Gazing out at the sea of skyscrapers that is Shenzhen, you would be forgiven for being skeptical of the fact that this sprawling urban landscape was in the recent past a humble fishing village. After Shenzhen was designated the country's first special economic zone in 1980, development progressed at an astonishing rate, transforming a remote coastal area to one of the largest and most significant hardware manufacturing hubs in the world.
Standing 592.5 meters high, Ping An International Financial Center is currently the fourth tallest skyscraper in the world. /CGTN Photo
One can consider this bustling metropolis – with its unmistakably ambitious energy, glistening towers, high-end shopping malls, and tree-lined walkways – the embodiment of China's lightning-fast growth and its energetic race into the future.
Explore Shenzhen with Min-Zhui Lee, host of Travelogue on CGTN. The show broadcasts on this Sunday at 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., next Monday 2:00 a.m. and Thursday 1:30 p.m. (Beijing Time).