China's migrant enclaves make way for the new

Baishizhou, China

THE concrete block buildings that shade the narrow asphalt alleyways of Baishizhou are so closely situated that they are called "handshake" buildings - it is that easy for neighbours to greet one another.

Over the years, the buildings appeared to be cinched even closer by bundles of wires strung from rooftop to rooftop, pulling small urban quarters together into a densely packed tenement village in the heart of Shenzhen, one of south-eastern China's surging metropolises.