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Tianjin (help·info) (Chinese: 天津; pinyin: Tiānjīn; Wade-Giles: T'ien-chin; Postal map spelling: Tientsin) is the sixth largest city of the People's Republic of China in terms of urban population. Administratively it is one of the four municipalities that have provincial-level status, reporting directly to the central government. Also, its urban land area is the fifth largest in China, ranked only after Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen.
Tianjin's urban area is located along the Hai He River, which connects to the Yellow and Yangtze Rivers via the Grand Canal in Tianjin. Its ports, some distance away, are located on the Bohai Gulf in the Pacific Ocean. Tianjin was once home to foreign concessions in the late Qing Dynasty and early Kuomintang (KMT) era. The municipality incorporates the coastal region of Tanggu, home to the Binhai New Area and the Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area (TEDA). Tianjin Municipality borders Hebei province to the north, south, and west; the Chinese capital Beijing is to the northwest, and the Bohai Gulf to the east.
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The land where Tianjin lies today was created in historical times by sedimentation of various rivers entering the sea at Bohai Gulf (渤海湾), including the Yellow River, which entered the sea in this area at one point.
The opening of the Grand Canal of China during the Sui Dynasty prompted the development of Tianjin into a trading center. Until 1404, Tianjin was called "Zhigu" (直沽), or "Straight Port". In that year, the Yongle Emperor renamed the city Tianjin, literally means "the Heavenly Ford", to indicate that the Emperor (son of heaven) forded the river at that point. This is because he had indeed forded the river in Tianjin while on a campaign to scramble for the throne from his nephew. Later on, a fort was established in Tianjin, known as "Tianjin Wei" (天津卫), the Fort of Tianjin.
Tianjin was promoted to a prefecture in 1725. Tianjin County was established under the prefecture in 1731.
In 1856, Chinese soldiers boarded The Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. In response, the British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir Michael Seymour to capture the Taku forts (大沽砲台) near Tianjin in May 1858. At the end of the first part of the Second Opium War in June of the same year, the Treaties of Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade. The treaties were ratified by the Emperor of China in 1860, and Tianjin was formally opened to the outside world. Between 1895 and 1900, Britain and France were joined by Japan, Germany and Russia, and even by countries without other Chinese concessions such as Austria-Hungary, Italy and Belgium, in establishing self-contained concessions in Tianjin, each with its own prisons, schools, barracks and hospitals. These nations left many architectural reminders of their rule, notably churches and thousands of villas. Today those villas provide an exotic flavor to Tianjin.
The presence of foreign influence in Tianjin was not always peaceful; one of the most serious violent incidents to take place was the Tianjin Church Incident (天津教案). In June 1870, Wanghailou Church (望海楼教堂) in Tianjin, built by French Roman Catholic missionaries, was accused of the kidnapping and brainwash of Chinese children. The rumour was that nuns were preserving children's eyes (it seems that the confusion came from the jars of pickle with small onions in the kitchen). On June 21, the magistrate of Tianjin County initiated a showdown at the church that developed into violent clashes between the church's Christian supporters and non-Christian Tianjin residents. The furious protestors eventually burned down Wanghailou Church and the nearby French consulate. France and six other Western nations complained to the Qing government, which was forced to pay compensation for the incident.
In June 1900, the Boxers were able to seize control of much of Tianjin. On June 26, belligerent European forces heading towards Beijing were stopped by Boxers at nearby Langfang, and were defeated and forced to turn back to Tianjin. The foreign concessions also came under siege for several weeks.
In July 1900, the Eight-Nation Alliance attacked and occupied Tianjin. They soon established the Tianjin Provisional Government, composed of representatives from each of the occupying forces (Russian, British, Japanese, German, French, American, Austro-Hungarian, and Italian). Tianjin was governed by this council until August 15, 1902 when the city was returned to Qing control. Eminent Qing General Yuan Shikai headed efforts to remake Tianjin into a modern city, establishing the first modern Chinese police force here. In 1907, Yuan supervised China's first modern democratic elections for a county council.
Tianjin was established as a municipality of China (直辖市) in 1927.
Western nations were permitted to garrison the area to ensure open access to Peking. The British maintained a brigade of two battalions there, and the Italians, French, Japanese, Germans, Russians, and Austro-Hungarians maintained understrength regiments; the United States did not initially participate. During World War I, the German and Austro-Hungarian garrisons were captured and held as Prisoners of War by Allied Forces while the Bolshevik government withdrew the Russian garrison in 1918. In 1920, the remaining participating nations asked the United States to join them, and the US then sent the 15th Infantry Regiment, less one battalion, to Tientsin from the Philippines.
