Tianjin is one of the 4 municipalities under the leadership of the central government. It is the largest coastal city in northern China and is called the “Diamond of Bohai Gulf”. Located at the southern part of the Haihe River, Tianjin is a great location—only 194 Manual for Beijing Olympic Volunteers 50 kilometers to the seaside and only 120 kilos from the capital.

In 2008, 12 football games will be held in Tianjin. About 10,110,000 people live in the city, and 220,000 of them are minorities (with 41 minorities totally). There are 15 subordinate districts and 3 counties in the city.

Tianjin has been an important industrial and commercial city in Chinese history, and became one of the most important comprehensive industrial bases in the country. It has abundant resources of oil, gas, and sea salt. It also has a variety of industries with automobile, electronic, chemical and refining sections developing rapidly. Production values of various industries—fabrics and food—are about half of the overall value of the city. Tianjin now has Dagang and Bohai Oil and Gas fields which are important projects developed by the state. The progress of the Economic and High-tech Development Zone in Tanggu is recognized throughout the nation and called the “Northern Shekou”.

Tianjin also has plenty of tourist destinations. The  downtown area along the riverside has beautiful scenery. In 1989, people chose “Tianjin’s 10 Grand Scenes” which include  Tianjin Tower, North Pass of Huangyaguan Great Wall, Panshan Mountain, Dule Temple, Dagukou Cannon Plat, Haihe Riversides, Culture Street, Nanshi Food Street and Hotel Street, Water Park and Middle Ring Road. These 10 locations are a collection of historical sites; ancient relics, modern buildings, and beautiful sights. They are representative of Tianjin in the twenty-first century. In addition to the foresaid 10 Scenes, Tianjin has Memorials of ZHOU Enlai and DENG Yingchao, the residence of HUO Yuanjia (a national hero — translator’s note), a Zen Temple, the House of the Shi Family, Dongli Lake Scenes, Jiulong Mount National Forest Park and Seaside Tour Area and many other beautiful places.

Tianjin cuisine has a 300-year history and a collection of more than 3,000 dishes that include various delicious seasonings. Traditional dishes include: Cengbeng Carp, Flatfish with Pork, Fried Soft and Crispy Bird Meat, and Tabby Pork Leg, Famous dishes include: Red Shark Fin, Light-taste Fried Shrimp (no shell), Deep Fried Shrimp (with shell), Crab Egg with Shark Fin, Chicken and Silver-needle Mushroom, Braised Scallop, Braised Abalone, and Sour Purple Crab. Tianjin has its world-known 4 traditional snacks: Goubuli Buds, Erduoyan Fried Sticky Cake and Guifaxiang Mahua (a deep-fried flour-made dessert, with a shape Chapter 7 Olympic Cities 195 like a long pretzel), and “Maobuwen” Dumplings. Other tasty snacks include: Zhangji Nuts, Caoji Donkey Meat, Dafulai Crispy Rice Dish, Shitoumenkan Vegetable Bunds, Zhilanzhai Pastry and Corn Bread with Braised Small Fish. Fried Round Bread, Fried Long Bread, Tasty Tofu, Soymilk, Dumpling Soup and Jianbing are favorite breakfast foods in Tianjin.

Tianjin created 4 folk art forms well-known in the world:

Clay Sculpture ZHANG—wonderful clay figures of art, winning fame in China and around the world;
Yangliuqing’s Annual Painting—fine paintings of China’s long history, widely welcomed by foreign friends;
WEI’s Kites—in 1914 these won the gold medal at Panama International Expo;
Brick Sculpture LIU—representative of construction-use bricks with decorative sculptures on the surface, which won prizes for folk art.

The increased development of athletics in Tianjin is faster than other cities in the nation. The Community Sports Movement, “March 8th Health Cup”,Women’s Health-building Event, a large Sports Festival and other activities initiated by this city played a part in inspiring other cities in China. Tianjin also raised the concept of sports parks. Numerous parks with large and highly-effective facilities satisfy the needs of millions of people in improving their health.