Bank of Tianjin

Everbright – Tianjin Branch is located at Xiaobailou. Xiaobailou is the current CBD in Tianjin. The history of the area can date back to late 19th century.

After the inception of Tianjin in 1860, imperialist countries were in fierce competition for the provision of concessions. Britain, France and the US were the first few foreign powers estralish concessions in Tianjin. The now Xiaobailou area was American concession. Covers an area of about 131 acres, it is a small area. it was once a entertainment hub for the Americans, British and later Russian expats.

The past glory ended with Second World War, all foreigners left the place by the time Communist took over the control. After economic reform in China, this area is gradually re-developed. High rise buildings emerged and lead the city into its modern prosperity.

Colorful Tianjin

The striking color of new area in Tianjin, China.

Skyscrapers

Compare to other metropolitans in China, Tianjin started development a little later. But the city is booming in recent years, the government started rapid development, the city is under-construction. In the picture, you can see the skysrappers rising to the sky.

watchtower

A watchtower that overlooks Dongli Lake in Tianjin, China.

Qufudao

Qufudao, in the middle of Jiefangbeilu, Xiaobailou and Nanjing Road, is one of the main street in Tianjin. Many landmarks in Tianjin sit on this street. Because it cross the Hai River, so part of the road is Daguangming Bridge. The Modern Chinese style building at the back is Hyatt Hotel, Tianjin.

Tianjin Eye

Tianjin Eye is a ferris wheel built over Hai River. The ferris wheel is between the two way lanes on Chihai bridge. Holiday Inn is on one side of the river.

Tianjin Railway Station at night

The giant building in the picture is the Tianjin Railway Station at night. It is the principal railway station in Tianjin, China. It was built in 1888 and was rebuilt from scratch in 1987-1988.

Kong Gang Wu Liu

Tianjin Kong Gang Wu Liu New Building.

Tianjin Metro Station

China is a country with billions of people, in such a gigantic country, moving people around rapidly is not an easy job.

As a Chinese grown up in a big city in China, I experience the madness of the traffic everyday. Not just the lack of infrastructure, but the people’s mentality, the only way to describe the traffic scene is ‘No rules apply’.

The government installed more traffic police stations, but the way people behave is not changing that much. So the government started to think alternative solutions. Rapid Transit System has to be made available in many big cities to tackle the worsening traffic and pollution.

Tianjin Metro

Tianjin, as the third largest city in China, started the rapid transit construction almost 40 years ago. Construction started on July 4, 1970, the first phase 3.6 km and 4 stations had been completed in February 1976. After the expansion, by December 28, 1984, the total length was 7.4 km, 8 stations.

However the metro service was suspended on October 9, 2001 in order to modernize the line. Tianjin Metro Line 1 (Liuyuan-Shuanglin) is 26.188 km long. It reopened on June 12, 2006.

The long term plan of the metro system includes 8 metro lines and one light rail line (line 9). Lines 1, 2 and 3 are designated as the backbone of the rapid transit system.

Not many folks get used to the Metro, most working class people still prefer riding the bike or to take a bus, because the cost is cheaper. Upper class are fascinated by the American culture and want to own private car. Most people who choose to take the train are middle class.

If the fare can’t drop, the Metro system may have to take years to be profitable. But nevertheless, this is a good start to pave the way for the future.

Postmodern Architecture in Tianjin

Walking on the street in the inner city of Tianjin, you would have a strong feel of postmodernism. Architect in China developed an eclectic approach to design buildings. Architects in China draw individual elements like color, shape from a variety of sources, systems and styles inside and outside of China. Like the building in the picture, the color theme is mainly coped with the old town’s color but rejects the notion of a ‘pure’ form or traditional Chinese architectonic detail.