Replica of Paris in China Turning into Ghost Town

Surprise

In the rough and tumble world of selling property, developers have always been ready to go to great lengths, but not many can lay claim to building a second Paris, as a group of Chinese businessmen have done. Only their Eiffel Tower (a third the height of the real one) stands some 6,000 kilometres from the French capital.

The residential complex dubbed Tianducheng (roughly translated as 'Sky Capital') is 200 kilometres southwest of the megalopolis of Shanghai, and near the tourist city of Hangzhou.

The problem is that the project is missing people. Construction began around seven years ago and it's almost complete; now the property company needs to prove its business plan is workable.