Filmmaker Explores the Streets of Yanjin, China, The Narrowest City in the World

Filmmaker Drew Binsky, who creates wonderful short documentaries, visited Yanjin, China, which is widely known to be the narrowest city in the world. Situated between two mountains along the Yangtze River, Yanjin is a rural city that is home to over 100,000 residents who live in high-rise buildings that make efficient use of available space.

It’s truly mind-blowing to see how Yanjin has adapted to its natural environment, with its residents making the most of every inch of space available. The towering mountains in every direction make it feel as though the city is trapped in a stunning, yet challenging, landscape.

Binsky toured the city with fellow traveler Yan of Little Chinese Everywhere. The pair visited the morning market, did a little shopping, sat down to some tea, checked out an apartment, went for a hike, and then enjoyed a wonderful dinner. Both he and Yan were very curious to find out what life was like there.

There are struggles of living here because everything is built vertically …they got used to it because the city due to the geographical environment it has to be built this way. ….the most inconvenient part is it’s badly connected to other parts of China and the good thing is the climate is very good the temperature is very enjoyable all year.

Overall, Binsky was really impressed with what he saw in the city.

If you keep your head level it looks like any other place in China. You have to make sure sure to look up at the buildings and also look down at your feet and the beautiful surroundings around you and then you realize that you are really in a special place.

Narrowest City
Lori Dorn
Lori Dorn

Lori is a Laughing Squid Contributing Editor based in New York City who has been writing blog posts for over a decade. She also enjoys making jewelry, playing guitar, taking photos and mixing craft cocktails.