bogang, shajing, bao’an, shenzhen

Shajing is a large subdistrict in northern Bao’an. Until the road system took shape and the second line ceased to operate as a strict boundary (both circa 2003-4), most locals went to Changping, a market town in southern Dongguan when they wanted to purchase or enjoy those things that were only available in a town. Historical Shajing comprises three main areas: the oyster settlements, Bogang, and Wanfeng. Indeed, one of the pleasures of visiting a Shajing neighborhood is not only its architectural and cultural diversity, but also the reminder: Shenzhen has only become important recently. Historically, the largest settlements were located along the northwestern coastline in the Fuyong-Shajing plain.

Unlike the residents of the oyster fields, Bogang Chens farmed. When Reform and Opening began, they built an industrial town on reclaimed rice paddies. The layout was relatively simple: Xinsha Road threaded through the town’s residential, marketing and factory areas to G107, which which in turn connected the area to the Port of Hong Kong via Huanggang. Within Bogang, the layout is much more complicated. There are older and newer sections, each with their own housing and marketing options. In the older areas, residents of Handshake and older row houses shop in the wet market, while residents of nearby high-rises can shop at Wal-mart or the local mall, or (as most are rumored to do) shop online. Visitors have a similar range of overnight options, ranging from a Hilton Garden Hotel to independent flophouses in the older section.

All this to say: Bogang is not an “urban village” like villages in the inner districts, where the physical space of an urban village is defined only by one architectural typology (the handshake building). Instead, Bogang (and the other Shajing neighborhoods) are more accurately described as “urban towns,” which are still being integrated into Shajing Subdistrict and Bao’an District, let alone Shenzhen City. In fact, even though thousands of factory workers no longer crowd the Xinsha Road night market, nevertheless, in the early evening, the road still gives over to peddlers and food stalls, humming late into the night. Impressions, below move in and around Xinsha Road:

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