It is no exaggeration to say that Tianjin bears a splendid historical background. However, it was desecrated by foreign invaders long before the founding of the People's Republic of China. Tianjin was shared by nine countries:Italy，Germany，F(xiàn)rance，Russia，Great Britain，Austria，Japan and Belgium.This marked an extremely hard period for Tianjin and her people because those imperialist countries left permanent marks in her body，most notable of which were thousands of villas. Today those villas provide an exotic flavor to Tianjin，enhancing the beauty of the entire city.

Getting in and out of the city is convenient because of the well-planned transportation system. If you want to come by water, there are series of international and domestic sea routes in the port of Tianjin，which is the biggest man-made port in China. If you plan to arrive by air，Tianjin Binhai International Airport offers excellent service. Planes have routes that reach most of the major cities in China and also cities in Europe and America. Of course，arriving in Tianjin by land is another option，while trains or long-distance buses are yet another alternative.