Rui'an

Rui'an (simplified Chinese: 瑞安; traditional Chinese: 瑞安; pinyin: Ruì'ān) is a city on the eastern coast of China, towards the southern area of Zhejiang province right in the centre of South Wenzhou. It is a county-level city administrated by the nearby prefecture-level city (provincial sub region) of Wenzhou. It currently has a population of 1,125,000 people covering 1271 km², 3037 km² including sea. Natives of the city speak the Wu dialect.

Rui'an was passed to be the fourteenth development zone by the state department in 1987.Rui'an is in the top 100 cities for economic growth in china, and the people in Ruian are well-to-do. In all, there 32 towns and villages under the administration of Rui'an city, with a population of about 1.12 million, land area of 1,271 square kilometers and sea area of 3,060 square kilometers. In 1988, Ruian was listed by the State Council as one of the first counties and cities opening to the outside world, as well as one of the trial counties and cities for comprehensive reforms. In 2001 it won the title of “Star County” and “Advanced County in Sports”.

History

Rui'an, also known as MeiTou has a history which goes back to about 2000 BC, when it became known for its machine production. The historic city began its trade and commerce in ancient times and saw busy streets and flourishing businesses. In the 2nd century BC it was called the Kingdom of Dong'ou. Under the Tang Dynasty, it was promoted to prefecture status and given its current name in 675 AD.

In 1937–1942 during the war with Japan, Rui'an played a key place to winning the war.

Economy

Rui'an has been a rich and prosperous city since ancient times. However, it was not until the practice of economic reform and opening up to the outside world that Rui'an regained its momentum. The intelligent and industrious people of Rui'an have been pioneers in many fields, especially in the development of market economy in the form of joint-stock system.

They setup the household contract responsibility system which would encourage the citizens to take lead in the household industries and they tried their best to sell their products. Consequently, Rui'an experienced a fast economical development. The government induced the rural entrepreneurs and shareholders to co-operate to the economy effectively. Many kinds of economical systems have been introduced in Rui'an making the regional development speedier. One such system is the famous “Wenzhou Pattern“, which became well known both home and abroad.

In 2005, it occupied the 39th place in comprehensive economic strength among the first 100 counties and cities of china. In the 20 square kilometers of economic development zone at the provincial level, there is an enthusiasm of capital investment to build the place into a new urban area with comprehensive development of industry, trade, science and technology .At Present Rui'an is also titled as ‘‘China Plastic Film Production Base and China for Auto and Motor Accessories and Plastic Films”, because of its rising fame in these categories. These will become a new sector in the industrial development of Rui'an.

Health and Medical Facilities

There are 5 main public hospitals in Rui'an city.

1. The Peoples Hospital (TPH) – All purpose Hospital (best choice for emergencies). The Peoples Hospital is the third attached hospital of the Wenzhou Medical College. There are some English speakers in it.

2. Women and Children’s Healthcare Hospital (a branch of TPH) – Mainly for women and children focusing on gynecology, topology, pedology. There are some English speakers in it.

3. Red Cross Hospital (a branch of TPH) – All purpose Hospital, including a large physical examination centre.

4. Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital.

5. The Fifth Peoples Hospital – Psychiatric hospital.

There are also a number of private hospitals focusing mainly on treatments.

Although some of the doctors at some of the hospitals speak some English, it is advisable to bring along with you someone you trust to translate for you.

Transportation and Communication

The infrastructure of Rui'an has become better and better, with an ever-quickening pace of urbanization. Now, it has modernized traffic controlling systems, transportation and communication. The Wenzhou Yongqiang Airport, the 10,000-ton seaport and the railway station each only 30 kilometers to the city proper, the coastal super highway and the No.104 state highway which runs across the city, and the Rui'an section of Wenzhou–Fuzhou railway which will be completed and put into operation during the tenth five year plan are a few demonstrations of the development in transportation. In communication, the program-controlled telephones have reached 39690 sets. It can be said without exaggeration that the city has reached the goal of program-controlled exchange a digitalized transmission.

Natural Beauty and Resources

As a coastal city, Rui'an is rich in natural resources. The 339-kilometer long coastline gives the city abundant marine resources and many beautiful islands. Dongtou, one of the counties in Wenzhou, is also called the "County of one hundred islands". Wenzhou also boasts of wonderful landscapes with rugged mountains and tranquil waters, including three state-level scenic spots, namely the Yandang Mountain, the Nanxi River and the Baizhangji Fall-Feiyun Lake, and two national nature reserves, namely the Wuyanling Ridge and the Nanji Islands, among which Yandang Mountain has been named as World Geopark, while Nanji islands are listed as UNESCO's Marine Nature Reserve of World Biosphere Reserves. About 100 nautical away miles from the estuary of Feiyunjiang, there lay under the seabed rich crude oil and natural gas, which are now being prospected and developed. Scenic area accounts for 25% of the city's land space, which is a perfect integration of exotic mountains, tender water and charming sea. Rui'an enjoys favorable weather throughout the year, fertile soil, and this gives the city the name “the land of rice and fish”

Ruianese ex-pats

Rui'an is famous for its ex-pats in China during the Song Dynasty. In spite of all difficulties and perils, Rui'an people left their native place to cross oceans to foreign countries to create their businesses. In the present, more than 80000 ex-pats cover 60 countries and areas, and nearly 120000 ex-pats’ families. There is almost 1 Rui'anian among 5 ex-pats in France and Italy.

In the new century, the Ruianese by millions are carrying forward the spirit of “being united, being practical, going all out to make achievement, and struggling to be the first”. They dare to innovate and practice; they carry out the five strategies of city development: “adjustment of economic structure, reform and opening up, urbanization, sustainable development, and science and education”; they are marching forward with firm steps towards a new and modernized Rui'an and making it a fine place for anyone to live-in.

References

* [http://www.zjol.com.cn/node2/node25/node259/node325/node10934/node11016/userobject7ai5992.html Zhejiang Online - Ruian]
* [http://www.chinahotelsreservation.com/Ruian/ China Hotel Reservations - Ruian]
* [http://www.globalvoicesonline.org/2006/09/14/china-governments-video-censorship-foiled/ | Global Voices Online - Video evidence of protests in Ruian emerges]