Garrison duty was highly regarded by the troops. General George C Marshall, the "architect of victory" in World War II when he was the United States Army Chief of Staff, served at Tientsin in the 1920s as Executive Officer of the 15th Infantry. The US withdrew this unit in 1938 and a US presence was maintained only by the dispatch of a small US Marine Corps contingent from the Embassy Guard at Peking.
On July 30, 1937, Tianjin fell to Japan, as part of the Second Sino-Japanese War, but was not entirely occupied, as the Japanese for the most part respected foreign concessions until 1941, when the American and British concessions were occupied. In the summer of 1939, there occurred a major crisis in Anglo-Japanese relations with the Tientsin Incident. On June 14, 1939, the Imperial Japanese Army surrounded and blockaded the British concession over the refusal of the British authorities to hand over to the Japanese six Chinese who had assassinated a locally prominent Japanese collaborator, and had taken refuge in the British concession. For a time, the 1939 crisis appeared likely to cause an Anglo-Japanese war, especially when reports of the maltreatment by the Japanese Army of British subjects wishing to leave or enter the concession appeared in the British press. The crisis ended when the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain was advised by the Royal Navy and the Foreign Office that the only way to force the Japanese to lift the blockade was to send the main British battle fleet to Far Eastern waters, and that given the current crisis in Europe that it would be inappropriate to send the British fleet out of European waters, thus leading the British to finally turn over the six Chinese, who were then executed by the Japanese. During the Japanese occupation, Tianjin was ruled by the North China Executive Committee, a puppet state based in Beijing.
On August 9, 1940, all of the British troops in Tianjin were ordered to withdraw. On November 14, 1941 the American Marine unit stationed in Tianjin was ordered to leave, but before this could be accomplished, the Japanese attacked the United States. The small 47 man American Marine detachment surrendered to the Japanese on December 8, 1941. Only the Italian and French concessions (the local French officials were loyal to Vichy) were allowed to continue by the Japanese. Japanese occupation lasted until August 15, 1945, the surrender of Japan marking the end of World War II.
Tianjin is at the northern end of the Grand Canal of China（大运河）, which connects with the Yellow River （黃河） and Yangtze River （长江）.
Tianjin Municipality is generally flat, and swampy near the coast, but hilly in the far north, where the Yanshan Mountains （燕山） pass through the tip of northern Tianjin. The highest point in Tianjin is Jiushanding Peak on the northern border with Hebei, at an altitude of 1078 m.
The Hai He River （海河） forms within Tianjin Municipality at the confluence of the Ziya River（子牙河）, Daqing River（大清河）, Yongding River（永定河）, North Grand Canal, and South Grand Canal; and enters the Pacific Ocean at Tianjin Municipality as well, in Dagu District. Major reservoirs include the Beidagang Reservoir in the extreme south (in Dagang District) and the Yuqiao Reservoir in the extreme north (in Ji County).
The urban area of Tianjin is found in the south-central part of the Municipality. In addition to the main urban area of Tianjin proper, the coast along the Bohai is lined with a series of port towns, including Tanggu （塘沽） and Hangu（汉沽）.
Tianjin's climate is a monsoon-influenced humid subtropical climate (Koppen climate classification Cwa) characterized by hot, humid summers, due to the monsoon, and dry, cold winters, due to the Siberian anticyclone that are still above -3C. Average high/low in January and July are 1.8 °C (35.2 °F)/−7.5 °C (18 °F) and 31.0 °C (87.8 °F)/22.7 °C (72.9 °F) respectively. Spring is windy but dry, and most of the precipitation takes place in July and August. Tianjin also experiences occasional spring sandstorms which blow in from the Gobi Desert and may last for several days.
