Qingdao

From pottery shards and primitive carved stones unearthed in and around the Shandong province scientists have been able to determine that Qingdao’s timetable stretches back almost 6,000 years. The first manifestations of an organized village began during the East Zhou dynasty (770-256 BC). It was during this period that the nearby the Laoshan Mountains earned Qingdao and the surrounding peninsula notoriety in 600 BC when the scholar Lao-Tzu gave birth to the religion known as Taoism. This forever cloaked the mountains with an air of religious mystique, attracting scholars, writers and followers of Buddhism. Over the next 2,400 years, hundreds of temples and nunneries were built in these mountains, especially during the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. To this day these mountains, especially Mount Taishan, are considered as the some of the most sacred in China. (For visitors in search of these ancient temples be aware that many still stand, but because Tao emphasized simplicity, they are modest at best and lack the mind-stretching grandeur of many of China’s southern temples.)

During the seventh century under the Tang dynasty (681-907) Qingdao took full advantage of its sea location by evolving into one of the Shandong peninsula’s most important cities for commerce. It would build on this reputation over the next 900 years, continually growing in size and diversity as a leading national and international trading center.

Following China’s defeat to England in the Opium War (1840-1842) and the subsequent signing of the Treaty of Nanjing much of the Chinese coast was opened to European colonization. On November 14, 1897, German forces seized and occupied Qingdao under the murky pretext of avenging the murder of two German missionaries. Qingdao immediately became a German "concession area" (An area or city conceded to foreign residency and rule. Hong Kong is the greatest example of this) and quickly took on the look of a Bavarian village. In 1903, the German presence expanded from architecture into taste when the Qingdao Beer Brewery formed. Today it is internationally known for producing the madly popular Tsingtao beer.

According to Qingdao’s concession pact, German occupation was to have lasted for 99 years, but the eruption of World War I neutered this plan. With Germany distracted, Japan invaded and occupied Qingdao in 1914 beginning a 30-year tug-of-war for control of the city. Following Germany’s defeat in the big war, China expected to regain control of Qingdao, but the Treaty of Versailles instead transferred German concessions to Japan. This ignited China’s famous May 4th Movement (1919) when thousand of Chinese protestors flooded the streets in protest of Japanese occupation.

In 1922, China regained governing rights to Qingdao, only to have the Japanese rudely return in 1938. After seven years of forced occupation, Japan finally surrendered Qingdao back to China after its defeat in World War II.

In 1984 Qingdao was one of 14 coastal cities declared open by the Chinese government to foreign visitors. The effects were dramatically immediate. The economy swelled turning the city into the fourth largest manufacturing port in China. Attention also focused on tourism. Its German architecture suddenly blossomed from bitter symbols of foreign occupation, into gorgeous landmarks of its "colorful" past, perfect for attracting tourists. Major hotel chains were added, outlying roads leading to its famed Laoshan Mountains were improved, and the beaches were scrubbed clean. And in 1990 it jumped on its Tsingtao beer fame by hosting its first Munich-like International Beer Festival. Today this beer bash spans 16 days and attracts almost 1.5 million visitors from around the planet.