10bestlogo

  • 10bestlogo

  • Awards
  • Arts & Culture
  • Food & Drink
  • Trip Planning
  • City Guides
  • Home

SEARCH: by place + food, budget, style, hotel, attraction, etc

SEARCH
10BEST: Trusted Travel & Lifestyle Advice
  • facebook share
  • twitter share
  • google plus share
  • pinterest share
  • stumble upon share
  • linkedin share
  • Flipboard
graphic

Most Popular 10Best Lists

  • #
    Las Vegas: 10 Fun and Free Things to do in Las Vegas
    View This List
  • #
    Honolulu: The 10 Best Shopping Malls and Centers in Honolulu and on Oahu
    View This List
  • #
    Las Vegas: 10 Fun and Free Things to do in Las Vegas
    View This List
  • #
    Orlando: New Additions & Venerable Classics in Orlando: the Best of the Theme-Park Capital
    View This List
  • #
    Las Vegas: Las Vegas Romance: 10 Things For Couples to Do in Sin City
    View This List
graphic

Most Popular 10Best Articles

  • #
    10 beautiful views from a New Zealand train
    View This Article
  • #
    Road Trip: 10 Must-See Spots Along the Oregon Coast
    View This Article
  • #
    10 beautiful views from a New Zealand train
    View This Article
  • #
    Vote now to help us choose America's best small towns
    View This Article
  • #
    These are some of the best free things to do in 10 American cities
    View This Article
 
10bestlogo
facebook twitter instagram pinterest
  • About 10BEST
  • 10BEST Local Experts
  • Sitemap
SHOW MORE INFORMATION
  • Trip Planning
  • //
  • Trends & News
Save This Page +

Upwardly Mobile: Chinese Village Constructs 1K Foot Skyscraper

An village in eastern China flaunts its wealth and builds itself into urbanization

October 2, 2011 // By Zain Iqbal

By Zain Iqbal
October 2, 2011

 

Visit any major city in China such as Shanghai, Beijing, or Guangzhou and you'll discover growth at a feverish pace. Not only are Chinese cities expanding outward to hold the burgeoning middle class, they are also growing up-- literally. Over the past decade, the Chinese economy has allowed the government to go on a spending spree with investment in massive urban planning projects, including skyscrapers. In fact, this growth isn't just limited to cities. While some smaller urban areas in the United States may hold less than 250,000 people, in China the same areas are often populated with over a 1,000,000; this often means building upward so businesses and residents have somewhere to work and live. 

[PHOTO_77429]

However, visit Huaxi in China's eastern Jiangsu province and you might wonder why this small village of just over 2,000 people recently finished construction on a 1,074 foot skyscraper. For one, it's a fantastic attraction for tourists. It also serves as a symbol of China's unique blend of socialism and capitalism. Huaxi serves as a "model" village, constructed and run by the Chinese government to show off their brand of state management and social collectivism.

Inside the tower, named the "New Village In The Sky" is a 24-karat gold water buffalo weighing one ton, which is another symbol referring to China's agrarian village culture. Communist party officials believe the tower will provide work and living space for an addition 3,000 people, many of whom come from a crop of 25,000 migrant workers who have come to Huaxi in search of work. In addition, 2,000 tourists visit Huaxi everyday – many of them members of the Communist party --to catch a glimpse of Marxist-Leninist ideology at its finest. 

Some wonder if communism is driving the village's prosperity, or if it's the fact that Huaxi itself is really much like a public company that offers benefits to the people who work inside the system. In any case, as long as the village is driving renminbi (or dollars) into the economy, everyone wins-- whether you're capitalist or a socialist. 

 

 

x

Next Up

Exciting Plan for Eco-Tourism Hotspot near Taj Mahal

Read More »


About Zain Iqbal

Zain Iqbal is a San Francisco-based writer and photographer and Bay Area native. After spending much of his life vagabonding around the world in parts of West Africa, South America, Europe, and Central Asia, Zain settled back in San Francisco.  He currently writes about hidden gems and local haunts that represent the city's unique culture, and has convinced countless others that - despite all its hills - San Francisco is a very bike-able city.  Zain is usually found watching the San Francisco Giants at one of his favorite dive bars in the Mission District, hiking in Marin County, or tasting his way through the city's seemingly endless restaurants.

Read more about Zain Iqbal here.


Share

Facebook
Twitter
Google Plus
Pinterest
StumbleUpon
LinkedIn
Flipboard
×

×