Called “Jin” for short, Tianjin is located at the northeast of North China Plain. It covers an area of more than 11, 000 square kilometers. With three counties and 15 districts under its jurisdiction, it abouts on Beijing, capital of the People's Republic of China. In addition, it is a strategic place, through which people can go to Beijing easily. Since ancient times, it has served as an important entrance to the capital. It only takes 1 hour and 20 minutes by train or 2 hours' drive from Tianjin to Beijing. The name of Tianjin, means “Emperor's Ford”, or “the point where the Son of Heaven once forded the river”, bestowed by Zhu Di, first appeared in 1403, the first year of Emperor Zhu Di's reign, meaning a place where emperor crossed a river. In 1404, the second year of Emperor Zhu Di's reign, a Wei was formally set up there, so it is also known as “Tianjinwei”. Supplemented by natural scenes, its tourist attractions, typical of cultural heritages, mainly consist of three parts, namely the downtown area with the Haihe River as the axis, Jixian County scenic area famous for scenic spots and historical sites, and Tanggu scenic area typical of seashore sightseeing. Through the years, the city has now become one of the largest international trading ports and industrial and commercial metropolises in China,  second only to Shanghai. 
    The climate of Tianjin is a temperate, continental-type monsoon climate with the four seasons distinct from one another. The mean temperature of the year is 12. 2'c with that of January being -4'c and that of July 26. 8'c. The average annual rainfall is 559. 1mm, most of which is concentrate in summer. In winter, the port is frozen over for 80 days.