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China and Germany

Pascale Harter presents stories from Jill McGivering in China and Stephen Evans in Germany.

Pascale Harter presents stories from Jill McGivering in China and Stephen Evans in Germany.

China’s economic rise has created megacities out of places that only a generation ago were sleepy villages. One of the most astounding changes has happened in Shenzhen. Thirty years ago it was a small fishing town just across the border from Hong Kong. Today it is a sprawling city, home to up to 14 million people. Jill McGivering visited before the economic boom, and she recently returned to talk to a family whose fortunes have mirrored those of China as a whole.

In some European cities, huge numbers of people have decided to take up a rather quaint mode of transport – the bicycle. The impact of two-wheel pedal power is evident in the middle of Copenhagen and Amsterdam, and even bigger cities like London and Paris which have introduced cheap bike-share schemes. But the European city that arguably has the most bike-positive policies is Berlin, and ´óÏó´«Ã½ correspondent Stephen Evans has hopped on his bike to find out why the German capital is so cycle-friendly.

Available now

10 minutes

Last on

Tue 30 Oct 2012 04:50GMT

Broadcasts

  • Mon 29 Oct 2012 11:50GMT
  • Mon 29 Oct 2012 19:50GMT
  • Tue 30 Oct 2012 01:50GMT
  • Tue 30 Oct 2012 04:50GMT