Manzhouli from A to Z: map, hotels, attractions, restaurants, entertainment. Shopping, shops. Photos, videos and reviews about Manzhouli.

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And finally, you can get to the village of Zabaikalsk and transfer there to a bus, the stop of which is located next to the station - the journey will take about 2 hours, including the time needed to cross the border.

The last bus leaves at 15:10, and Zabaikalsk is most likely not a place where it would be interesting to spend the whole day, so it’s worth calculating your route so that you get there early.

Search for air tickets to Beijing (the closest airport to Manzhouli)

Popular hotels in Manzhouli

Shopping in Manzhouli

For many people, shopping in China is associated exclusively with goods, the quality of which can only be lowered by their price. This is not to say that this has nothing to do with the truth - there are plenty of markets here selling not very well made things that cost pennies. However, even with them, some manage to find something interesting - although this usually requires spending quite a lot of time. But here you can buy quality items at relatively high prices for China - it will still be much cheaper than in Russia.

There are quite a few street vendors in Manchuria, but there is simply no point in buying anything from them, because they usually sell things purchased in the same stores that you can go to yourself - only with them, of course, it is more expensive .

Quite often, goods of both types coexist quite successfully in one place - for example, in the market " New Age" The higher the floor, the higher the price and quality of the things sold there, so you can already make a lot of successful purchases at the top. True, you still shouldn’t let your guard down, since the item you have chosen is on one of upper floors, does not mean that it is not necessary to give her a thorough check. There are not many large shopping centers selling only high-quality goods here, only 3 or 4 in the entire city.

There is one simple way to increase your chances of finding good things even among cheap goods - find wholesale buyers among your buyers and see where and what exactly they buy.

What to buy

If you are looking for clothes or shoes, you still shouldn’t pay much attention to the markets - it’s better to go straight to local shopping centers or walk through individual shops of various companies, where in most cases they sell high-quality items from brands unknown outside of China.

Separately, it is worth noting the local fur coats. Their selection here is simply huge, and they cost almost the same as a coat of similar quality would cost in Russia. The cheapest way to buy fur coats is not in stores, but directly at the factory where they are produced. The only problem is that getting there is not that easy. You can either find someone in advance who will be willing to take you to the factory, or try to negotiate with the sellers.

Another interesting local product is curtains. Even if you don’t plan to change them, take your measurements before leaving just in case, because here you will encounter such an extraordinary variety that you may not be able to resist - and it will cost at least 5 times less than in Russia.

Household appliances, computers and telephones are not worth buying in Manzhouli. The quality often leaves much to be desired, the choice here is not very large, the prices are often not that low, and you will have to pay extra at customs for every extra kilogram.

It is better to exchange money in advance - or at least pay in dollars. Rubles are also accepted everywhere here, but the sellers’ rate will always be higher than at the exchange office.

And, of course, you should bargain always and everywhere - even if the goods have price tags, if you want, you can certainly reduce the price by at least half.

Manchuria once occupied a vast territory. Now, geographically, it is part of different states. Thus, the flat part of Chinese Manchuria is occupied by the provinces of Heilongjiang, Liaoning and Jilin. The Greater Khingan Range is located in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Part of Manchuria is located on the modern territory of Russia and is part of the Jewish Autonomous Region and partially part of the Amur Region and.

From the history of Manchuria

The name comes from the name of the people - Manchus (of Southern Tungus origin) at the beginning of the 17th century. In the past, this people had their own statehood.

In ancient times, Manchuria was divided into many separate possessions, which were either united into one state under the rule of one ruler, or disintegrated again. Warlike Tungus tribes moved from the north and became dominant in northern Manchuria.

In the south, colonization by modern China brought with it the beginnings of Han culture. In the 10th century, Manchuria was conquered by the Khitans. Since 1115, the Jurchens became dominant, creating famous dynasty Jin, which controlled both Manchuria and almost the entire northern. In 1234, the Mongols came to Manchuria.

After the overthrow of Mongol rule in China (1368), the new Ming Empire tried to conquer all of Manchuria at the beginning of the 15th century. However, throughout most of the Ming era, only the extreme south of the region - the Liaodong Peninsula (modern Liaoning) - remained stably under Beijing's rule.

At the end of the 16th century. one of the Jurchen leaders, Nurhatsi, was able to unite many Jurchen and Mongol families under his rule. And in 1616 he declared himself emperor of a new empire, called “Later Jin” - as a sign of the continuation of the traditions of the Jin Empire of the 12th-13th centuries. Then Liaodong, which belonged to the Ming Empire, was conquered.

And a little geography

With the exception of the south, Manchuria is a low mountainous area. In its western part, the Great Khingan mountain range (Chinese: Xing-an-ling) stretches from north to south, the most high mountains in the southeastern part of the country - Changbai Shan (average altitude 1500-1800 m, highest 2745 m).

Rivers: Amur, along which the border between China and Russia is laid. A tributary of the Amur Sungari, merging with the Nonni-jiang, the Liaohe with many tributaries, the Yalu.

The famous Russian Port Arthur is located in Manchuria. This is a long story, and we are not a historical site...

The climate is harsh.

The population is diverse: the Chinese predominate in the south, the Manchus themselves, the Mongols, the Tungus, the Koreans, the Japanese. Is there russians in here.

