Beijing Voted Most Cultured China City

Magnificent Forbidden City

A worldwide online poll has named Beijing, the capital city of China, as the country's most cultured city.

The "2011 Chinese City Rankings" survey, which was launched on June 1, gathered opinions from netizens in more than 26 countries and attracted more than 5.7 million participants. Beijing topped the list among the 20 contending China cities, winning by more than 150,000 votes. Chengdu, Xi'an, Nanjing and Lhasa were ranked second to fifth.

Cultural experts initially selected the 20 cities based on factors such as cultural diversity, cultural heritage preservation, cultural industry development and openness to cultural exchange. Then, participants were asked to vote both online and through text messages, and strict measures were taken to avoid manipulation of the result.

The poll attracted a large percentage of foreign voters, with 65.8 percent coming from overseas. On the poll's website, many voters described their attachments to the cities they voted for.

" It is golden opportunity to select the Chinese city according to my choice." said a netizen named Chetnath. "I like the Xi'an. It is very old city and previous Chinese Capital too. I like the Terracotta most. Xi'an is the natural museum of the world. So, l vote for this precious and ornament of the world."

The Chinese City Rankings is the second poll of its kind. The poll in 2010 gathered opinions from more than 5.6 million voters on the top 10 Chinese cities for tourism.

(Source from China daily)