Nanjing

Having spent the best part of a day in Nanjing, I genuinely think it is one of the nicer Chinese cities I have seen. Tree lined boulevards, clean streets and generous parks complement a history that, all too often appears to be dominated by the atrocities committed by the Japanese here in 1937. This is said to have been the biggest city in the world for some seventy years from the mid 14th century onwards and it was China's capital under six different dynasties. Today it has just over six million residents although, like elsewhere in China, the migrant workers are not included in this figure. The Nanjing government puts their number at 2.47 million officially - http://english.nanjing.gov.cn/today/njnew/polity/200706/t20070615_216088.htm - unofficially, who knows! This population would not make it one of China's ten most populous cities.
The hotel where I am staying is in its own grounds and it offers probably the most peaceful living environment I have experienced since arriving in China some eighteen months ago. The complete absence of "re4 nao5" is a godsend.
The picture above is of a view across the little lake to the hotel annex I am staying in. If you are ever in Nanjing and it is peace and quiet you are looking for book into the International Conference Hotel.