Guangdong (yue for short) is located in the southern part of the south China Sea, encompassing a total 179,766 square kilometres. From north to south, the altitudes of landforms decreases. The highest mountain is the Shikengkong peak with a height of 1902 m above sea level. The mountain and hill areas cover most of Guangdong without many plains.
There are many rivers such as the Zhujiang River (Pearl River), which is composed of the Xijiang River, the Beijiang River, the Dongjiang River, the Hanjiang River, the Rongjiang River and the Moyangjiang River. Guangdong has a curved coastal line of 3368.1 km and many estuaries and more than 651 offshore islets.
Guangdong Province was first set up in 1370 A.D. with Guangzhou as its capital. People in Guangdong Province have revolutionary traditions . The first page of Chinese modern history began in Guangdong (the Anti-imperialism's Opium War), which is also the starting point of Chinese Democratic Revolution. As the South Gate of China, Guangdong has been opining to the outside world for a long time. Since the adoption of opening and reforming policy in 1978, three special economic zones, Shen Zhen, Zhuhai and Shantou, have been established, Guangzhou, Zhanjiang, the Zhujiang (Pearl River) Delta areas and the whole coastal regions have been opened. More than 100 ports have also been opened. So Guangdong's transportation is convenient. Its industry is devoloping and agricultural products (rice, fruits, fishing, etc)are abundant. Its economy is developing rapidly.
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