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| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average high °C (°F) | 1.8 (35) |
5.0 (41) |
11.7 (53) |
20.5 (69) |
26.1 (79) |
30.1 (86) |
31.0 (88) |
30.2 (86) |
26.3 (79) |
19.7 (67) |
10.6 (51) |
3.9 (39) |
18.1 (65) |
| Average low °C (°F) | -7.5 (19) |
-4.9 (23) |
1.3 (34) |
8.9 (48) |
14.6 (58) |
19.7 (67) |
22.7 (73) |
21.9 (71) |
16.4 (62) |
9.3 (49) |
1.3 (34) |
-4.9 (23) |
8.2 (47) |
| Precipitation mm (inches) | 3.3 (0.13) |
4.0 (0.16) |
7.7 (0.3) |
20.9 (0.82) |
37.7 (1.48) |
71.1 (2.8) |
170.6 (6.72) |
145.7 (5.74) |
46.1 (1.81) |
22.7 (0.89) |
10.4 (0.41) |
4.1 (0.16) |
544.3 (21.43) |
| Sunshine hours | 178.3 | 176.9 | 205.3 | 229.8 | 265.7 | 251.2 | 217.6 | 223.3 | 223.3 | 211.1 | 173.1 | 166.2 | 2,521.9 |
| % Humidity | 56 | 54 | 53 | 51 | 56 | 64 | 76 | 77 | 68 | 64 | 63 | 59 | 62 |
| Avg. precipitation days | 2 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 6 | 8 | 13 | 11 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 68 |
| Source: 中国气象局 国家气象信息中心 2009-03-17 | |||||||||||||
| Source #2: World Meteorological Organisation (UN)[1] 2009 December 28 | |||||||||||||
Tianjin is divided into 16 county-level divisions, including 13 districts and 3 counties.
Tianjin Proper:
| District | Population (2006 census) | Area (km²) | Density (per km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Heping District (和平区: Hépíng Qū) | 470,000 | 9.97 | |
| Hexi District (河西区: Héxī Qū) | 740,000 | 37 | |
| Hebei District (河北区: Héběi Qū) | 620,000 | 27 | |
| Nankai District (南开区: Nánkāi Qū) | 790,000 | 40.64 | |
| Hedong District (河东区: Hédōng Qū) | 680,000 | 39 | |
| Hongqiao District (红桥区: Hōngqiáo Qū) | 620,000 | 21.3 |
Binhai:
| District | Population (2008 census) | Area (km²) | Density (per km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binhai New Area (滨海新区: Bīnhǎi Xīn Qū) | 1,000,000 | 2660 |
Tianjin Suburbs:
| District | Population (2008 census) | Area (km²) | Density (per km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jinnan District (津南区: Jīnnán Qū) | 380,000 | 401 | |
| Dongli District (东丽区: Dōnglì Qū) | 320,000 | 460 | |
| Xiqing District (西青区: Xīqīng Qū) | 330,000 | 545 | |
| Beichen District (北辰区: Běichén Qū) | 320,000 | 478 |
Tianjin Rural:
| District | Population (2008 census) | Area (km²) | Density (per km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baodi District (宝坻区: Bǎodǐ Qū) | 650,000 | 1,523 | |
| Wuqing District (武清区: Wǔqīng Qū) | 840,000 | 1,570 | |
| Ji County (蓟县: Jì Xiàn) | 810,000 | 1,590 | |
| Jinghai County (静海县: Jìnghǎi Xiàn) | 520,000 | 1,476 | |
| Ninghe County (宁河县: Nínghé Xiàn) | 360,000 | 1,414 |
In addition, the Tianjin Economic and Technological Development Area (TEDA) is not a formal level of administration, but nevertheless enjoys rights similar to a regular district.
These districts and counties are further subdivided, as of December 31, 2004, into 240 township-level divisions, including 120 towns, 18 townships, 2 ethnic townships and 100 subdistricts.
The politics of Tianjin is structured in a dual party-government system like all other governing institutions in the mainland China.
The Mayor of Tianjin is the highest ranking official in the People's Government of Tianjin. Since Tianjin is a municipality, the Communist Party of China Municipal Committee Secretary is colloquially termed the "Tianjin CPC Party chief".
The nominal GDP for Tianjin was 750 billion yuan (US$110 billion) in 2009, a year-on-year increase of 16.5%.[2]
In 2009, per capita GDP was 62,403 yuan (US$9,136). The manufacturing sector was the largest (54.8%) and fastest-growing (18.2%) sector of Tianjin's economy. Urban disposable income per capita was 21,430 yuan, a real increase of 10.3% from the previous year. Rural pure income per capita was 10,675 yuan, a real increase of 10.4% from the previous year.
Farmland takes up about 40% of Tianjin Municipality's total area. Wheat, rice, and maize are the most important crops. Fishing is important along the coast. Tianjin is also an important industrial base. Major industries include petrochemical industries, textiles, car manufacturing, mechanical industries, and metalworking.
