Minsheng Street

Our next stop is the Hongji Stage, a magnet for Peking Opera fans. Dozens of actors and musicians from the Dalian Peking Opera Company are practicing as we arrive.

An actress says that every Saturday afternoon they present live shows.

The Hongji Stage grew out of a 1908 tea house, which in 1911 moved to its current Minsheng Street location, built into a European-style concrete building instead of traditional Chinese pavilion. In 1934, it was renamed the Hongji Stage.

After a century of ups and downs, the stage sparkles again after being restored in 2010 and becoming a stage for the Dalian Peking Opera Company. We get off the tram at Shiji Street and walk back to a main road that intersects the tramway.

Renmin Road is the central business district. The skyscrapers on both sides accommodate financial institutions, shipping agents, import and export companies, shopping malls, and 5-star hotels.

The CBD stretches toward the sea. Some parts of the Dalian port were relocated and some land was reclaimed from the sea for the construction of the Eastern Harbor Commercial Area.

Recently completed projects include the Dalian International Conference Center, Conrad Hotel Dalian, and the office building of Liaoning Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau.

More construction is in full swing - so several years from now, you can take a tram to see a different Dalian.