Taian

 city, prefecture-level city (China)

Taian is a prefecture-level city in western Shandong province. Taian is a quickly developing industrial town just one hour drive south of Jinan. It's most famous for Taishan, one of the five great mountains of China, and delicious Taishan beer. Construction and growth in Taian is constant. It looks much different than it did just two years ago. It's further away from western style than say Beijing or Shanghai. You won't find that grand shopping plazas of larger cities but bargaining for great prices is fun. The people are friendly as they getting used to more foreigners visiting. It's not uncommon to be greeted at random by locals who want to meet foreigners and practice their English. If you plan to tour China, Taian or Jinan make great base camps, since they are centrally located between most of the major attractions of northern and southern China.