Tianjin Municipality also has deposits of about 1 billion tonnes of petroleum, with Dagang District containing important oilfields. Salt production is also important, with Changlu Yanqu being one of China's most important salt production areas. Geothermal energy is another resource of Tianjin. Deposits of manganese and boron under Tianjin were the first to be found in China.
EADS Airbus has already opened an assembly plant for its A320 series airliners, operational since 2009. AVIC I and AVIC II will be EADS' local partners for the site, to which subassemblies will be sent from plants around the world.[3]
At the end of 2009, the population of Tianjin Municipality was 12.28 million, of which 9.8 million were residential holders of Tianjin hukou (permanent residence). Among Tianjin permanent residents, 5.99 million were urban, and 3.81 million were rural. The population will grow to 14 million (out of which 11,5 million will be urban population [4]
The majority of Tianjin residents are Han Chinese. There are also 51 out of the 55 minor Chinese ethnic groups living in Tianjin. Major minorities include Hui, Koreans, Manchus, and Mongols.
| Ethnic groups in Tianjin, 2000 census | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | Population | Percentage |
| Han | 9,581,775 | 97.29% |
| Hui | 172,357 | 1.75% |
| Manchu | 56,548 | 0.57% |
| Mongol | 11,331 | 0.12% |
| Korean | 11,041 | 0.11% |
| Zhuang | 4055 | 0.041% |
| Tujia | 3677 | 0.037% |
Excludes members of the People's Liberation Army in active service.
Source: Department of Population, Social, Science and Technology Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics of China (國家統計局人口和社會科技統計司) and Department of Economic Development of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission of China (國家民族事務委員會經濟發展司), eds. Tabulation on Nationalities of 2000 Population Census of China (《2000年人口普查中國民族人口資料》). 2 vols. Beijing: Nationalities Publishing House (民族出版社), 2003. (ISBN )
Tianjin People's Broadcasting Station is the major radio station in Tianjin. Broadcasting in nine channels, it serves most of North China, part of East and Northeast China, reaching an audience of over 100 million.[5] (Chinese) Tianjin Television, the local television station, broadcasts in nine channels. It also boasts a paid digital channel, featuring home improvement programs.[6] (Chinese) Both the radio and television stations are now branches of the Tianjin Film, Radio and Television Group, established in October 2002.[7] (Chinese)
Major local newspapers include the Tianjin Daily and Jin Wan Bao (literally, tonight newspaper), which are the flagship papers of Tianjin Daily Newspaper Group and Jinwan Mass Media Group, respectively.
People from urban Tianjin speak Tianjin dialect, which comes under the Mandarin subdivision of spoken Chinese. Despite its proximity to Beijing, Tianjin dialect sounds quite different from Beijing dialect, which provides the basis for Putonghua, official spoken language of the People's Republic of China.
Tianjin cuisine places a heavy focus on seafood, due to Tianjin's proximity to the sea. Prominent menus include the Eight Great Bowls (八大碗), a combination of eight mainly meat dishes. It can be further classified into several varieties, including the rough (粗), smooth (S: 细 / T: 細), and high (高). The Four Great Stews (四大扒) refers actually to a very large number of stews, including chicken, duck, seafood, beef, and mutton.
Tianjin also has several famous snack items. Goubuli (狗不理包子) is a traditional brand of baozi (包子) (steamed buns with filling) that is famous throughout China. Guifaxiang (桂发祥麻花) is a traditional brand of mahua (麻花) (twisted dough sticks). Erduoyan (耳朵眼炸糕) is a traditional brand of fried rice cakes.
Tianjin is a respected home base of Beijing opera, one of the most prestigious forms of Chinese opera.
Tianjin is famous for its stand up [comedy] and comedians including Guo Degang and Ma Sanli. Ma Sanli (马三立) (1914 - 2003), an ethnic Hui and longtime resident of Tianjin, is paramountly respected in China for his xiangsheng (相声), a hugely popular form of Chinese entertainment similar to stand-up comedy. Ma Sanli delivered some of his xiangsheng in the Tianjin dialect (天津话).
Yangliuqing (Green Willows), a town about 15 km west of Tianjin's urban area and the seat of Tianjin's Xiqing District, is famous for its popular Chinese New Year-themed, traditional-style, colourful wash paintings (杨柳青年画). Tianjin is also famous for Zhang's clay figurines （泥人张） which are a type of colourful figurine depicting a variety of vivid characters, and Tianjin's Wei's kites (风筝魏), which can be folded to a fraction of their full sizes, are noted for portability.
