Bao'an Centre, China

With a population of just 120,170, Bao'an Centre is no bustling metropolis. The once sleepy county has been swallowed up by the rapid growth of neighboring Shenzhen, and bureaucracy remains a persistent headache for newcomers. While the area was once a guerrilla base during the Chinese Civil War, today it offers little to entice foreign residents beyond its convenient location along the Kowloon-Canton Railway. Unless you have a strong stomach for government red tape, Bao'an Centre is best left to those with deep local roots.