Eating out

Dafu Restaurant (also known as The International Club). Arguably this is the pick of a large choice of excellent local restaurants. It serves a wide choice of excellent, Chinese cuisine. It is extremely clean with first-class service.
Add: 19 XinYing Street, Hunan District.
Tel: 5859999.

Golden Hans. A lovely, meaty, BBQ restaurant serving German lager brewed on the premises. Take your fill for Yn30 per head, free beer at lunchtime. Operates in the style of a Brazilian steakhouse. Live music to accompany excellent food.
Add: 53 Nan Jiangguo Lu.
Tel: 2256658.

Pizza House. This is as good as they get anywhere in the world. Thick-based pizza with generous toppings.
Add: 6 Wu Dao Street.
Tel: 2225222.

International hotel, Coffee Shop. If you need to have your western food 'fix' then the steak and chips here are as good as they come. Recommended though only on the grounds of necessity.
Add: 217 Yuanlin Lu.
Tel: 0412 5555888

Manabe Coffee Shop. Not only does it serve an excellent range of coffee but has some tasty, light, snack meals. Business tip - if you want a small, private meeting room, it comes free here for the price of your coffee. Just ask for a private room when you enter.
Add: 72 Nan Shengli Lu. (across the road from the Wuhuan Hotel and 100 metres towards the town centre).
Tel: 2923333.

Bars and nightspots

Wuhuan hotel, basement bar, Nanshengli Lu. By far the best in town for general entertainment value. A place for meeting, talking and listening to live entertainment. For something a little quieter try the piano bar on the ground floor.

International hotel, An intimate Karaoke bar on the second floor where westerners would not be too embarrassed to let their hair down.
Add: 217 Yuanlin Lu (just behind the football stadium).
Tel: 5555888.

Arts & Culture

Jade Buddha Temple. About 2 km out of the city centre and on the road heading east to Qianshan scenic area. Admission price is Yn40, unless you happen to hold a long resident's card. The temple houses what is claimed to be the largest sculptured piece of Jade anywhere in the world. It weighs over 80 tonnes and stands about 6 metres high. The seven various colours of the jade have been carved so as to reveal (naturally as it is claimed) various aspects in the life and history of Buddha. It is true; they are visible without too much imagination. What is a must for visitors is to obtain a guide who can talk one through the twelve marble mosaics mounted on the inner temple walls. These mosaics tell the story and history of Buddha in great detail. But give the museum a miss.

"Scenic Spots" Which are the best places to visit, for a tourist?

Qianshan Mountain, Thousand Lotuses Mountain or Thousand Peak Mountain. Admission price is a hefty Yn60 from spring through to autumn but free in winter. The area is situated about 20 km east of the city and is well sign posted in English. It offers a combination of culture and sightseeing depending where and upon what one wishes to focus ones attention. Legend has it that the area was created from 999 lotus leaves, which turned into green mountains. A monk later created one more artificial peak to make the total a round thousand. It is a huge area of natural forest and steep mountains, seen at its most beautiful in mid-April when the cherry blossom is in full bloom. One can take a gentle stroll along the main access roads or the more arduous climb (good walking shoes essential) visiting all the peaks. There is a cable car to one of the more popular peaks for those who must. Allow a full day to do your visit justice. The brochure claims eight days to visit all the sites and peaks. The mountains contain many Buddhist and Taoist temples in close harmony in these mountains. For those with minimum time or lack of physical inclination, a car tour will whisk you around all the key sites and take in a few photo stops in a couple of hours. English-speaking guides are available from the entrance. Souvenir shops are gradually encroaching more and more (one can even find them on the peaks). It is a popular venue for people to spend the night and watch the early sunrise.

Martyrs Park. Its peak is visible from anywhere in the city centre. It was built to commemorate those who held out and gave their lives to resist the Japanese occupation. It provides full views of all aspects to the city for those with the energy to climb its hundreds of steps (remember to take your camera, you will not want to climb those steps twice). There is a gentler route to the top via the park that occupies the slopes to the monumental hill. The park tends to get well worn by the many thousands of local inhabitants who spend their time there but it is interesting to see there many forms of local cultural entertainment. Foreign visitors to the park still tend to be a bit of a novelty.

Shopping

Jade, either in the form of jewellery or ornaments, is the main unique product. This can be found in many shops in the city centre but the better choices and bargains can be found in the Jade market, which can be found adjacent to the Jade Buddha Temple. Anyone really into buying Jade though ought to visit Xiuyan City (known as Jade City): about an hour drive from Anshan.

Morning market, even if you don't want to buy and fresh fruit, meat or vegetables. It is a fascinating experience to just stroll through one of these markets to see the vast range of produce available. There are many in existence so ask your local host or the hotel concierge for the nearest. The best time to go is early morning (6am).

Night market, appears every evening after 6.00 p.m. It occupies the entire street in front of the northern entrance to Martyr's Park, very close to the city centre. Everything is very cheap, particularly clothing. Prices tend to be higher for foreigners. You need to bargain – it is expected - but remember it is offensive to enter negotiations and not conclude the deal. With plenty of friendly banter it is a good game to try and negotiate a better price than the locals can get (it is often possible).

City centre. Here you will find a number of department stores and an indoor shopping mall. All international branded goods are available but tend to be pricey and may not always be what they appear to be. Remember that Almani of Paris is not Ammani of Italy even though the prices and costumes are very similar. Good quality domestic products, especially clothing, are very cheap. A word of warning, however, styles tend to be similar to tight fitting Italian fashion.

Other

Tangganzi Hot Springs. This is one of the better known and more popular of the many hot springs in the area. It is reputed that Puyi, the puppet emperor visited these springs with his many concubines. The springs are located about 20km from the city on the road heading south towards Haicheng. The springs of mineral water are very relaxing and therapeutic whether one accepts the claims for their medical treating properties or not.

219 Park, takes its name from 19 February, the date Anshan celebrated its freedom from Japanese occupation. It lies just to the east of the city centre and only a short walk. There is an entrance fee of Yn10 to the park itself. It worth taking a stroll from the city centre to see the lake, trees and mountains. It does contain many commercial attractions, which are very popular with locals, especially children. Ignore these but take in some of the local cultural activities. It is worth an evening stroll when one can witness the dancing waters and music which have become a feature at the main entrance from 7.00 to 8.00 p.m. each evening (this part is free).