The city of Shanghai - "On the Sea" - is located on the banks of the Huang Pu Jiang River with Jianshu province to the north and Zhejiang province to the south. It is one of four centrally administered municipalities of China, with a population of more than 13 million people. Shanghai is the second largest city in China. It is also one of China's most important industrial and cultural centers. Shanghai was once named the "Paris of the East" and now calls itself the "Pearl of the Orient". The name "Shanghai" was first used in 960 AD when the settlement was just a backwards fishing village on the East China Sea. In 1554, the town was surrounded by a city wall and a moat to protect it against Japanese pirates known as "Wokou". When British troops stormed its undefended walls in 1842, Shanghai was still only a county town with little importance.

Shanghai was opened in 1842 after the Opium War, when China and England signed the treaty of Nanjing, the first of China's humiliating unequal treaties with the "Modern powers". The British immediately established their first concession. The United States, France, and Japan soon followed by establishing their own concessions. The city was parceled into settlements, all of which were autonomous and immune from Chinese law.

1930's era Shanghai, with its gangsters, bustling populace and unique character evoked images of oriental mystery, romance, and vitality.

Shanghai is the birthplace of the communist party of China. The party was founded here in 1921, at a secret meeting in the French concession. The party carried out strikes and uprisings, but these activities were violently suppressed by the nationalist government. From then on the party never stopped fighting against foreign powers and nationalists. The August 1st uprising in Nanchang, capital of Jiangxi province, brought about the communist army which eventually adopted the name "People's Liberation Army". The PLA, led by the Communists, liberated Shanghai from foreign exploitation in 1949.

Shanghai's enduring tourist appeal lies in its vitality, its rather rundown 1930 European architecture and its busling tree lined streets crammed with shops. Shanghai still has a style and flair quite different from any other Chinese city.