The main occupations of the local population are agriculture, cattle breeding, and mining.

Administratively, the Chinese part of Manchuria is divided into three provinces:

  • Mukden (Chinese Sheng-ching; main city Mukden),
  • Girinskaya (the main city of Girin),
  • Heilongjiang (main cities Qiqihar and Aigun).

The main city of Manchuria is Mukden. The Chinese-Eastern Railway passes through Manchuria. Railway, which is a continuation of the Siberian Road to the city of Vladivostok (1482 km) with branches Harbin-Dalniy (941 km), Nan-kuen - Lin - Port Arthur (48 km) and Tashi-jiao - Ish (22 km).

Manzhouli City County is located in Northern China in the east Autonomous Okrug Inner Mongolia. This border city is located in close proximity to Russia, just six kilometers from Zabaikalsk and four from the border. The population of the city is about two hundred thousand inhabitants.

Today, the city has turned from a small border town into a major transport artery of China and is one of the popular shopping tourism routes for Russian citizens. 60% of goods to Russia from China are supplied through Manchuria.

How to get to Manzhouli?

The city today has its own airport, which receives international flights. It is located nine kilometers from the city and until a few years ago had only domestic airlines. Since 2009, it was given international status, which allowed tourists from Russia to travel more quickly and comfortably. Airplanes fly to Manchuria from Irkutsk, Ulan-Ude and Chita, and a flight from Krasnoyarsk will also open very soon.

You can also get to Manzhouli by train from these same cities. In addition, the Beijing-Moscow train stops in this city.
From Zabaikalsk you can get to Manchuria by regular bus. The entire journey, including a stop at the border, will take about two hours.

Russians in China

Manchuria China has long been a favorite destination for Russian citizens. At the heart of the million-strong Russian diaspora are the builders of the Chinese Eastern Railway, who connected Siberia and the Far East with Manchuria. Great October socialist revolution forced many Russians to emigrate. It was here that the regiments under the command of General Semenov fled to escape the Red Army. Many noble families found refuge here.

In Russian emigrant settlements, Russian schools and churches were built, several Orthodox bishops served, and several Cossack committees of elders also operated. At the beginning of the last century, the Russian language was very widespread in Manchuria. Russian emigrants maintained very warm and friendly relations with the local population. Caused serious damage to the Russian diaspora Civil War and the Cultural Revolution in China. Today, the Russian diaspora in Manchuria does not exceed 13 thousand people.

Manzhouli China - land port

At the end of the last millennium, Manchuria was a traditional Chinese densely populated village with a poverty-stricken population living in mud houses. Today, it is one of the most developed industrial regions of China. The impetus for these monumental changes was the government's decision to establish trade relations with Russia. Over the past decade and a half, Manchuria has turned into a civilized city with high-rise buildings, office and shopping centers, and a chain of hotels international level. Magnificent parks and squares appeared here, squares where a series of restaurants and boutiques of famous model houses lined up. Manzhouli is a duty-free zone, which is why it attracts thousands of tourists who are busy shopping. The architecture and design solutions of Manchuria closely intertwine the styles of European and Asian cultures.

The city's population is mostly employed in the areas of trade, services and tourism. In fact, the city is a huge shopping center where you can buy whatever your heart desires.

The city is especially beautiful at night. It does not have traditional lanterns. Since electricity is quite expensive, buildings are illuminated with powerful floodlights, which makes a lasting impression. Architectural delights have external lighting.

Sights of Manzhouli

One of the memorable places in Manchuria, where many foreign delegations come, where there are always fresh flowers and candles burning, is the Park to the fallen heroes. The Chinese people are very kind to the fallen heroes of the Red Army who liberated China from the Japanese. Near each warrior’s grave there is always a wreath with a thank you note from the Chinese people. The park was founded in 1915 and until 1945 was called Manchurian. After a giant monument with the names of fallen soldiers was installed in it, the park began to be called modern name. The height of the monument is 19 meters. All trees in the park are illuminated green from below.

Matryoshka

The largest nesting doll in the world was built in Manchuria. Its height corresponds to 30 meters. The building in the shape of a nesting doll is the only one of its kind and is listed in the Guinness Book of Records. Inside, the premises occupy an area of ​​more than 3000 square meters. Here you can taste any dish of European cuisine, as well as watch a performance on a specially equipped platform.

The outside of the building is decorated with images of three girls - Chinese, Mongolian and Russian, symbolizing their countries. On Matryoshka Square, around the main nesting doll, there are eight more similar nesting doll buildings, but of a smaller format. Along the perimeter of the square there are another two hundred nesting dolls, each of which depicts famous political and public figures peace. Here you can see a nesting doll with the face of George Bush, Newton, Michael Jackson, Tchaikovsky and even Jesus Christ.

IN evening time they're going here local residents and tourists to look at the light and music fountain and listen to songs by Russian authors.

Copy Park

Very close to Matryoshka Square there is a Park where copies of smaller famous monuments are collected. Here you can see “The Worker and the Collective Farm Woman”, “The Bronze Horseman”, “Motherland”, monuments to famous Russian poets and writers, for example, A.S. Pushkin, Turgenev, etc. In the evening, the sculptures are illuminated, classical music is played, as well as music Soviet authors, which adds a special effect to the entire composition.

