Cities on the RISE!

Posted by alexcan@SSP

Cities on the rise
(From Lonely Planet BLUELIST 2007)


THE new edition of Lonely Planet BLUELIST 2007 has just been released. This annual book reveals what's hot and happening in travel for the coming year. This week, we look at the emerging cities set to stand on the world stage in the year ahead, according to Lonely Planet.


1. CHONGQING, CHINA
With an urban population of more than 12 million, Chongqing is a big city with even bigger plans, most of them related to the hype connected to the Three Gorges Dam. It already rates as the chief industrial city of southwestern China. Perched on the steep hills overlooking the confluence of the Yangtze and Jialing Rivers, it's one of China's more unusual cities, as dusty tenements and gleaming office towers cling to the side of the steep hills that make up most of the city centre. Something immediately noticeable is the absence of bicycles – all those hills would make for a coronary.


2. DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
Currently the fastest-growing city in the world, Dubai is a million things, depending on who you are and why you're here. For many of the more than five million visitors who fly into its sleek airport every year, it's a flashy, fun, often surreal yet uniquely Arabian city, with year-round sunshine, stunning five-star beach hotels, endless shopping, bubbling nightlife and world-class sports events. For Emiratis, it's a city that shows the rest of the world what an Arabic nation is capable of when given an opportunity to shine.


3. TALLINN, ESTONIA
The 1990s saw Tallinn transformed into a contemporary mid-sized city, with a beautifully restored Old Town and a modern business district surrounding it. Today, a look around the centre indicates that the city is booming. It boasts 14th-century dwellings that have been given new life by its imaginative populace. The flair of the streets is decidedly fashion-forward, with boutiques bearing the imprint of rising Estonian designers, in contrast with centuries-old artisan traditions. The capital also boasts the largest wine cellars in the Baltics and plenty of medieval settings in which to imbibe.


4. LUANG PRABANG, LAOS
Northern Laos' stunning city has been regulated in its development and as a result, has retained its character and sense of isolation. Its incredible French colonial architecture, delicate Buddhist wat and backdrop of emerald green mountains make it a travel photographer's dream. Placed on the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1995, the once sleepy riverside city has become gentrified at a manageable pace. Restoration works and a tourism boom are assuring its ability to remain a postcard-perfect illustration of historic Indochina.


5. RIGA, LATVIA
Growing up as the big boy of the Baltics, Riga has always been a major metropolis with a proper big-city atmosphere hard to find elsewhere in the region. A pulsating place, its magnetism traps travellers long after their planned departure date. Once dubbed the "Paris of the East", it's building so fast that UNESCO has warned Riga it may withdraw its special protected status, due to the number of glittering glass hotels and business centres springing up faster than you can say "bring me the tourist dollar on a platter, and make it snappy".


6. VILNIUS, LITHUANIA
An incredibly small place (can this really be a capital city?), Lithuania's hub seduces visitors with astonishing old town charm. UNESCO has declared this, Europe's largest baroque old town, a World Heritage site. It's home to an eccentric artist community: where else could there be the world's only statue of psychedelic musician and composer Frank Zappa? Change has swept through with flair and panache. Using foreign cash and local vision, this stylish little city has big plans. But new business and infrastructure – even a skyscraper skyline – won't disguise its curious charm.


7. WELLINGTON, NEW ZEALAND
One of the world's cold-yet-cultural cities, New Zealand's capital is gaining in reputation as a place to be in the southern hemisphere. Why does this windy city foster an artistic culture? Maybe because it's somewhat isolated, sitting at the southern end of the North Island with a contemplative view over Cook Strait. Maybe, due for NZ's next big earthquake, it's busy living for the moment. Whatever the ingredients, youthful energy abounds – hip-hop dance-offs, plenty of live music and cafés, fashionable bars and bookshops. More beautiful than Seattle or Melbourne, the starry night is clearly young here.


8. BELFAST, NORTHERN IRELAND
A walk through the streets of Belfast late in the day seems to confirm the image of a place battened down and beleaguered by years of religious politics and violence. Yet Belfast recently celebrated the City Hall's 100th birthday with one of its biggest carnivals. It's possible to get a decent coffee, and the central mall these days seems like a smaller version of shopping districts elsewhere. Most symbolic of change is the latest wall mural, which depicts a unifying figure, the footballer George Best, rather than images of difference.


9. BELGRADE, SERBIA
It's not just the ridiculously cheap prices; this Serbian city has an infectious energy and a populace that's unfailingly friendly, mad about music and up for a big night out. A devastating combination of Nazi bombing and postwar central planning has given once-handsome Belgrade the architectural equivalent of a cauliflower ear and a crooked nose. Look beyond the carbuncular concrete, however, and you'll discover compelling reasons to stay. The sensationally located, unspoiled Kalemegdan Citadel is one. Spend more than a day here and you'll also realise why Belgrade is a burgeoning party destination.


10. PERTH, AUSTRALIA
Step off the plane in the most remote city of its size in the world and you'll feel the freedom: it's a big possible sky out here. The capital of Western Australia has got it good and it knows it. Due to resource-rich soils and a tenacious – and controversial – mining industry, the quality of life here is as obvious as a boat parked in front of a beach mansion. Liquid amber's just another local commodity: every week, year round, people queue to get into local beer gardens for the Sunday Sesh (session). No wonder there are still motions to secede.>