Shijiazhuang :
Location:situated in the middle south of Hebei province; on the Huabei Plain; between 3804' north latitude and 11429' east longitude; with Beijing and Tianjin in the north and the Bohai Sea and Huabei oil field east; leaning against the Taihang Range and bordering on the Shanxi province in the west
Neighboring Areas:Beijing and Tianjin Municipalities; Shandong,Henan,Shanxi,and Liaoning provinces; Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region
Physical Features:the urban district with smooth terrain; higher in the west and lower east; dotted with lakes
Population:8.60 million
Urban Population:1.50 million
Area:15,848 sq km
Nationalities:Han,Hui,Manchu,Korean and Mongolian
History:originally set up in earlier Ming dynasty; used to be the collecting and distributing center for goods to Yan,Zhao and San Jin; having the fame of "the thoroughfare between north and south,the throat of Yan (Shandong province) and Jin (Shanxi province)"; used to be called "Shijia city","Shimen city",etc
Climatic Features:located in the temperate zone,enjoying the continental climate; four seasons clearly demarcated with cold winter and hot summer; with frost-free period of 200 days
Average Temperature:13C annually; annual average sunshine more than 2400 hours
Rainfall:annual even precipitation 570 mm; maximum average humidity 62 percent.
Mountains:Mt.Taihang and Mt.Cangyanshan
Rivers:Hutuohe River,Cihe River,Dashahe River,Jiaohe River,Huaishahe River,Yehe River and Gantaohe River
Local Highlights:Xuanhua pear,honey peach,date,walnut,apple,Jingjing Lahua - the northern Yangge