Tianjin is a metropolis in Northeastern China and one of the five national central cities. It is governed as a direct-controlled municipality, one of four such designations, and is thus under direct administration of the central government, and borders Hebei Province and Beijing Municipality, bounded to the east by the Bohai Gulf portion of the Yellow Sea. In terms of urban population, it is the sixth largest city of the People's Republic of China, and its urban land area ranks 5th in the nation, only after Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen.