People from Tianjin are stereotyped to be talkative, eloquent, humorous, open, and unfettered.[citation needed] There is a term for the stereotype of the always-eloquent and sometimes-humorous Tianjin native: wèizuǐzi (卫嘴子), which translates roughly as "the Tianjin mouth". Tianjin is famous for its native talking art - Xiangsheng, sometimes translated as crosstalk, is a traditional Chinese comedy duo performance in the form of a dialogue, rich in puns and allusions, is used in a rapid, bantering style. Xiangsheng is one of China's foremost performing arts. Canadian xiangsheng comedian Dashan (Mark Rowswell) says the closest equivalent in English would be Abbott and Costello's "Who's on First?" sketch.[8]
The Tianjin tram network was awarded to a Belgian company in 1904 and opened in 1906. It was the first city-wide tramway system in China. There were 402 bus lines in the city as of 2004.[9]
Construction work on the Tianjin Metro started on July 4, 1970. It was the second metro to be built in China and commenced service in 1984. The total length of track is 7.4 kilometers. The metro service was suspended on October 9, 2001 for recontruction. This new metro is now called Line 1. It was re-opened to the public in June 2006. The track was extended to 26.188 kilometers and there will be a total of 22 stations. Previously, there were 8 stations. Several new metro lines are planned. Construction work on Line 2 and Line 3 are ongoing.
There is also a light railway line in the city, the Binhai Mass Transit line. The line runs between downtown Tianjin and TEDA (Tianjin Economic Development Area) in the seaside region. The eastern part of the line began service on March 28, 2004. The western part of the line is scheduled to be completed in 2006.
There is also a guided rail tram system in TEDA, called TEDA Modern Guided Rail Tram.
The Tianjin Subway consist of two rapid transit system: Tianjin Metro and Binhai Mass Transit is currently under heavy expansion from 3 lines to 9 lines. 4 lines are currently operating both in the City and the Binhai area.
As of October 2009, the entire network of Tianjin Metro and Binhai Mass Transit has 50 stations and 4 lines.
There are two primary subway operators in Tianjin:
| Number & Name | Terminals | Interchange | Opening Year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Line 1 | Shuanglin - Liuyuan | - | 1970 |
| 9 | Line 9 | Zhongshanmen - Xinlizhen | B1 | 2004 |
| Number & Name | Terminals | Interchange | Opening Year | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B1 | Line B1 | Xinlizhen - Donghai Lu | 9, T | 2004 |
| T | TEDA MGRT | TEDA - North of College District | B1 | 2007 |
There are several railway stations in the city, Tianjin Railway Station being the principal one. It was built in 1888, initially, the station was located at Wangdaozhuang (S: 旺道庄 / T: 旺道莊). The station was later moved to Laolongtou (S: 老龙头 / T: 老龍頭) on the banks of the Hai He River in 1892, so the station was renamed Laolongtou Railway Station. The station was rebuilt from scratch in 1988. The rebuilding work began on April 15, 1987 and was finished on October 1, 1988. The Tianjin Railway Station is also locally called the 'East Station', due to its geographical position. In January 2007 the station began another long-term restructuring project to modernize the facility and as part of the larger Tianjin transportation hub project involving Tianjin Metro lines 2, 3, and 9 as well as the Tianjin-Beijing High-speed rail.
Tianjin West Railway Station and Tianjin North Railway Station are also major railway stations in Tianjin. There is also Tanggu Railway Station is located in the important port area of Tanggu District, and TEDA Railway Station located in TEDA, to the north of Tanggu. There are several other railway stations in the city that do not handle passenger traffic.
Construction on a Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail began on July 4, 2005 and was completed by August 2008.
The following rail lines go through Tianjin:
Starting from Aug. 1, 2008, all trains stopping at the previous Tianjin Temporary Passenger Station will now instead use the newly completed Tianjin Railway Station.
Also, the inter-city trains between Beijing and Tianjin will adopt a new numbering system: Cxxxx (C stands for City in Chinese). The train numbers range between C2001～C2298:
The new C trains take only 30 min between Beijing and Tianjin, cutting the previous D train time by more than a half. The ticket price as of Aug. 15, 08 is 69 RMB for the first-class seat and 58 RMB for the second-class seat.