Shopping tours to Manchuria

One of the most popular types of tourism in Manchuria is shopping tourism. A bus tour for a stay in a city - a shopping center - is inexpensive enough that you can save on purchasing things for personal use. It is beneficial for everyone involved in trade to go to Manchuria to buy goods, since the cost of things in bulk is much cheaper. In order to choose the best quality product, you should not go to the market, since markets, as a rule, offer the cheapest, but also the lowest quality goods. If you manage to find something of more or less high quality, then most likely you are offered goods from the store. In the store, you yourself can choose a higher quality product, but cheaper than from traders at the market.

Trading house "Fu Hao"

In that trading house a wide range of Korean-made goods is presented. Everything is of very high quality and costs half as much as in Russia.

Trading house "Druzhba"

This shopping center offers very high quality goods made in China. Prices are high compared to the market. However, the size range of products is very limited. The maximum dimensions correspond to our 48, and height – 164 cm. So if you do not fit into Chinese beauty standards, then you have nothing to do here.

Supermarket – market “North”

There is a supermarket at the Sever market, which attracts many shopping tourists. It's very profitable to buy here outerwear– down jackets, jackets, etc. Things are very high quality and inexpensive. There's a whole floor to choose from.

Market "New Century"

In this market, products are presented in a wide range and of varying quality. The market is located on several floors. The lowest floor contains the cheapest and lowest quality goods. The higher the floor, the higher the quality of the product and, accordingly, the price. However, you should not lose your vigilance, since even among the things on the highest floor you may be given goods from the first floor at a higher price.

Rules of conduct on a shopping tour to Manchuria

If you are going shopping in Manchuria for the first time, then you should know some behavioral features in this market city:

  • On your first shopping trip to Manchuria, it is best to go through a travel agency, as difficulties may arise when going through customs. Of course, it is very good if you go with a person who already has experience in such trips;
  • When you arrive in China, be wary of the so-called voluntary tourist assistants - “helpers”. They are very affectionate and if you just pick up his business card with a Russian name, you can consider that you have already hired him. The cost of this “helping” service per day is about 100 yuan;
  • If your goal of the trip is to purchase an excellent fur coat, then you should know that stories about the cheapness of Chinese fur coats are myths. More or less, a good fur coat costs about 10 thousand rubles;
  • if you love and know how to bargain, then Manzhouli is exactly the place where you can, by showing your talent, save a lot of money. You can bargain as much as you like, returning to the store several times;
  • if you move around the city by taxi, then it is advisable to have small money with you, since no one will give you change for 10 yuan;
  • If you want to drink hot tea at the hotel, do not hesitate to contact the maid. They always have thermoses of boiling water ready;
  • in all stores near hotels, prices for goods are higher than in stores distant from them;
  • You can travel to China in 2014 with any currency. There are many exchange offices here where they will exchange everything for you. It is most profitable to come with rubles and exchange them for yuan as needed. When purchasing goods, if you pay in rubles, you will be given change in yuan.

What to buy in Manzhouli?

Judging by the reviews of tourists who have already been shopping in Manchuria, then it’s worth coming here to buy winter outerwear - jackets, down jackets, jeans, bed linen And underwear from natural fabrics, bedding - blankets, pillows, rugs, etc. It is also profitable to buy furniture and curtains here, various decorative items for interior decoration. All these goods can be purchased here several times cheaper than in Russia. There are also a number of items that are profitable for Russian tourists to purchase, but they are only two times cheaper than in their homeland. This category of goods includes high-quality mink fur coats, knitwear High Quality, children's clothing and shoes. What you should not buy in Manchuria is household appliances and telephones. The quality is low, and the price is not much lower than in Russia.

How much does a fur coat cost in Manchuria?

Fur coat shops offer a wide range of products. However, for the most part, all fur coats are of low quality. Such fur coats are inexpensive. If you want to purchase a long floor-length mink coat with a hood excellent quality, then you must understand that such a fur coat will cost at least two thousand dollars. On average, traders ask 2.5 thousand dollars for such a cross fur coat (colored) and you will have to try hard to negotiate down to two. Regular fur coats without a hood, good quality, but thinner than from a cross, will cost you two thousand dollars, at least one and a half if you know how to bargain. Mink coats of different colors and designs can vary in cost from a thousand to one and a half thousand. But here you can overlook the catch and buy a low-quality fur coat. There are many different fur coats on sale from sheared mink, as well as other furs. However, their quality leaves much to be desired.

