The world's narrowest metropolis is in China

The world's narrowest metropolis is in China
Yanjin city on the banks of Nancy River. Photo: Screengrab

Yanjin is a city on the banks of the Nancy River in the mountains of China's Yunnan Province. It is considered to be the narrowest city in the world. Yunnan is one of the major tourist destinations in China.

From the top, it's hard to believe that there is such a city and so many people there. The Nancy River, with its turbulent mountains and steep mountains, is the first thing that comes to mind. No one could have imagined that the narrow space between them was a city of 4,50,000 people. That's what makes the Yangtze so rare.

The narrowest part of the city is 30 meters wide, and the widest part is 300 meters wide. Most parts of the city are on the riverbank but there are not many bridges here. Most of the buildings are built on the banks of the river. Precautions have also been taken to prevent damage to the river by floods. You can also see fortified buildings here, using walkways. Interestingly since land is so valuable in the area, most of the apartment buildings positioned right on the banks of the river are built on pole-like thin pillars, to protect them from flooding in case the water level rises.

Getting to Yangon is not easy as it is such a rugged terrain. Yanjing's drone-shot footage, which was shared on social media, went viral and the world began to pay attention to the city. People who saw the video are wondering why anyone would want to settle down in such a narrow city. But because a lot of the residents have been living here for over 100 years, they are used to the constraints of the city. Having said that the foundation of the city hasn’t really helped its economic growth since the city is considered inaccessible by many. What can one do if there is only one main road that leads to the city?

Tourist centre
Yanjin, is a province located in the southwestern part of China. It shares borders with the Chinese provinces of Guangxi, Guizhou and Sichuan, as well as Tibet, the Autonomous Region, and Vietnam, Laos, and Myanmar. Despite its notoriety as a major source of plague in China, Yunnan is one of China's most important tourist destinations for its rich biodiversity, beautiful climate and natural beauty throughout the year.

It is a relatively high mountainous region. Pudakuo and Lao Junshan National Parks, the city of Lijiang, the Yangtze River, the Salween and the Mekong, the three parallel rivers, the South China Karst, and the Honge Hani Paddy Fields are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. They are also a huge crowd favourite.

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