Dandong

Dandong

　　Travellers come to Dandong solely for its vicinity to the North Korean border. Western tourists are few. Situated at the confluence of the Yalu River and the Yellow Sea in the southeast of Liaoning Peninsula, facing the north Korean town of Sinuiji across the Yalu River, small Dandong enjoys its reputation as the largest border city in China.
　　The geographic setting and the rich natural resources of Dandong account for its recent development into a city characterized by the light industry, silk industry (Every late May, Dandong is the venue for the Oriental Silk Festival), sea products and special products, such as Ginseng, hawthorn and chestnut.
The quiet riverside city is most famous for the pockmarked Yalu River Bridge spanning distressingly over the river. The bridge survived the bombing during the Korean War, a time when the city still had its old name Andong. Now it is open to public to commemorate "the defeat of the American Aggression" and is the first choice for a glimpse of North Korea.
　　From Dandong, you can easily get to the Changbaishan Nature Reserve in Jilin Province. If you are interested in paying a visit to North Korea, you’ll have to wait for weeks to see your visa application through. Visitors with American, Israeli and South Korean nationalities are unqualified to apply. But don’t worry, you can still learn a lot about North Korea on the streets of Dandong, where vendors sell North Korean stamps and propaganda posters and frequently you’ll see Korean writing on boards over shops. In the hotels you can watch North Korean TV. Anyway, the city is so close to North Korea, you can feel the strong influence of Korean culture everywhere.