– profitable and with pleasure!

manzhouli, manzhouli on the map
Manchuria(Also Manchu, Manzhou, China trad. 滿洲, ex.满洲, pinyin: Mǎnzhōu) is a historical region in northeastern China (Dongbei and

East End

  • Inner Mongolia). Until 1858-1860 The concept of “Manchuria” also included territories that were ceded to Russia under the Treaty of Aigun (1858) and the Treaty of Beijing (1860), that is, the modern Amur region and Primorye. These territories are sometimes referred to as "Outer Manchuria" and were disputed by the Qing Empire. In addition, Chinese maps usually show Sakhalin as part of historical Manchuria, although this is not mentioned in the Treaty of Nerchinsk.
  • The name comes from the name of the Manchu people (of Southern Tungus origin) at the beginning of the 17th century, who in the past had their own statehood.
    • 1 Modern geography
    • 2 History
    • 2.1 Ancient Manchuria
    • 2.2 Qing Empire
    • 2.3 Russians in Manchuria
  • 3 See also
  • 4 Notes
  • 5 Literature
  • 6 Links

Modern geography

Currently, the plains of Chinese Manchuria are occupied by the provinces of Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning. The Greater Khingan Range is located in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

Story

Manchuria (Mandchouria) on the map of the Qing Empire in 1851, before the annexation of the Amur and Primorye regions to Russia

Ancient Manchuria

In ancient times, Manchuria was divided into many separate possessions, which were either united into one state under the rule of one conquering leader, or disintegrated again. Warlike Tungus tribes moved from the north and became dominant in northern Manchuria. In the south, Chinese colonization brought with it the beginnings of Han culture. In the 10th century, Manchuria was conquered by the Khitans. Since 1115, the Jurchens became dominant, creating the Jin dynasty, which controlled both Manchuria and almost all of northern China. In 1234, Manchuria was conquered by the Mongols.

After the overthrow of Mongol rule in China (1368), the new Ming Empire tried to conquer all of Manchuria at the beginning of the 15th century (see Ishiha's voyages). However, throughout most of the Ming era, only the extreme south of the region - the Liaodong Peninsula (modern Liaoning) - remained stably under Beijing's rule.

Qing Empire

At the end of the 16th century. one of the Jurchen leaders, Nurhatsi, united under his rule many Jurchen and Mongol aimags (tribes, possessions) and in 1616 declared himself the emperor of a new empire called “Later Jin” - as a sign of the continuation of the traditions of the Jin empire of the 12th-13th centuries. Then Liaodong, which belonged to the Ming Empire, was conquered. 1636 Nurhaci's son, Abahai, renamed the Later Jin to Qing, and the Jurchens to "Manchus".

In 1644, the Qing armies crossed the Great Wall of China and took Beijing. After long war The Manchus were able to finally annex all of China to their Qing state.

While remaining the dominant group in the Qing Empire, the Manchus quickly adopted Chinese culture, but their historical homeland, Manchuria, was never fully integrated with the conquered inland China, maintaining legal and ethnic differences. To control the access of ethnic Chinese (Han) to central and northern Manchuria (i.e. outside of Liaodong), to settle or collect ginseng and other natural resources, in the middle of the 17th century, a special Willow hedge was even built. Only in the second half of the 19th century, after the loss of the Amur and Primorye regions, did the Qing leadership realize the need to populate the northeastern outskirts of the country and strengthen the state budget, and opened the way for the mass settlement of Manchuria by the Chinese.

IN XVII-XVIII centuries Europeans often collectively referred to the Manchus and Mongols, along with other native inhabitants of northern Asia, as "Tatars". Accordingly, Manchuria and Mongolia, which were part of the Qing Empire, became known in Western Europe as “Chinese Tartary” (for example, French la Tartarie chinoise in Duald, English Chinese Tartary in Kitchen’s atlas of 1773). This is where the name Tatar Strait comes from (French: manche du Tartarie). Geographers early XIX V. advocated the use of the word "Manchuria" as more accurate; for example, one of the chapters of a world geography published in Paris in 1804 (part of the section “Chinese Empire”) is entitled: “Dependent provinces of the north, or Manchuria, Mongolia, Kalmykia, Sifan, Little Bukharia, and other countries usually falling under the incorrect name TARTARIA “Only during the 19th century. the word "Manchuria" became commonly used.

Russians in Manchuria

Russian poster of the beginning of the Russo-Japanese War: Russian Cossack defends Manchuria and Port Arthur, 1904

Clashes with the Russians on Manchuria's northern border begin with the Russo-Chinese War of 1658, during which the Russians also encountered the Koreans for the first time.

The result of the military confrontation was the Treaty of Nerchinsk signed in 1689, according to which the Amur, Argun and Gorbitsa rivers were made the Russian-Chinese border.

Rumors about rich gold deposits in 1883 caused the spontaneous formation on the banks of the Zhelta River, a tributary of the Albazikha, Amur basin, of the so-called Zheltuginsk Republic, located in China. The Zheltuginsk Republic was liquidated by Chinese troops in the winter of 1885-1886.

During the Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895), part of Manchuria was occupied by the Japanese, but was returned to China under the Treaty of Shimonoseki.

The weakening of the Qing government led to increased Russian influence in Manchuria, which was gradually included in the sphere of Russian commercial and political interests. This was largely due to the allied treaty concluded in 1896, after the defeat of the troops of the Qing Empire in the Sino-Japanese War.

Since 1896, the Chinese Eastern Railway (CER) was built along the shortest route to Vladivostok through Harbin. N. S. Sviyagin played a prominent role in the study of Manchuria and the construction of the road.

In 1898, under the Russo-Chinese Convention, Russia leased the Liaodong Peninsula and adjacent islands from China, fortified Port Arthur and built the commercial port of Dalniy, which were connected by rail to the East China Line to Vladivostok.

