History is still being written in this land that has never stopped changing since the last hundred years. How do you trace the history of a 25-year-old city? Here, they are doing it through its buildings.

Shenzhen, China?s glittering showpiece, was made into a city from a tiny fishing village 25 years ago, when Mao?s successor, Deng Xiaoping, decided to ?open up? the country to the West. It was China?s first special economic zone, offering concessions to foreign investors. To commemorate this occasion, the authorities asked citizens to choose the city?s ten top historical spots which will be promoted as tourist sites.

Sun Yat Sen and Mao are still revered across the mainland, but in Shenzhen, Deng rules. Regarded as the creator of Shenzhen, his statue was first raised here, in the sprawling Lotus Hill park. The park is on top of a 106-metre high hill, so the bronze, six-metre high statue seems to tower over the city. The statue, unveiled in 2000, was chosen as the foremost historical landmark.

Famous spots

Shenzhen?s growth mirrors China?s new economy, and the choice of historical landmarks is also testimony to the same. Located next door to Hong Kong, it was aimed at becoming the Mainland?s rival to that ?forbidden paradise?, as the British island enclave was considered by ?deprived? Communist-ruled Chinese. Accordingly, the first major structure to come up in Shenzhen was the ?Electronics Tower?, built in 1982. Today, Shenzhen rivals Hong Kong as a producer of electronic goods.

The Luoho checkpoint, the point at which China meets Hong Kong, was the nerve centre of China?s ?opening up?. Remarkably, though built in 1985, it continues to see the heaviest traffic of all overland checkpoints in the country.

At the end of the same year, the 53-storeyed World Trade Tower was completed. The building gave rise to a new phrase: ?Shenzhen speed?, with a new floor being added every third day. It was from its revolving restaurant that Deng gave his famous ?South China Tour speech?, in which he declared that the setting up of SEZs did not mean that socialist China was becoming capitalist.

Standing tall

Today, skyscrapers cover Shenzhen?s skyline, the tallest being Diwang Mansion at 420 metres, among the world?s 10 tallest buildings. But Shenzheners have a special fondness for the low rise Shanghai Hotel, the city?s first big hotel located in one of its busiest streets. When it opened, it marked the meeting point between the city and its suburb.

Shenzhen didn?t grow as a purely commercial hub. Within three years of its establishment as the country?s first SEZ, Shenzhen university was set up with the help of graduates from leading universities. These graduates both taught and helped design Shenzhen University. The next year, the Shenzhen Museum began being built.

Asia?s largest stage is also in Shenzhen. It is located at World Square in the Windows of the World Theme Park, where replicas of the seven wonders of the world and other renowned monuments have been built. Today, affluent Chinese are among the most enthusiastic globetrotters, but when the park was being built, travel abroad was restricted, and the idea was to bring to the Chinese the wonders of the world. Ironically, the entry ticket to the park (100 yuan), puts it beyond the reach of the average Chinese.

However, then and now, the centre of the city remains its political headquarters: the Chinese Communist Party?s Shenzhen municipal office. At the entrance of its vast compound is a large sculpture of a bull charging ahead. The imposing black sculpture is considered the symbol of the ?pioneering? spirit of Shenzhen, a city of ?innovation and reform?.