Ningbo is a seaport city in the northeast of Zhejiang Province, People's Republic of China. Holding sub-provincial administrative status and separate state-planning status, as of the 2010 census, the municipality has a population of 7,605,700 inhabitants, 3,089,180 of who reside in the urban area which comprises 6 districts. It lies south of the Hangzhou Bay, facing the East China Sea to the east. Ningbo borders Shaoxing to the west and Taizhou to the south, and is separated from Zhoushan by a narrow body of water. Ningbo is one of China's oldest cities, with a history dating back to the Hemudu culture in 4800 BC . Once known as Mingzho), Ningbo was known as a trade city on the silk road at least two thousand years ago, and then as a major port, along with Yangzhou and Guangzhou in the Tang Dynasty; thereafter, the major ports for foreign trade in the Song Dynasty.    Hi Res Pic (183K)