Some spots in Tianjin, including roads and bridges, have names from Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's Three Principles of the People (for example, Minquan Gate on Zhonghuan Road). Names harkening back to the era of the Republic of China on the mainland also appear (e.g. Beiyang Road). Many roads in Tianjin are named after a Chinese province or city. Also, Tianjin is unlike Beijing, in that very few roads run parallel to the major four compass directions.
Tianjin has three ring roads. Unlike Beijing, the Inner and Middle Ring Roads are not closed, traffic-controlled roadways and some often have traffic light intersections. The Outer Ring Road is the closest thing to a highway-level ring road, although traffic is often chaotic and sometimes more than chaotic.
Tianjin's roads often finish in dao (道 avenue), xian (S: 线 / T: 線) line, more used for highways and through routes) and lu (路 road). Jie (街 street) is rare. As Tianjin's roads are rarely in a cardinal compass direction, jing (S: 经 / T: 經) roads and wei (S: 纬 / T: 緯) roads often appear, which attempt to run more directly north-south and east-west, respectively.
The following seven expressways of China run in or through Tianjin:
The following six China National Highways pass through Tianjin:
The expressways are sometimes closed due to dense fog particularly in the Autumn and Spring.
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Tianjin Binhai International Airport (ZBTJ) is located in the east of the urban area, in Dongli District.
Sights and landmarks within the Tianjin urban area include:
Sights outside the Tianjin urban area, but within the municipality, including Tianjin Economic-Technological Development Area:
Sports teams based in Tianjin include:
China Women Volleyball League
Under the National Ministry of Education:
Under the national Civil Aviation Authority:
Under the government of Hebei Province:
Under the municipal government:
Foreign institutions:
Note: Institutions without full-time bachelor programs are not listed.
Tianjin is twinned with:
| City | Country | Sister city since: |
|---|---|---|
 Kobe |
Japan | June 24, 1973 |
 Fitchburg |
United States | |
| Philadelphia |
United States | February 10, 1980 |
| Dallas |
United States | |
| Greenville |
United States | |
 Rishon LeZion |
Israel | |
 Melbourne |
Australia | May 5, 1980 |
| Yokkaichi |
Japan | October 28, 1980 |
 Sarajevo |
Bosnia and Herzegovina | May 28, 1981 |
 Nord-Pas de Calais |
France | October 10, 1984 |
 Milan |
Italy | May 9, 1985 |
 Groningen |
Netherlands | September 12, 1985 |
| Chiba |
Japan | May 7, 1986 |
 Kutaisi |
Georgia | |
 Plovdiv Region |
Bulgaria | October 15, 1989 |
 İzmir |
Turkey | September 23, 1991 |
 Abidjan |
Côte d'Ivoire | September 26, 1992 |
 Ulan Bator |
Mongolia | September 27, 1992 |
 Kharkiv |
Ukraine | June 14, 1993 |
 Jönköping |
Sweden | September 23, 1993 |
 Incheon |
South Korea | December 7, 1993 |
 Łódź |
Poland | October 1, 1994 |
 Rio de Janeiro (state) |
Brazil | April 18, 1995 |
| Amazonas State |
Brazil | October 20, 1997 |
 Haiphong |
Vietnam | January 8, 1999 |
 Turku |
Finland | August 17, 2000 |
| Clarence |
United States | November 10, 2001 |
 Thessaloniki |
Greece | March 4, 2002 |
 Nampo |
North Korea | August 11, 2002 |
At 39°07.5′N 117°11.7′E / 39.125°N 117.195°E, the previous total solar eclipse was the solar eclipse of October 28, 1277, the next total solar eclipse will be on July 6, 2187.
Total solar eclipses from 1001 to 3000 are:
Annular solar eclipses from 1001 to 3000 are:
Wikisource has an article about solar eclipses as seen from Tianjin from 2001 to 3000.
Media related to Tianjin at Wikimedia Commons
"Tientsin". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.Tianjin (天津; Tiānjīn) is a municipality in China.
Despite its size and importance as a port, the city lacks the vitality of other large Chinese coastal cities, and has been unable to attract the same degree of investment as places such as Guangzhou and Shanghai. However, new development is increasing rapidly and Tianjin is now catching up to nearby cities such as Beijing.
If traveling internationally, it will be easiest for you to fly into the Beijing International Airport. To get to Tianjin from the airport, take a bus found on the 2nd floor of the parking garage out of Terminal 2.