In 1900, as a result of the Boxer Uprising, the CER region in Manchuria was occupied by Russian troops.

In 1903, Russia established the Viceroyalty in Port Arthur Far East, And Russian government considered the project of consolidating Manchuria as "Zheltorossii", the basis of which was to be the Kwantung Region established in 1899, the exclusion zone of the Chinese Eastern Railway, the formation of a new Cossack army and the settlement of Russian colonists.

Japan's claims to Manchuria and Korea and the refusal of the Russian Empire to withdraw Russian troops in violation of the alliance treaty from Manchuria and Korea led to the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, the theater of operations of which was all of southern Manchuria to Mukden.

Japanese settlement of Manchuria. 1910

According to the Treaty of Portsmouth, the Liaodong Peninsula with the Kwantung Region and the Russian Railway (SMZD) from Kuanchenzi (Changchun) to Port Arthur went to Japan. Between 1905 and 1925, Japan further strengthened its influence in Inner Manchuria, relying on economic leverage. Later, Japan did not allow Chinese control to be established over Manchuria, occupied it and created the pro-Japanese state of Manchukuo there.

Manchuria at the beginning of the 20th century

Manchuria on the map 1892

Former part of the Qing Empire, bordering Korea and Russia (Transbaikal, Amur and Primorsk regions), about 1 million km², 5.7 million inhabitants. With the exception of the southern part, Manchuria is a low mountainous country. In its western part, the Great Khingan ridge (Chinese: Xing-an-ling) stretches from north to south; the highest mountains in the southeastern part of the country are Changbai Shan (average height 1500-1800 m, highest 2745 m). Rivers: in addition to the Amur, which forms the border with Russia, its tributary the Sungari, merging with the Nonni-jiang, the Liaohe with many tributaries, the Yalu. The climate is harsh. Population: Chinese (mainly in the south), Manchus, Mongols, Tungus, Koreans, Japanese, ch. Occupations: agriculture, cattle breeding, mining. Administratively, Manchuria is divided into three provinces: Mukden (Chinese Sheng-ching; the main city of Mukden), Girin (the main city of Girin) and Hei-long-jiang (the main cities of Qiqihar and Aigun). The main city of Manchuria is Mukden. The Chinese Eastern Railway passes through Manchuria, constituting an extension of the Siberian to the city of Vladivostok (1482 km) with branches Harbin-Dalniy (941 km), Nan-kuen - Lin - Port Arthur (48 km) and Tashi-jiao - Ish (22 km).

Manchukuo

Main article: Manchukuo

From March 1, 1932 to August 19, 1945, the state of Manchukuo existed on the territory of Manchuria. Currency unit 1 chiao (1 chiao = 10 fen = 100 li). The capital is Xinjing, headed by Pu Yi (Supreme Ruler 1932-1934, Emperor from 1934 to 1945). In fact, Manchukuo was controlled by Japan and entirely followed its policies. 1939 armed forces Manchukuo participated in the war at Khalkhin Gol (in the Japanese historiography “Incident at Nomonhan”). Manchukuo ceased to exist on August 19, 1945, when the plane carrying Emperor Pu Yi was captured at Mukden airfield by Red Army paratroopers.

see also

  • Zheltuginsk Republic
  • Manchukuo

Notes

  1. Jean-Baptiste Du Halde: Description géographique, historique, chronologique, politique et physique de l'empire de la Chine et de la Tartarie chinoise (Paris: P.G. Lemercier 1735)
  2. Mentelle, Edme & Brun, Malte (1804), "Géographie mathématique, physique & politique de toutes les parties du monde", vol. 12, H. Tardieu, p. 144,
  3. that is, Dzungaria
  4. Tibet
  5. Kashgaria
  6. "Les provinces tributaires du nord ou la Mantchourie, la Mongolie, la Kalmouquie, le Sifan, la Petit Bucharie, et autres pays vulgairement compris sous la fausse dénomination de TARTARIE", in Mentelle & Brun 1804, P. 144
  7. Another example of early use: "Mandchourie ou pays du Mongols, mantcheoux ou orientaux" ("Manchuria, or the country of the Manchu or Eastern Mongols") in: Mentelle, Edme (1804), "Le cours complet de cosmographie, de géographie, de chronologie et d "histoire ancienne et moderne", vol. 3, Chez Bernard, p. 334,
  8. Russian Archipelago - Far Eastern Project Russian Empire
  9. Japan from the 20s to the 40s

Literature

  • Ahnert E.E. Travel to Manchuria. - St. Petersburg, 1909
  • Boloban A.P. Agriculture and grain industry of Northern Manchuria - Harbin, 1909
  • Grebenshchikov A.V. Along the Amur and Sungari. Travel notes - Harbin, 1909
  • Boloban A.P. Colonization problems of China in Manchuria // Bulletin of Asia. Journal of the Society of Russian Orientalists. - Harbin - 1910 - No. 3 - S. S.85 - 127
  • Steinfeld N.P. Russian trade in Manchuria in the characteristics of local merchants // Bulletin of Asia. Journal of the Society of Russian Orientalists. - Harbin - 1910 - No. 3 - S. S. 128-157
  • Avarin V. National question and colonization in Manchuria // Revolution and Nationalities - 1931 - No. 4

