Why it looks like this

Weifang sits on the flat corridor between Jinan and Qingdao, where two old towns on either side of the Wei River grew together — the name joins them. It was a handicraft city of the north: woodblock new-year prints from Yangjiabu, and above all kites, made and flown here since imperial times.

The modern city leaned into the legend: since 1984 the Weifang International Kite Festival has drawn flyers from around the world, a kite museum anchors the centre, and the plain's steady spring winds remain the city's most famous natural resource.