Yan'an Aston

Yan’an is a small city in the northwest-Chinese province of Shaanxi. Yan’an offers a slice of typical Chinese life and the rapid development of the city matches the country that it's in. 190,000 people call the city home, but few of them are foreigners. As such, when walking around the city our foreigners are often greeted with smiles and “Hello!”s from Yan’an residents young and old. Getting around the city is no problem either. Wide roads and non-crowded streets make people feel so comfortable and home-like. At the same time, Yan’an is famous for “Red Travelling”, because it has long history and it is a revolutionary city. So every year there are many people travelling here to experience this revolutionary city’s culture.

Besides this, the highways have been developed, and it’s convenient to travel. The same as airport, there have been planes in Yan’an now which can go to Bei Jing, Shang Hai and Xi’an directly. You can take advantage of this to visit one of the many shopping malls, western fast-food restaurants, large parks, or the high-tech zone. If you're after a more traditional side of Chinese living, you can head on over to the old side of town and visit the many family-owned shops and restaurants there.

People in Yan’an like to live relaxed lives. When a person stays in a big and crowded city for a long time, such as Bei Jing, Shang Hai and Xi’an, ect, he is always busy with their work for making a living, he may want to relax himself in another small city. At the moment, yan’an is a good place. Meanwhile, people here are very friendly and inviting, and students are so polite and get good education when they are very little, especially in English. Nowadays, students learn English early, so do students in Yan’an. They always practise speaking English when they help foreigners here. Therefore, they have a good environment to improve themselves and to develop languages.

The city has lots to offer. Countless restaurants line every street and the cost of living in Yan’an is not very high, so are the meals in restaurants and rides in taxis. Living costs in China vary greatly and Yan’an is definitely at the cheaper end of the scale. A taxi fare to almost anywhere in the city will come to 5RMB – around 60 U.S.cents or 35 British pennies. Around the city there are many small back-alley restaurants to try and countless more dishes to taste. But, if you're not in the mood for noodles or rice, it's easy to head over to McDonald's, KFC or alike. At night if you want to entertain yourself with your friends, the best choice is to go to KTV where is very cheap. There you not only can relax and release yourself until the early hours of the morning, but also you can enjoy good service and plenty of cheap alcohol.

Shopping in Yan’an is also a great experience. If you just want to get the shopping out of the way, head on over to one of the larger western-style supermarkets. But, if you're up for an adventure, head to one of the traditional markets and practice your Chinese to try and negotiate a bargain! Want something western or hard-to-find? No problem. The traffic is so advanced that you only need to jump on the high-speed train and you're in Xi'an city less than half an hour later. You can enjoy the large range of shops Xi'an has to offer, and then head back to your relaxed Yan’an life.

Around the city you'll find mountains, rivers and lakes, especially mountains. Yan’an has many mountains, such as Qing Liang Mountain, Phoenix Mountain and Bao Ta Pagoda, etc. Climbing these mountains, not only can you do exercise, but also you can enjoy the scenery on them. What’s more, the ticket is so cheap and it is near the downtown, and even you need not to take a bus. After visiting these mountains, you will know yan’an more or less.