Jilin, meaning in Man language "along the river", is situated in the central part of the Northeast China. It borders on Korea and Russia. The weather here is cold. There are many tourist attractions including the Changbai Mountain, Songhua River, Yalu River, Tumen River and many other scenic spots. Jilin Province is also an industrial base with automobile industry, chemical industry, electric power industry and forestry. The capital city is Changchun, which is also known as "the movie city" and "the automobile city".

The province of Jilin is a borderland lying in the juncture of three countries, with its east part joined with Russia and its southeast with Korean Peninsula by the Tumen River and the Yalu River respectively. It shares border with North Korea and Russia over 1,400 kms and the shortest way to the Sea of Japan from the outlet of the Tumen River is only 15 kms. The total area of Jilin is 187,400 square km and its population 26 million. The capital city is Changchun.

Jilin province abounds in natural resources and it's known as a big agriculture province. Jilin is also endowed with fairly rich forest resources, rated the second in terms of forest reserves and wood production in China.

There are "Three Treasures of Northeast Area", namely Ginseng, Deer Antler and sable Fur. More than 130 minerals have been discovered, of which 83 have been verified for deposits. The deposits of 9 minerals, including oil-shale, silica, diatomite and bentonite are the first in China. Among all the scenic spots in this region, Changbai Mountain is the most beautiful and is worth a visit. Other places include Tianshan, Tianchi and Songhua lake.

Recommended Scenic Spots

Mt. Changbaishan in Jili

Changbaishan means eternally white mountains and is located in the southeast of Jilin near the Korean border. It is China's largest nature reserve and is home to the rare Manchurian tiger, snow leopards and wild ginseng.

The most famous scenic area in Changbaishan is Baitoushan (White Head Mountain) and Tianchi (Lake of Heaven), a 2 million year old volcanic crate lake at the mountain summit. Tianchi has a circumference of 13km (8 miles) and has an average depth of 204 meters (670ft). Surrounded by beautiful mountains, hot springs and waterfalls this area is considered sacred by both Koreans and Manchus.

Puppet Emperor's Palace

During the Japanese occupation of Manchuria (1931-1945), the last emperor of the Qing dynasty (1644-1911) Puyi was installed as the "puppet" ruler of the renamed state of Manchukuo. The Puppet Emperor's Palace was built by the Japanese especially for Puyi to inhabit.

The palace covers an area of 43,000 sq meters and comprises imperial style buildings, courtyards and gardens. Parts have been restored and are used as a permanent exhibition with displays relating to the Japanese occupation.