Xinghai (Star and Sea), the world’s largest city square, is actually a circle, built in 1998 to commemorate Dalian’s centennial. Dalian residents come here day and night to take a walk, fly kites and sit down to just-caught seafood paired with a Tsingtao beer at open-air restaurants. When the sun sets and the surrounding buildings’ lights come on, the pavement fills with couples strolling, eating ice cream, taking photos with statues of Olympians around the park and gazing out at the sea to the south.
