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| Erenhot | ||
| Autonomous Region | Inner Mongolia | |
|---|---|---|
| Residents | 74.179 (2010), 47.025 (2000) | |
| height | 963 m | |
no tourist info on Wikidata:  | ||
| location | ||
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The border towns Èrlián (Chinese: 二連浩特 市, Mongol .: Eriyen / Эрээн) and the Mongolian Dsamin-Üüd (mongol .: Замын-Үүд, engl: Zamin-Uud,Chinese: 扎 門 烏德[1]) are opposite on the Chinese-Mongolian border in the Gobi desert between the Aimag Dorno-Gobi and the Chinese inner mongolia.
The only reason for the existence of the places is the border crossing set up here on the Trans-Mongolian railway whose construction began in 1956. The exact course of the border was only regulated in a contract in 1962.
background
The cross-border connection was broken during the Cultural Revolution. During the difficult times at the end of the Soviet republics in the 1990s, a bazaar for cheap Chinese industrial goods was created here, which Mongolian retailers brought suitcase to the markets Siberia was brought. China and Mongolia agreed in 2000 to legalize local border traffic. Mongolians are now allowed to stay in the Èrlián Special Economic Zone for 30 days in a row without a visa or registration. The population exploded from around 8,000 in 1998 to an estimated 100,000 in 2018. Many Mongolian “short-term immigrants” work here because of the 3-5 times higher wages and travel home for one day once a month.
Although 85% of the residents are Han Chinese, the “working language” is Mongolian. Due to massive funding from the Chinese government, there was a massive expansion of the place and the infrastructure with gigantic shopping centers, new industrial areas and a greatly enlarged freight station in 2003-12. Neu-Èrlián, the area to the west of the city, was pounded out of the ground in a few years until 2010. To the east of the station is an industrial area. The construction boom has subsided since 2012, as the city now has sufficient capacity for the trade that takes place here. Seventy percent of all cross-border goods traffic was handled here as early as 2007. Then there is the retail and surreptitious trade.
getting there
A stay or change in Èrlián / Dsamin-Üüd is particularly interesting for cost-conscious travelers. If you use local transport between Beijing and Ulan Bator you save a lot compared to the international train ticket.
By plane
Flights to Beijing – Daxing, Hohot and Ulan Bator.By train
- Dsamin-Üüd
Two trains go to from Ulan Bator 2 Dsamin-Üüd. The express train (from UB Sun, Tue, Thu, 8.45 p.m.; as of 2019) is 8.30 a.m. in Dsamin-Üüd and two hours later across the border. There is also a slow train (Tues., Sat. from 7.30 a.m. to 6.50 p.m.). The cheap class (2019: 21,500 children) is often overbooked. The departures in the opposite direction are in the early evening. The Trans-Mongolian (train 4 from Moscow) leaves Ulan Bator once a week at 7.30 a.m. Train 34 UB-Hohhot comes through here on Saturday 8.30 a.m., in the opposite direction on Tuesdays.
A hundred meters to the left of the exit is the bus stop for cross-border trips, of which there are only a few.
- Èrlián
By bus
4 Long-distance bus station (二連 國際 汽車站)
Buses run from Beijing-Xinfadi for 220 yuan (2020) (新 發 地 長途 客運站) at 5.30 p.m. and arrive around 3 p.m. There is also a night bus with berths from Beijing South Railway Station (exit A, signposted), departs at 5:30 p.m. and in Èrlián at 8 a.m.
In the street
The shortest route is 669 km to Beijing. To Hohot (呼和浩特市) it is 409-436 km. The G55 trunk road, which is to be used in both cases, is subject to a toll.
The Mongolian trunk road AH-3 is now bypassed around the center of Dzamin Üüd. It is 681 km to Ulan Bator. Shared taxis take 7-8 hours (price at the end of 2019: 60,000 Törög).
Border crossing
See the Entry requirements of Mongolia and China, which is usually only issued in the applicant's home country.
Road boundary
The border crossing is one of the few into Mongolia that is used by tourists (Visa type J) may be used.
The border is marked on both sides by large gate-shaped buildings. The usual opening times are 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., but the border remains closed for several days on public holidays, New Year's or the like. You should allow at least 1½ hours for formalities.
Crossing the border on foot (or bicycle?) Between the two checkpoints is not permitted. When arriving by public transport, you have to take a collective taxi (5 passengers), the driver of which has a special license to cross the border several times a day. You can find them in Èrlián mainly at the bazaar. These vehicles are inevitably in Mongolian hands and can be recognized by the fact that they are mainly all-terrain Russian "jeeps" that can definitely be booked for longer tours into the Mongolian hinterland. There are 4-5 kilometers between the two town centers, the (to be negotiated) prices are high, in 2019 there were 50 yuan per person. It is customary for foreigners to first ask for 70-100 yuan.
