According to statistics of China's entry-exit administrations, there were 380,000 foreigners throughout the country who registered their residency status as one-year or longer.
As the nation's capital, Beijing has become the city with relatively high degree of concentration of foreigners coming to China. At present, there are about 65,000 foreigners with proper jobs who are registered in Beijing with one year or longer residency. This figure excludes the approximately 7,000 staff members working in various embassies and their families.
Because foreigners tend to live near each other, certain so-called "foreign towns" have appeared in some of Beijing's districts. These "foreign towns" have added cosmopolitan flavors to Beijing while at the same time brought new challenges to those administering these unusual pockets of population.
There are 1,500 long-term foreigners residing around the Huaqing Garden community of Beijing Language and Culture University, with many of them hailing from Korea. The "Korean flavor" in this district is quite distinct. When one enters the area, one can hear the Korean dialect spoken periodically. There are Korean shops on both sides of the street selling goods meeting Korean's normal needs.
Located in Beijing's northeast, a rather famous area where foreigners from two dozen countries made their homes is called Wangjing Community. Still the majority of these foreigners are Koreans and one can spot authentic Korean restaurants everywhere, with mostly Korean styled supermarkets, shops and clinics. The entire district has become a social living chain providing packaged services for Koreans.
(China News Service June 29, 2006)
