FEW PLACES in China are more likely to make Californians feel at home than the city of Qingdao in the northeast province of Shandong.

　　Winding roads on wooded hillsides are wreathed in moody fog, mountains descend gently to the sea, sheltered beaches meander for miles and visito rs can eat what is arguably the best seafood in China.

　　Qingdao (that's Ching-dow with a very soft w) is one of China's premier port cities and one of its loveliest resorts. And although the downtown has gone modern, the city has not lost its finely tuned sense of catering for visitors.

　　Situated at the tip of the Shandong Peninsula where it dips southward into the Yellow Sea, Qingdao has been chosen by the Beijing Olympic Coordinating Committee to host the 2008 Olympic sailing regatta. In all of China there may be no better place. The comparatively mild temperatures of this seaside enclave offer welcome relief from the summer furnaces of Beijing and Shanghai.

　　The city's name means "Green Island," and while it is not entirely surrounded by water, it is an island of relaxed living bathed in fresh sea breezes where the rich and famous from around the world still come to play.

　　This is an old port city that knows boats and sailing. Commercial trade has been carried on for centuries and although it is the lifeblood of the city, shipping was brought to a standstill recently while about 50 whales cavorted in the sea lanes leading to the harbor. These same waters of the Yellow Sea will be filled with the sails of yachts from all over the world in August 2008 as they participate in the first Olympics ever in China.

　　Workers broke ground in May for an Olympic sailing center at the site of the former Beihai Shipyard. When it is completed it will include new docking facilities and a complete, $411 million Olympic village. A great deal of money also is being poured into new tourist facilities and upgrading existing ones to give visitors plenty of activities to choose from.

　　The many fine hotels and restaurants here are already gearing up for the onslaught of visitors expected to arrive for the big sailing event. Guests will find signs, maps, instructions and menus printed in sometimes-comical English to help them find their way around.

　　The history of Qingdao is similar to the rest of Eastern China; it was colonized by Western nations and occupied by the Japanese more than once. But it was the Germans who left their indelible mark on this city of 7 million. German immigrants had lived in Qingdao for some time before taking over in the name of the Kaiser in 1898. Colonization began in earnest then and it is clear they intended to stay. The old city is a beautifully preserved museum of Bavarian and German turn-of-the-century architecture that gives it the appellation "China's Switzerland." It is not unusual to hear German spoken on the streets and in restaurants, not so much by German residents — most of them are gone — but the many tourists who are drawn here every year.

　　History doesn't mention it, but perhaps some of the Kaiser's interest in Qingdao came from the extraordinary spring water that was perfect for brewing beer. Probably not, but by 1903 the Germans had indeed built a brewery and were producing German-style Tsingtao Beer. It is now a Chinese enterprise, but the recipe is virtually unchanged and Tsingtao remains the number one selling beer in China.

　　Chinese authorities are ever on the lookout for ways to build the tourism industry, so it was only natural that Qingdao would realize it was sitting on a gold mine. One of the highlights of the summer tourist season is the Qingdao International Beer Festival. Visitors from all over the world descend on the International Beer City, a venue built especially for the event, for a celebration of endless food, drink and entertainment. Many of the world's top brewers set up shop for the weeklong festival, but the city's entry is the perennial favorite and the brand most in demand by loyal fans and the newly converted.

　　While part of Qingdao could almost be described as a German city with Chinese elements, it is in fact a very old and culturally rich city that predates the earliest Westerners to the Middle Kingdom.

　　For centuries it was a thriving fishing village, and the sea is still the basis for much of its wealth. Despite its rush toward modernity, inside Qingdao still beats the heart of the fisherman. It is renowned for its fresh seafood and it's hard to find a restaurant — Chinese or Western — that doesn't offer a selection of fish and shellfish just off the boat. The Chinese have hundreds of ways to prepare seafood, and while you might not always know which end to peel or bite into first, you can count on its being tasty.

　　Qingdao is best experienced on foot, a good thing as traffic controls keep drivers going one way in a large By Wanda Fox, CONTRIBUTOR