Beijing Highlights

The Great Wall （长城）

The Great Wall, like the Pyramids of Egypt, the Taj Mahal in India and the Hanging Garden of Babylon, is one of the great wonders of the world. Starting out in the east on the banks of the Yalu River in Liaoning Province, the Wall stretches westwards for 12,700 kilometers to Jiayuguan in the Gobi desert, thus known as the Wan Li Wall in China. The Wall climbs up and down, twists and turns along the ridges of the Yanshan and Yinshan Mountain Chains through five provinces--Liaoning, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Gansu--and two autonomous regions--Ningxia and Inner Mongolia, binding the northern China together.

The Forbidden City （故宫）

What strikes one first in a bird’s -eye view of Beijing proper is a vast tract of golden roofs flashing brilliantly in the sun with purple walls occasionally emerging amid them and a stretch of luxuriant tree leaves flanking on each side. That is the former Imperial Palace, popularly known as the Forbidden City, from which twenty-four emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties ruled China for some 500 years--from1420 to 1911. The Ming Emperor Yong Le, who usurped the throne from his nephew and made Beijing the capital, ordered its construction, on which approximately 10,000 artists and a million workmen toiled for 14 years from 1406 to 1420. At present, the Palace is an elaborate museum that presents the largest and most complete ensemble of traditional architecture complex and more than 900,000 pieces of court treasures in all dynasties in China. Located in the center of Beijing, the entire palace area, rectangular in shape and 72 hectares in size, is surrounded by walls ten meters high and a moat 52 meters wide. At each corner of the wall stands a watchtower with a double-eave roof covered with yellow glazed tiles.

The Temple of Heaven （天坛）

The Temple of Heaven is located in southern Beijing. It is included in the UNESCO world heritage list in 1998. With an area of 2.7 million square meters, it is the largest of its kind in the country. Built in 1420, the 18th year of the reign of Ming Emperor Yongle, the temple was where emperors went to worship heaven for good harvests. The temple consists of two parts--the inner altar and outer altar. The main buildings are in the inner altar, on the north-south axis. At the southern end are the Imperial Vault of Heaven and the Circular Mound Altar. On the northern end are the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests and the Hall of Imperial Zenith. The structures at both ends are connected by a 360-meter-long walk. There is also the Hall of Abstinence inside the West Heavenly Gate in which the emperor fasted for three days and bathed before prayer.

The Summer Palace （颐和园）

Situated in western outskirts of Beijing, the Summer Palace is 10 kilometers from the central city. It is China’s leading classical garden which enjoys a worldwide reputation. The Summer Palace was opened to the public in 1924 and included in the UNESCO world heritage list in 1998. A whole day is needed to view it in detail. The Summer Palace was first built in 1153 and served as an imperial palace for short stays away from the capital. Empress Dowager Ci Xi rebuilt it in 1888 with a large sum of money which had been appropriated to build a Chinese navy.

The National Stadium （鸟巢）

The National Stadium hosted the 2008 Olympic opening and closing ceremonies, as well as athletics and football competitions. After the Olympic Games, the stadium becomes a center for sports, cultural and creative activities. Its post-Games use is undergoing extensive planning. The illuminating facilities were put into operation inside the National Stadium, nicknamed the "Bird's Nest," on the night of February 4, 2008. The red lights and grey steel structures of the project make up a splendid addition to the capital city's nightscape.

The National Aquatics Center （水立方）

The blue-colored National Aquatics Center (NAC), nicknamed the "Water Cube", located on the southern part of the central area of the Olympic Green in Beijing. Being adjacent to the central axis of the city, the NAC is situated on par with the National Stadium, at an equal distance to the axis. After the Olympics, it is converted into a multi-functional facility for sports, culture and recreation, featuring a "water setting" for members of society.