Tianjin does have its own airport, the Tianjin Binhai International Airport (ZBTJ) is about 15 kilometers to the east of the urban area. Most flights are domestic, although there is nonstop service to Hong Kong, Seoul, Nagoya and Kuala Lumpur.
Tianjin Railway Station is the largest station in the city. It was first built in 1888 and then rebuilt in 1988. The station is now being rebuilt again and will be open for service in August 2008. There are also several other railway stations in the urban area, Tianjin West and Tianjin North. Tanggu station serves the seaside district Tanggu and currently being renovated, while Taida station is a small station located in TEDA, 5 km east of Tanggu station.
Before the reopening of the new station, Tianjin railway station is served by a temporary station that 4 km east. When you arrive at the Tianjin train station, take a Number 8 City Bus to the Polytechnic University stop (second stop from the station). You can then find a good, safe, legal taxi for the metered fare. The bus costs ¥1.50 or ¥2, and the announcements are in Mandarin and English. Taxis at the train station are a total scam.
Tianjin railway station is now open for the Bullet train to Beijing South train station. Ticket from Tianjin to Beijing south cost ¥58 per trip. The bullet train number start with a 'C' and take about 30 min to reach Beijing south, travelling up to a speed of 331km/h.
There are shuttle bus between Tianjin railway station and Tianjin airport. The shuttle bus ticket cost ¥10 per trip. The shuttle bus stop about 200 m from the train station. When one get down from the shuttle bus, just walk along the pavement and you will reach the train station.
Should you choose to take taxi, please use the official taxi stand (just follow the signage ). The fare from Tianjin railway station to Tianjin airport is about ¥65. It is not advisable to use any of the touts that offer taxi services. The official taxi stand has plenty of taxis.
If leaving the station by taxi, be prepared for a production-line approach to getting the punters into taxis. Marshals allow little time to stow children, bags & board taxis before encouraging the taxis to leave regardless, for example, of whether the only occupant is a lone foreign child, while you are still trying to get the driver to understand the destination. Taxis drivers in Tianjin will generally have little or no English.
The expressways to Beijing are sometimes closed due to dense fog in the Autumn and Spring so allow extra time if planning on using them during this period.
Taxis from Beijing and Tianjin cost about ¥50-60 per seat (4 seats in total), but these may be illegal taxis.
You can RENT a CAR managed by an international and safe company calling to +86 1310 210 7700 or visiting the web site www.rentcartianjin.com
Tianjin is well connected with other cities via bus. The price from Beijing is about ¥30.
There are also two school bus lines linking Nankai and Tianjin Universities and Tsinghua University. They depart daily at 3:45PM and 4:45PM from Tsinghua North-West Gate.
You can book or RENT a BUS managed by an international and safe management company calling to +86 1310 210 7700 or visiting the web site www.chinabustravel.com
Tianjin is connected to Dalian as well Incheon, South Korea, by passenger boat.
Kobe, Japan - is served by a weekly China Express Line[1] ferry, departing Kobe at 11AM on Fridays and arriving in Tianjin at 2PM on Sundays. It takes 51 hours to do the nearly 2000 kilometer crossing between the two cities. Tianjin Office Tel.:+86 22-2420-5777
Founded in 1904, the Tianjin bus system was the first in China, and the metro was second in the nation (1970) and today the city is well served by its public transportation. Within the city, traveling on a bus line that is less than 12 km will cost ¥1.5, while ¥1 will cover a journey on any line over 12 kilometers, even if you travel less than 12 kilometers but on a line that is over this distance, the cost is still ¥1. It's well worth your time to look up popular bus routes. And the buses are all comfortable and clean.
The old Tianjin metro was suspended in 2001, but after refurbishing was re-opened on 28 May 2006. In addition, a light railway line runs between the urban area of Zhongshanmen to the seaside area Donghailu in TEDA.
You can book a personalize tour around Tianjin calling to +86 1310 210 7700 or visiting the web site www.thestarstravel.com. They can offer from Air Tickets, book hotels, private tours by car or bus, etc...
Taxis are abundant, and the price is not high. The minimum cost for 3 km is ¥8, and then a further ¥1.7 is added for every kilometer after that. Taxis also charge for the time while the vehicle is stationary at ¥1.7 for every five minutes (cost is exempt for less than five minutes. However, it is strongly recommended that you do not take a taxi from near the railway station. See note in the Get in-By train section above about how to avoid train station taxis. The same advice applies at tourist stops, it is best to walk a few blocks to a regular street to catch a metered taxi. Do not support non-metered taxi drivers! There are plenty of legal taxis.
