Sinuiju

Sinŭiju City
NASA World Wind image of Sinŭiju.
Korean name
Chosŏn'gŭl 신의주시 Hancha 新義州市 McCune-Reischauer Sinŭiju-si Revised Romanization Sinuiju
Short name
Chosŏn'gŭl 신의주 Hancha 新義州 McCune-Reischauer Sinŭiju Revised Romanization Sinuiju
Statistics
Population (2006 (est.)) 288,000 Government City in North P'yŏngan Region Kwansŏ Dialect P'yŏngan
Location map
Map of North Korea showing the location of Sinŭiju.

Sinŭiju (Sinŭiju-si) is a city in North Korea, on the border with China and is the capital of North P'yŏngan Province. Part of the city is included in the Sinŭiju Special Administrative Region, which was established in 2002 to experiment with introducing a market economy.

Geography and Climate

The border with China is marked by the Yalu (Amnok) River. The city is connected to Dandong in China via the Sino-Korea Friendship Bridge (or China-Korea Friendship Bridge). This is one of the only ways to enter North Korea. The city is a Terminus on the Gyeongui railroad line (known as the P'yŏngui in the North) and is 25 miles (40km) from the mouth of the Yalu River. The city's altitude is 4 feet, or about one meter. The city's average temperature is about 48°F, or 9°C.

History

Developed as a major settlement during the Japanese occupation (1910–45) at the terminus of a railway bridge across the Yalu River. It is located 7 miles west of Ŭiju, the old city from whose name Sinŭiju (meaning “New Ŭiju”) derives. As an open port it grew commercially with the logging industry which uses the Yalu River to transport lumber. Additionally, a chemical industry developed after the hydroelectric Sup'ung Dam was built further up the river. In the course of the Korean War the city sustained heavy damage from aerial bombardment, but the city has since been rebuilt.

Transportation

Sinuiju can be reached from P'yongyang by air, having a 1.2 km runway, or electric railway and road. It is also connected with the Chinese city of Dandong (renamed from Andong/Antung) in Liaoning Province (People's Republic of China) by the Yalu River Bridge which is 944 m long (3,097 feet) from end to end, and through the Manchuria Railway links up with the Trans-Siberian railway.

Places

Facilities in Sinuiju include Sinuiju High School, Sinuiju Commercial High School, Eastern Middle School, Sinuiju Light Industry University and the Sinuiju University of Education. Scenic sites include the Tonggun Pavilion, Waterfall, and Hot Springs. There also is a Ferris wheel overlooking the Yalu River. It is never in use, and was built seemingly as propaganda. Tourists from the Chinese side of the river can rent boats, and this is often the highlight of their glimpse of North Korea. Tourists frequently hire speedboats or slower boats to cruise along the river, in hopes of catching a peek at North Koreans.

Economy

An important light industry center in North Korea, it has a plant manufacturing enameled ironware as well as a textile mill, paper mill and an afforestation factory. Much of North Korea's trade with China takes place through Sinuiju. Its southwest harbour has a shipyard, although the shipyard's main function is seemingly to dismantle ships for scrap metal and other usable materials rather than building new ships.

See also

• List of cities in North Korea
• Geography of North Korea

External links

• North Korea Uncovered, (North Korea Google Earth) see a mapping of Sinuiju's main infrastructure, power lines, railroad, detention center, and Kim Jong Il residence, plus a whole lot more.
• (Trip-city.com: Sinuiju)

Coordinates: 40°06′N, 124°24′E