268 People and Places
The harsh landscapes of Eastern Asia
include remote mountains, cold deserts,
and the vast, dry grasslands of Mongolia
and northern China. In the southeast of
China, there are wide plains and valleys,
watered by mighty rivers. North and
South Korea form a peninsula, where
the land is mountainous and thickly forested, as are the
neighbouring islands across the sea that make up Japan.
Eastern Asia
WHEN WAS HONG KONG A BRITISH COLONY?
Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997 having
been a British colony for 99 years. With a population
of over 6.5 million people, this small territory lies in
southeast China and comprises a mountainous
mainland area and 236 offshore islands.2 THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA
The Great Wall of China is made up of
two high walls sandwiched together with
earth. The top is paved with stone slabs,
making a roadway about 4 m (13 ft)
wide. Along its length, there are 25,000
square watch towers.1 HONG KONG, CHINA
A traditional Chinese junk sails into Hong Kong harbour. Hong Kong is
not only a leading financial centre, and a major manufacturer of textiles
and electronics, but also one of the world’s busiest ports.1 MONGOLIAN HORSEMAN
Mongolians are some of the world’s most accomplished horse riders.
Here, a Kazakh horseman hunts with a trained golden eagle. Kazakhs are
the largest of Mongolia’s ethnic minorities.Guards sat in towers
along the wall, watching
for signs of dangerWHERE DO CHINA’S 1.3 BILLION PEOPLE LIVE?
About 80 per cent of China’s vast population live in
small, rural villages, and work on the land. The rest
live in overcrowded cities, where housing is scarce.
With the world’s largest population, China has a huge
task to provide all its citizens with food and education.HOW LONG IS THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA?
The wall stretches over 6,400 km (3,980 miles) through the mountains and deserts
of northern China. It is the longest structure ever to be built by hand. Work began
over 2,200 years ago by order of the first Chinese emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi.
Most of the wall we see today was built by peasants in the 15th century to
keep out northern invaders.