Baoding

Baoding is a city 137km south of Beijing, it is one of the ten cities under the direct administration of Hebei Province. It covers an area of 40,000 sq. kilometers, with a population of 11 million. One third of its territory lies in the Taihang Mountains in the west, one third lies in the eastern plain area, the other third in the hilly land in between.Baoding, literally translated as protect for the safety of the Capital Beijing used to be called the Southern Gate of Beijing because of its military and political importance, in the Ming(1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasty. For the last 250 years, until the 60's in the 20th century, Baoding had been served as the center of Hebei Province.