btw, i'm Chinese from Shanghai.  anyone who's been to China knows the
vast regional differences of the peoples there.  common stereotype of
Japan (both positive and negative) is in its homogeneity.  so hearing
otherwise, this is very interesting for me.

to express my own biases, i think the Wu area of China (formerly Wu
Kingdom, east coast of Yangtse; Shanghai, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Ningbo)
has been the most significant contributor to Chinese and EAsian
cultures from the Tang to the Song and even now in the modern period. 
contributions include from ch'an buddhism to Southern Song dynasty
lyrical paintings such as the works of Ma Yuan (Bayen in Japanese i
think).  even the women of Wu are famous all over China for their
allegiance and their feminine qualities.  the dialect is soft on the
ears, the syllables free flowing.  unfortunately the area is not known
for great military prowess (even though Sun Tzu's ART OF WAR was also
from the region during the Warring States period), and as result its
cultural achievements has been continuously interrupted and destroyed
from both peoples in the north (Mandarin-speaking) and south
(Cantonese).  personally I attribute this area of China to be its true
soul.  the Forbidden City, the Great Wall, the Yellow River, and the
exotic greasy Cantonese food do not appeal to my tastes.

For this reason, I'm really interested in knowing more about the Osaka
region (the Japanese equivalent of what I like so much about the
Coastal Yangtse area?).  I would definitely pay a visit to Osaka this
winter when I visit Japan again.