How people live in the city of Yanjing, the narrowest settlement in the world

The city of Yanjing, built along the Nanxi River, between the steep mountains of the Chinese province of Yunnan, is considered the narrowest city in the world. Looking at this unusual settlement, it is difficult to believe that about 40 thousand people can live in it. Let's find out how people live in this amazing place.

A narrow piece of land, separated by the murky waters of the Nanxi River and squeezed by steep mountains on both sides, hardly seems like a suitable place for a city with a population of about 40 thousand people. But that's what makes Yanjing so special. It looks more like a city that can be seen in a science fiction movie or game than a real settlement.

Wel­come to Zhao­tong City, Chi­na, the nar­row­est city in the world!pic.twitter.com/L88AhsuXe8

— Xavi Ruiz (@xruiztru) June 26, 2021

At the narrowest point, Yanjing has a width of only 30 meters, and the widest part of the city is about 300 meters. And its total territory is about 230 square kilometers. But the size of the city does not bother the locals at all.

In addition to the extreme narrowness, the city has another feature. Since land is a valuable commodity in this area, most of the apartment buildings are located right on the river bank.

They are built on high thin piles to protect people's homes from possible flooding in the event of an increase in the water level.

A post from the site (@dordortori)

Wel­come to Zhao­tong City, Chi­na, the nar­row­est city in the world!
pic.twitter.com/L88AhsuXe8

— Xavi Ruiz (@xruiztru) June 26, 2021

This unusual city, like many others, has its own historical monuments and attractions. In addition, the infrastructure of Yanjing is quite developed. The Chinese were able to build a tunnel in the mountains and lay a railway that provides communication with other cities in China and Vietnam.

The footage, which shows the city from a bird's-eye view, quickly became viral on the network. People are puzzling over why someone wants to live in such a narrow locality, when there are much more suitable places in China. But the fact is that this area has been inhabited for hundreds of years, and many local residents did not even think about moving somewhere. They are very comfortable in their unique city.