Links

  • Agreement between Russia and China on Manchuria. Beijing, March 26/April 8, 1902
  • Kosinova O. A. Oriental and local history training in educational institutions Russian expatriates in China // Electronic journal “Knowledge. Understanding. Skill". - 2008. - No. 2 - Pedagogy. Psychology.
  • Kosinova O. A. Historical background formation of the cultural and educational space of Russia in Northern Manchuria // Electronic journal “Knowledge. Understanding. Skill". - 2008. - No. 2 - Pedagogy. Psychology.
  • Kosinova O. A. Formation of the education system of Russian abroad in Northern Manchuria // Electronic journal “Knowledge. Understanding. Skill". - 2008. - No. 2 - Pedagogy. Psychology.
  • Litvintsev G. Russian Manchuria, a disappeared country
  • When writing this article, material from Encyclopedic Dictionary Brockhaus and Efron (1890-1907).

Manchuria, Manchuria Wikipedia, Manchuria war, Manchuria city, Manchuria map, Manchuria map 20th century, Manchuria city map, Manchuria on the map

A Chinese tourist does not necessarily have to fly a thousand kilometers to see the beauty of Moscow and St. Petersburg and snack on “Three Bears” and “Alenka”. On the border of the People's Republic of China and the Russian Federation rises a city that is itself all Russia. Bright. Lubochnaya. With kokoshniks and dancing to the accordion. This is a novelty for us too. Tired of dullness, “dead” entrances and broken roads? Welcome to fabulous Russia, as our Chinese “core fans” see it.

From the RG dossier. Manchuria is a city in northeast China, 4 km from the Russian border and 6 km from the city of Zabaikalsk. Population - 300 thousand people. The largest land port in China, which accounts for up to 70% of Russian-Chinese trade turnover. In the late 80s - a small village. Since 2010 - state experimental area of ​​priority development and openness.

"Dluga... go past"

My Manchu “druga” Vitya, whose real name is Wang Zhan, no longer complains that the Russians have stopped coming to him for shoes. And just 2 years ago it seemed like a collapse to him. The city was deserted due to the collapse of the ruble. “Beijing” boots, which are sometimes made here, in the damp basements of Manchuria, and which Wang sold for 10 years, are frozen on the shelves. According to the new exchange rate (1 yuan = 10-11 rubles), it became unprofitable for residents of Transbaikalia and the Baikal region to go shopping for things in the border areas.

Van grieved for a little while, and then got rid of the remaining goods, selling them at prices below purchase prices. But he didn’t go back to the village to grow rice and corn, but repurposed the shoe boutique into a souvenir shop, of which there are now dozens in Manchuria.

Just 5 years ago, he fanned me with a Chinese fan, smiled from ear to ear, and captivated me with questions about the Russian language, while his “helpers” (traders’ assistants) went into a marathon to get the right pair of sandals. Now he looks with a sly squint, as if through it, the Russian-Chinese phrasebook has been put aside as unnecessary. As a buyer with a return ticket to Russia, I am no longer of interest to Vitya. The main object of his commercial gain is the domestic Chinese tourist.

Van sells Russian nesting dolls, carved from Russian wood, and is glad that his new business grows as quickly as Chinese bamboo: wealthy residents of the center and south of the PRC rush to the north of the country to take a breather from the heat, floods and earthquakes, and at the same time join the foreign and mysterious culture of Mash and Wan.

Van, do you miss the Russians? - I spin a huge nesting doll in my hands, in whose painted appearance one can discern Chinese features.

Lussky is single, but he has become very poor, and the Chinese have yuan,” he does not lie and suddenly lights up: “Kolya, buy a matryoshka!” You are my old carefana. I'll give you a cheap price. During the day with fire I couldn’t find it.

"Why do I need a nesting doll?"

I am already asking this question silently, to myself. Van still won’t understand the depth of Russian pain. Dozens of shops and departments are littered with matryoshka dolls to the ceiling; they are sold from benches on the streets. Yes, they are made from leftover lumber, but ours, Russian. And not by us. And not with us. I look at the motley rows of nesting dolls, and I see charred stumps - sawn-down Russian forest.

"The southern outskirts of Manchuria are one big sawmill. Trucks with Russian timber and round timber (which is generally not exported) stand in a long caravan for unloading. More than a hundred! Pain!" - I’m jotting down my “untravelled notes” on the way to Zhalaynor (a region of Manchuria, and essentially a satellite city).

On another page: “The unbearably delicious smell of fresh wood, sawdust, of which there are mountains here. Everything is moving around: cars, cranes, saws... A giant Manchurian barber is cutting the Russian forest, simultaneously cutting billions into the Chinese wallet.”

I open the magazine “Your Neighbor - Manchuria” on the “right” page: “There are more than 100 enterprises in the region, of which 90% are in Manchuria. Products of wood processing enterprises, such as furniture, interior frames, windows and others, are sold in Europe, America , Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia."

"And from above, from all sides, from those very hills of Manchuria, multi-meter windmills are raking in the air with huge blades - I tried to count, but I was off by 80. Science fiction? A film about the future? No, the reality of the People's Republic of China. In a few years, a wind power plant with a capacity of 49.5 thousand was built here kW and now save up to 60 thousand tons of coal per year. Under the giant mills, the lawn is equal to flocks of sheep, herds of cows. Manchuria is melting the energy of wind, sun, and earth into capital - economic, human, cultural."