You can rent a taxi for the day or even for a few hours. For example you could have a taxi wait for a few hours while you visit a tourist attraction such as the harbor area. The drivers are happy to wait, and the cost for two hours would be less than ¥100.
Another caution about taxis is that there are toll roads in some parts of China. In a taxi, you will be expected to pay the base fare plus the toll fee. The driver pays the toll and receives a receipt at the toll booth. At your destination, you ask for the receipt(s) and pay that amount plus the base fare. If you are going a long way, you may also be asked to pay for the return toll fee. That is a legitimate request, although you could argue that the driver will pick up another fare to pay for the toll anyway. You may or may not succeed with the driver.
Lastly, tipping taxi drivers is a Western trait. Most local Chinese do not tip except for exceptional service. You will not be treated poorly if you cannot afford to tip or to tip much. It would be generous of you to tip in certain situations, perhaps when the driver gets out to handle your baggage.
Don't be afraid of the train either. The fast train between Tianjin and Beijing is a bargain and is comfortable with plush seats and bi-lingual announcements. If you take an older train, buy a group of 4 or 6 tickets all seated together. Otherwise, you may find yourself on a bench with 3-5 strangers pressed up against you for the ride. Booths on the train come in sets of 4 or 6 seats. If you're a tourist, no one will blink an eye at your extravagance. Bring your own food and drinks, although all the trains provide hot, safe water for tea and noodle bowls. Only the fast train has a Western style toilet.
Not a tourist-friendly destination compared to other major cities, Tianjin is not visited by a large number of foreigners. However, if you want to get to know the real China, it's a great place. Everyone is friendly and many people will say "Good Morning" or "Hello" to you in English, even if that's all the English they know.
Putonghua is standard Mandarin and is most often spoken in Tianjin, any Putonghua you learn will be helpful throughout your visit.
Optionally, buy a good translator, preferably after arriving in Tianjin, as the prices are about 1/2 what they are in the U.S. Also, most restaurants have a picture menu where you can point and order.
There are Tianjin tourist maps with destinations written in Chinese characters and English. Pointing at where you want to go will get you a long way with taxi drivers. It might be a good idea to take a magnifying glass along as many of the drivers have trouble with the small print.
You could also learn the hand gestures for numbers that sellers and buyers occasionally use for negotiating. Always carry a pen and paper too.
Learning a few of the city bus routes for popular destinations may be useful (and especially for leaving the train stations and other tourist areas where taxis might try to rip you off).
Tianjin has both modern shopping malls and distinctive traditional stores, for shopping delight. Binjiang Dao Business Street and Heping Lu Business Street are the busiest and most prosperous shopping centers in Tianjin. Most of the top shopping malls or department stores can be found on these two streets, like:
One of the largest shopping districts is in Tianjin, near the Wal-Mart Supercenter:
There are other large shopping districts where only local people shop. You will be a novelty in those areas, but you do not need to be nervous. You will probably get some great deals because even the inflated tourist prices in Tianjin are half what what they are in Beijing! Add in some friendly bargaining, and you will feel like the Champion Shopper of the World!
Tianjin is famous for the following products:
There are many inexpensive street markets throughout the city.
The most famous restaurants in Tianjin include:
Other options include:
There are a number of expat bars catering to the visiting business community, most of which can be a little expensive (¥25 upwards for a small bottle of beer) so if you like something a bit more laidback and comfortable, some recommended venues are as follows.
As far as clubs go, Tianjin is a big university city both for Chinese and foreign students so there are lots of places for dancing. The music policy tends to be mostly Western and Chinese dance, pop and hip hop/R&B, so if you have more alternative tastes in music, the clubs are possibly not for you! However, some notables are:
General Emergencies: 医科大学第一中心医院，医科大学第三医院， 滨江医院.
Traditional Medicine: 天津中医科院第一医院.
Ocular Emergencies: Tianjin Medical University Eye Centre (TMUEC) 天津医科大学眼科中心.
| Routes through Tianjin |
| Beijing ← | W  E |
→ Tangshan → Harbin |
| Beijing ← | W  S |
→ Dezhou → Shanghai |
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Singular |
Plural |
Tianjin Tianjin
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