mainland
Shenzhen English guidebook: "Shopping in Shenzhen".
The guidebook was written by a community of expatriates, and
published with the Shenzhen Press Group. In 2009 "Living
in Shenzhen", the 2nd guidebook was released. |