They drove mammoths through the streets...

From the center of Manzhouli to the Zhalaynor district is less than half an hour along a wonderful highway. For decades, this town was famous for its powerful coal mining and fishing (nearby is Dalai Lake - the fifth largest in China), but we are not going for coal and fish, but for mammoths. They are the new tourism brand of the Chinese borderland.

Local miners stumbled upon the remains of a mammoth in 1984. Archaeologists calculated that he was 6 meters long and died at 60 years old. Later, the bones of the “King of the Mammoths of Asia” were discovered here. It was 9 meters long, 5 meters high and had a 4-meter tusk.

The Chinese would not be Chinese if they had not been able to present this story beautifully. The archaeological monument, for the average person as bland in taste as a rice cake without salt, was sharply seasoned with fabulousness and gigantomania, and the result was a dish that will shock gourmets too - “The largest sculptural group of mammoths in the world.”

On 790 hectares, 87 concrete “elephants” are slowly wandering somewhere, splashing in water fountains, and peacefully watching from the bushes. The feeling of a fairy tale connecting the ancient past and the technological present is added by the wind-driven blades of windmills in the distance. Planes are flying, trains are buzzing, the 15-meter mammoth leader is convening his brothers for an animal gathering.

And in the mammoth park there are three sculptures of a rhinoceros, one of a deer, two of saber tooth tiger, dozens of stone storks and cranes, under whose spread wings Chinese pensioners take photographs with childish delight.

The tallest Ferris wheel in these parts (65 meters) and the observation tower look at all this splendor. And also St. Basil's Cathedral. Well, or almost. Only without gilding and Orthodox crosses. Trying to find the logic in placing these objects in one place? Don’t waste your time: as you can see, not only Russia cannot be measured with a common yardstick.

And to understand what the nation of progressives believes in, you only need to look into that very “temple.” No icons, no incense, no altar. Children's Museum of Science and Technology. Amen.

But stay away from this sacrilege - let’s rather go to the brand new Museum of History and Nature of Zhalaynor. You don't even need to buy entrance tickets here. Caring about educating the people, the authorities made entry free. The sightseeing tour showed that the museum is worth paying more than for a ticket.

"Tepel Vasa"

Three floors in glass, steel and marble. Like everything built in China in last years, on an imperial scale. Here you will find full, life-size copies of the skeletons of mammoths, rhinoceroses, and ancient skulls found here wild bulls(they are at least 30 thousand years old), tools of Stone Age people, ancient arrowheads, gold jewelry of Mongolian khans, stuffed animals and birds living in the surrounding area. The main treasure of the museum is the skull of a woman who lived in the Manchurian steppes 400 thousand years ago. Not 4 and not 40 - 400! We look at each other incredulously. The guide repeats the numbers. All that remains is cultural capitulation.

As proof of the amazing legends, there are maps of the area from different eras. One of them, of course, tells that humanity originated and began to spread throughout the world from here. Others are about the history of different kingdoms, the conquests of Genghis Khan and the creation of a single kingdom within the borders of modern Manchuria.

Yes, this is our Baikal! - I exclaim, looking at the maps of the ancient Mongol khanates. In almost all of them, both Buryatia and the Trans-Baikal Territory are colored as their former territory.

We take in kind

And for Russian girlish beauty, no distance is an obstacle. Blonde hair, long legs, Blue eyes- this is its “gold standard” for export.

Alina came to Manchuria to work. She asks not to take photos, so that her relatives in Russia won’t inadvertently see what she’s doing. No, nothing immoral. Clean business. He sings and dances in a restaurant, demonstrates clothes, appears in commercials, and in the evenings he puts on an evening dress and stands at the entrance to a jewelry store for 2-3 hours, inviting the Chinese, greedy for Russian beauty, to look into the salon.

Alina, like dozens of her colleagues from Russia, is paid very tolerably - 400-500 yuan per evening (to convert to rubles, multiply by 10). In addition, there is a permanent salary - 3 thousand yuan per month. With this money, Alina rents a hotel room, dresses expensively, and also sends money to her mother and saves it for travel. In August he plans to go to India, and then return to Irkutsk to finish studying Chinese.

Russian girls outside shops and restaurants are the new face of Manchuria, its trend. Like candies, ice cream and beer with the Made in Russia brand. I rushed to buy Chinese “Maozedong” sweets, which my colleagues asked me to bring, but the mission was a failure. Shops near hotels now sell Russian products, and judging by some clumsily printed labels, they are counterfeits.

Circus! And not only

The Manchurian magazine wrote about “27-year-old mixed-race Anna from Irkutsk”: “Anna successfully realized her “Chinese dream”: in Manchuria she became vice-president of a media culture company for city affairs.” This girl, “the ambassador of Chinese-Russian friendship,” as she calls herself, managed to organize a tour of the Russian State Circus in Manchuria. This year it is based here, on Matryoshka Square, in a new tent with a loud sign “Russian Circus”. But who is in the arena and under the dome, if the circus is Russian, and there is not a single one of ours around?

