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Happiness perhaps means live in Guangzhou


GUANGZHOU IS THE CITY PREFERRED BY FOREIGNERS FOR LIVE

The city in China where foreigners prefer to live (or stay several months per year) is Guangzhou. It is something that they repeat continually, in every circumstance. But why? What is in Guangzhou that like so much to foreigners? In general we can say that this city is well equipped to host foreigners. It happens perhaps because both shi had many international contacts in the past, both for the Canton Fair, which today had a major boost to the internalization of the city. But, as we shall see later, there is also something more...


The life in Guangzhou is very comfortable

First of all, the life in Guangzhou can be very comfortable. Here the movements are usually fast and comfy (although some drawbacks common to all the great cities of the world). The transport system is excellent. Guangzhou is one of the few cities where you can go to the airport by subway. The first Subway line was opened in Guangzhou in 1997, currently running lines are 8, with 152 stations and 255 km of track. The subway lines serve mainly to the city, but there are lines 2, 3 and 4, which also serve the districts outside of Huadu, Panyu, Nansha and Baiyun. Guangfa is the line that connects Guangzhou and Foshan and is the first intercity line underground in China.


International Flights and High-speed Trains

The train is also widely used in traveling to nearby cities and towards the big cities in China. Guangzhou has 3 train stations (Guangzhou Railway Station, Guangzhou East Railway Station, Guangzhou Railway Station South) and high-speed connections with major Chinese cities. Flights: the New Airport Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport was opened in 2004 and manages about 190 flights every day, of which 115 are domestic flights to China, while others are direct flights to major international airports.


Water Bus, Taxi and City Bus

In Guangzhou there are also many movements by City bus, by taxi or by Water Bus. Also the Long-Distance Bus are very important (especially to near cities and around Guangdong Province). Here people use often also travel by ship. The ship-routes departing from the ports of Guangzhou are directed to 100 ports in China and 300 foreign ports. Lianhuashan Port Provides high-speed passenger liners Between Guangzhou and Hong Kong daily. Huangpu Port offers ships to Port Xiuying, Haikou.


Better opportunities for good deals in China

There is also another thing that really like to foreigners: that Guangzhou is the Chinese city where there are more opportunities for good deals with China. With the passing of years, many structures related to the fair came to be always running and now it is possible do business all year, not only during the two editions of the Fair (April and October). In Guangzhou it is easy to find or organize things that serve to foreigners, such as interpreters, equipped offices (even for brief periods), agents, brokers, shipping offices, the lawyers specializing in these matters, the consulting firms, there are also other foreigners who are doing the same job and with whom you can exchange useful information. And then, of course, there is the great and glorious Canton Fair, where twice a year it is celebrate the triumph of international trade with China.


Restaurants and Entertainments

Foreigners in Guangzhou are at ease also in their free time. Here they can also find restaurants and dishes of their countries, but also the local cuisine dishes are delicious (the Cantonese cuisine is one of the best in the world). There are plenty of bars, friendly and not too expensive, where you can find other foreigners and exchange ideas, and where they know how to pamper the foreigners and they offer to foreigners things that they prefer also in their native countries. The nightlife is vibrant and crackling, and there are theaters, shows and club. Here's the best you could wish for places where keeping fit (today many requested), such as gyms, saunas, massages as well as tennis courts and golf courses. In short, Guangzhou is a city fun and well equipped.


Another mysterious element: the potential for happiness

All this is enough to explain why Guangzhou is the city preferred by foreigners? No, of course there is still much more. In particular, speaking with foreigners who live in Guangzhou, appears something that not everyone knows how explain: a mood, a feeling, an atmosphere transmissible and captivating. It seems that there is in Guangzhou, more than in other cities, a widespread desire for happiness, a desire to capture all the good times in life, an ambition not to waste the precious time we have available, a small state of exaltation that accelerates the cadence of all things and in the end also improves the results. It seems that at least part of foreigners choose Guangzhou to satisfy their own interior needs, to increase their potential of happiness.


Desire for happiness, felt here more than elsewhere

Of course, these explanations may seem very imaginative and a little quirky. Moreover, even if true, are certainly not true in absolute terms and do not apply to all foreigners who are in Guangzhou. But in recent months there has been a news story (published by newspapers around the world), which implicitly shows clearly that indeed in Guangzhou, happiness is worth more pronounced than elsewhere, so that even the authorities, in writing of their (good) plan five years, have felt the need to talk about the happiness of its citizens.


Achieve the happiness, the aim of five-year plan

For the first time the Chinese province of Guangdong (Guangzhou Capital) turned to its citizens saying that want their happiness and inviting them to be more happy. The news was immediately seemed interesting, it does not happen often (anywhere in the world) that a public structure is concerned about the happiness of its citizens. In this case had gone one step further: not only was a simple invitation, but was inserted this goal within the context of a five-year plan (the 12th Plan) regarding the lines of development for Guangdong province over the next 5 years. The plan aims the pursuit of happiness for the Guangzhou's and Guangdong's people. Especially in three ways: quadrupling income (from 2000 to 2015), improving public services for the citizen and improving the environment with strong actions to reduce pollution. The plan mainly concerns Guangzhou, which is the capital of Guangdong, but also involves several major cities such as Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Dongguan, Foshan and Zhongshan.


Steady Growth and New Services for citizens

Apart from the curiosity of the news, the goal of the plan is very serious, it also involves economic considerations and the design of new services for citizens. The plan also touches on very important issues such as improving the quality of production, adjustments to the trade organization and improvement of competitiveness. According to the 12th Five Year Plan, the Guangdong province is going to quadruple per capita GDP (from 2000 to 2015). Furthermore continue to upgrade its economic growth mode, enhance social soft power, the people's wellbeing ensure and improve scientific development. In addition, the proportion of tertiary industries will be raised to 48 percent in the provincial economy.


Green Guangdong: towards to a cleaner environment

Many energies will be devoted also to create a cleaner environment. This also will help to improve the lives of citizens. This is the operation 'Green Guangdong': the energy consumption per unit of GDP will be reduced by 16 percent and CO2 emissions per unit of GDP will be reduced by 17 percent. The release of major pollutants should be reduced by 8 percent to 10 percent; cultivated land stock will increase to 2.91 million hectares; and forest coverage will be 58 percent.


Public Investments

The investments under the 12th Five Year Plan are imposing. During the next five years, Guangdong plans to inject 1.52 trillion RMB into infrastructure, 536 billion RMB on modern industry, 124 billion RMB on urban and rural residential communities, and 123 billion RMB on greenery projects. To ensure economic growth, will also be organized initiatives to address the people towards a new concept of shopping. Domestic demand is important for the economy: it is estimated that commodity sales in Guandong province will exceed 3.5 trillion RMB by 2015.


On the way to greater happiness

Of course, the plan says many other things, very important and much more precise, but we must remain in the perspective of ordinary citizens (and foreign visitors). And returning to our original question (why foreigners prefer to live in Guangzhou?) now we can say that among the reasons there is also this. Here all people is working also to build happiness. Surely the same thing happens elsewhere, but here there is a precise and declared awareness of this research. This leads to concrete actions, to leading new creative initiatives, to build facilities, to care for the environment, but above all leads to create a general atmosphere different, more optimistic, more joyful. It was also this atmosphere to fascinate so many foreigners, convincing them to prefer Guangzhou to any other city.

2011-09-06