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Qingdao Travel Guide: 261 reviews and 786 photos
I worked many months in Qingdao. Its about half way between Beijing and Shanghai, along the coast.
Most of my working time was not in the real Qingdao, because that's a little more than 1hr away, I was technically in "Qingdao Economic & Technical Development Area", or KaiFaChu / HuangDao.
I split my time between Qingdao and KaiFaChu. The main city of Qingdao is barely even a blip on the Chinese map at a meager 7 million people. The north side of the bay, the old historic city, is busy with life, history and culture.
The industrial side of the harbor ~400k (all communities combined). The south side of the bay is the "Industrial and Economic Zone".
The north side is rich in old Chinese ways, but has a lot of German influence in the architecture.
Other places that I visited using this as a base camp were Qufu (home of Confucius) and Xi'an (ancient capital and teracotta warriors).
(for more pictures, feel free to visit my China Gallery. If you enjoy the pictures, please leave a comment.)
Also, please see my China page for more general comments.
Where I was working is fairly developed, but mostly industrial. It is still a little dirty and congested, but infinitely more disciplined than India for example (one of my prior assignments). There are lots of things to do also... ok, more for people who speak Chinese, but unlike remote India, there are theaters, bars, prostitutes, karaoke... you know, the staples of Asian life.
Proximity to S Korea with its historical mixing of people and history, along with governmental cutting of red tape has caused the area to be heavily invested in by the Koreans. So it's just like being back in Korea during the work hours, then a minor adjustment and being in China in the evenings. Nothing like assembly-line Korean cafeteria food cooked by Chinese... hmmm yum!
With reclamations of land, changing the shoreline, the south side is growing with apartment blocks, warehouses, factories and plants. The south side is almost as populated with Koreans as it is with Chinese. Honestly speaking, I have a hard time knowing where China ends and Korea begins here.
- Pros:Navigating is easy and non-Chinese speakers are more common.
- Cons:If you stay in KaiFaChu, the ferry only operates minimal hours.
- In a nutshell:A pretty coastal Chinese city, known for a German beer.
Reviews (9)
Only pizza in KaiFaChu
Restaurants
(2)
If you're on the south side of Qindao bay, aka, Huangdao or KaiFaChu (Industrial Zone), the only decent pizza may be a... more travel advice
Tsingtao Beer & Zhanqiao Pier
Things to Do
(2)
If you look at other entries, you'll find directions on how to get to the brewery. However, what few of those entries... more travel advice
May 4 Park
Things to Do
(2)
In the heart of New Qingdao (about 10mi from the old city), the waterfront has had a facelift of a new board walk,... more travel advice
Kai Fa Chu's best hotel
Hotels
(2)
I stayed here for the better part of 3 months. I tried some other hotels in the area, but ultimately came back to the... more travel advice
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Comments (8)
Tsingtao beer is popular all over China especially the more expensive premium label. German brewery legacy? SL :)
If only I had a dollar for every Tsingtao I've had over the years.....
As usual, most interesting and great photos. I'm sorry I missed it on my trip. Ann, The Travel Slut
Thanks for visiting my pages and.... well, now at least I know what the place looks like where the Tsingtao beer is coming from ;-) er, is it now Chinese or Korean? :-))
Never heard of it, then again my geography of China isn't too good. When we were in China back in May visiting some relatives, my aunt was very excited to touch my boyfriend's (another white man) curly hair. She covered her mouth and giggled afterwards.
Interesting page Dave. This looks more modern but still with a more relaxed feel about it. Gee you've been to some great places!! Cheers, Ann :o)
tu habla espanole muy bueno! estoy apprendar ahorita.. there a little mexico in T.O too =)
It would be fun to meet up in beijing but im not back there until 29th morning....what do you reckon?
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