We walk with a photographer along Matryoshka Square, passing attractions and cafes, sculptures for photographing and lush flower beds. Several hundred hectares of entertainment area in the Russian spirit with turrets, onions, painted eggs. Why didn’t we, the true masters of national images, think of this?

“It’s almost Disneyland,” the photographer suddenly stopped. - I will take my grandson here.

The fabulous space under the code name "Matryoshka Square" continues to grow in breadth and height - there is nothing like it either here or in the neighboring regions, and where in Russia?.. They are going to build an "international cultural and tourist center" across the road from it - more one host of hotels, restaurants, entertainment and shopping centers. What do the pictures promise? Of course Russian chic!

Passing the singing fountains, we come to the royal Russian-Mongolian restaurant, reminiscent of the Bolshoi Theater in scale. The interior is truly theatrical: a noble stage, a stall with chairs and tables, an amphitheater, a mezzanine, boxes, balconies. What do they give? Dinner. We decide to “take the language” on the way out.

She didn’t want to give a name and generally talked lazily - the lunch had apparently been good and the girl was in a hurry to cover several hundred meters in order to quickly get to the “Kremlin” hotel, the lobby of which is like the halls of the Tretyakov Gallery and the Hermitage “in one bottle.”

Along the way, we learned that she was a gymnast, but had not graduated from any circus “gymnasium.” In Manchuria because they pay decently (she refused to name the amount, but knowledgeable people they say: at least 50 thousand rubles).

Now hold on: the Russian State Circus artist arrived in China straight from... Kyiv. Like almost 100% of touring people. Without knowing any embarrassment, citizens of independent Ukraine proudly bring Russian circus art to the Asian masses.

To spite an arrogant neighbor

And while the “Russian” tightrope walkers are warming up their muscles before the performance, the tireless Chinese builders are laying tiles at a distance, welding sparks and dragging pipes, mixing the solution right on the ground, adding water from a liter bottle to it. Next to hotels in the “a la Kremlin” style there is a nesting doll growing that the world has never seen before. Her neighbor - the old "largest nesting doll in the world" - was the height of a 10-story building (30 meters). It has a restaurant and entertainment center. The new one is 2.5 times taller and wider, which means the list of Made in China world records will soon be replenished.

Under the sidelong glances of the welders, we make our way inside the giant nesting doll and freeze in amazement. The tower-shaped structure is hollow on the inside. This is probably what an empty cooling tower of a large thermal power plant looks like. The rooms are in a circle, balconies inward. 25 floors, no less. Everything around is crackling, boiling, getting along. Workers are like ants, each in his own area.

What will happen here? A hotel that has no analogues in any part of the world. Here. In the bare lifeless steppe. On the very border with Russia. Next to the park are copies of the main Russian monuments: “Worker and Collective Farm Woman”, “Motherland”, “Bronze Horseman” and others. Overlooking the vegetating Zabaikalsk - the largest checkpoint in Russia, customs duties and fees from which go entirely to the federal budget. The world's largest Russian nesting doll. Next to the Russian domes and the Russian circus. As if as a mockery and edification to my clumsy country, which has sunk into a swamp, which, like the folk hero Ilya Ilyich Oblomov, is still going to do something so big and for which here, on its eastern borders, we are especially ashamed.

What's wrong with us?

The setting sun gilds the stubborn tops of Manchu skyscrapers. The heat is about to give way to the saving breath of twilight, and locals flock to the cozy embankment near the city lake, which just a few years ago resembled a swamp overgrown with reeds. It's pouring national music, old and small Manchus dance each in their own way. A little further on, teenagers are rollerblading and skateboarding, couples are hugging, and old people are spinning on street exercise machines.

I don’t see irritated or self-absorbed people. Everywhere there is a shared joy, a pleasure from the day, as if even the confidence that life is going right, exactly as it should, and where: really on a great earth - with a great past, present and future. How we miss this inner feeling, lost in the vastness of a large and awkward country, as if we have received a huge and rich part of the planet for temporary use...

And if only he was missing.

Train N 683 "Zabaikalsk - Chita". The carriage is filled with Chinese passengers: schoolchildren, students, working youth - dressed decently, all with tablets and phones, clearly not going to a construction site or a plantation. It turned out to be true. Destination: Chita - capital Trans-Baikal Territory. They were promised to be shown local attractions.

Yes, here they are! Tourists! The same ones! They crossed the border a long time ago, having overcome the hellish circle of Russian customs. They were obviously hungry. But as soon as one of them, once on the train, began to draw boiling water from the carriage samovar, a market scandal broke out. Either taking on the character of the mother-in-law of the Russian Railways president himself, or simply overheating while waiting for passengers, the conductor shooed away the Chinese boy with undisguised disdain: “It’s early.” The samovar was immediately locked. So are the toilets, which are dirty, have water on the floor, an empty roll of paper towels and pathetic remnants on the washbasin. Later she was rude to another tourist from China. And outside the window, landfills began to flash - the roadside reality of the Russian Federation glaring in the eyes.

This is how the journey of Chinese tourists to Russia begins. How will they remember her? Will they find something to love? Will they want to return? Or maybe let the dolls and domes of linden temples that decorate the “Russian city” of Manchuria be that same Russia for them?