Every city has its own landmarks which change with the times. Landmarks epitomize a city's development.

In the early days of the People's Republic of China (PRC), the 10 architectural landmarks in Beijing were the capital's icons and symbols of national independence. They included the Great Hall of the People and Beijing Railway Station, which were built within 400 days to pay tribute to the founding of the PRC.

Since reform and opening up in the late 1970s, a number of new landmarks have been erected in cities across China, reflecting the nation's social and economic progress.

In 1982, the 110-meter Jinling Hotel in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, finished construction and became the highest building in China at that time. Since then the record has been constantly broken and today, China has around 700 skyscrapers which are over 200 meters high.

In addition, architecture such as the National Stadium in Beijing, nicknamed the Bird's Nest, where the 2008 Beijing Olympic Summer Games were held, and the 600-meter Canton Tower in Guangzhou in south China's Guangdong Province, dubbed the Thin Waist, have become new landmarks. These uniquely designed architectural pieces mirror China's rapid growth in recent years.

In the new era, small towns with their unique characteristics, eco parks and urban greenways have become new landmarks. They represent Chinese cities' efforts to transform their development model and improve the environment and the quality of people's life to build livable, dynamic and distinctive modern cities.

(This is an edited excerpt of an article originally published in Oriental Outlook on September 19)