Railway line
International trains are dispatched when they arrive. Since the gauge of the wagons is also being changed on the Chinese side, there are longer stops, around 3-4 hours. It is often expected to spend this time in the waiting room of the train station while the passport is with the border police. If you want to take a walk into the village, let the conductor know and ask about the departure time.
The Mongolian customs check the locals very carefully, so that the clearance here can take 60-90 minutes.
Tourist Attractions
During his expeditions in the 1920-30s, the American had Roy Chapman Andrews Dinosaur bones found in a nearby salt lake. More or less kitschy plastic dinosaurs have been set up in several places. That is central 1 Dinosaur square (恐龍 廣場).
The 2 Dinosaur Museum (中國 古生物 博物館, "Chinese Paleontological Museum") is on the oval of the main square with the new town hall in the new district in the west of the city.
shop
For the newly emerging middle class in the capital, Èrlián has become a destination for “butter trips”. A number of Chinese industrial products are cheaper here. This type of customer and the Mongolian small traders mainly visit the area of the "old" city center around the old and new market and the round bazaar (buduun delgüür). To the south of it there have been two gigantic areas as “hardware stores” since 2007. Resellers of wholesale quantities shop in the new industrial areas on the outskirts of the city.
Money changers exchange Tögrög, euros and dollars much more easily than the Bank of China.
kitchen
activities
In July there is a dult on the central square.
nightlife
They are geared towards Chinese and Mongolian business people. There is a lot of alcohol with karaoke.
Prostitution is officially banned in China. However, in order to satisfy the need of Chinese men for “a touch of the exotic” there are a number of “hairdressing” or “beauty salons”. The hours of operation of this trade are around 6:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. They are concentrated around the city center, as can be easily avoided by visitors who do not appreciate such services.
accommodation
Dsamin-Üüd
- 1 Shintschin Hotel (Жинчин) (Left at the station forecourt; green-turquoise facade). Tel.: 976252453289. Simple middle class.
- 2 Khan Shonkhor Hotel (200m to the train station, parallel street to the city park. Yellow and red facade. Shield in Latin letters). Tel.: 97689069442. Better middle class.
Èrlián
The control of the papers at check-in is strict. Mongolians have to hand in their passports and receive a certificate from the hotelier. Foreign visitors should not do this under any circumstances, as the passport is needed e.g. to change money in banks or to buy tickets.
- 4 Jīnyuán Bīnguǎn (金園賓 館), 二连浩特 市 前进 路 南 1740 号.
- 5 Minghui Hotel (明慧 旅店), Qianjin Rd.
security
health
Even in the 1990s, the place was known mainly for bad smells due to the lack of a sewer system in summer. The government invested heavily in the years up to 2012. Thanks to a wind farm south-west of the city, power outages are a thing of the past.
There is a cold desert climate with very warm summers and very cold winters. From November to March the daily highs are below freezing point. The coldest measured temperature here was -44 ° C. June-August it is almost 30 ° C warm. Precipitation falls mainly in summer as rain, and there is a little snow in September. The winters are dry.
Practical advice
There is no time difference. Both places are working on Beijing time, this is GMT 8, CET 7 hours.
The Mongolian police are also allowed to check their citizens in Èrlián. Thanks to “racial profiling” western visitors are not affected by this.
- Mongolian Consulate (蒙古 在 中國 二連 的 領事館), 1206 Youyi Beilu, Èrlián. If you come early and manage to pay the fee at the right Bank of China branch, with a little luck you can pick up your visa on the same or next day.Open: Application 9.00-12.30.
trips
literature
- Andrews, Roy Chapman [1884-1960]; On the trail of prehistoric man: adventures and discoveries of three expeditions into the Mongolian desert; Leipzig 1927; engl. Orig .: On the Trail of Ancient Man; London 1926; Partial reprint: Dinosaurs in the Gobi; Leipzig 1951
- Lacaze, Gaëlle; Prostitution and the Transformation of the Chinese Trading Town of Ereen; in: Billé, Franck; Frontier Encounters; Cambridge 2013, pp. 111-136; DOI: 10.11647 / OBP.0026
Web links
- http://www.elht.gov.cn/ - Erenhot official website
- ↑Further forms of name: Cha-men-wu-te, Chamu Ut, Dsamin Ude, Dzamiin Ude, Dzamiin Üüde, Dzamïn Üüd, Dzamiyn Ude, Dzamön Ude, Dzamöyn Ude, Dzamyn Ude, Dzamyym Ude, Dzamyyn Ude, Ikhe Lide, Kolodets Ude, Udde, Ude, Udei, Uteh, Wu-te, Wuteh, Zamun Ude.