Beijing urban villages

The slum-like urban villages, enclosed by skyscrapers and highways, came into being during the Beijing's rapid expansion in the late 1980s. They are the forgotten corners in the course of social and economic development, leftovers of formerly rural districts. As the city is busy preparing itself to host the 2008 Olympic Games, most of this villages, home to an estimated 1,5 million migrant workers, are been razed to the ground to make room for new roads and apartment blocks.