Chinese city landscape series #1 Beijing 北京

Beijing is a provincial-level administrative region of the People's Republic of China, a capital city, a municipality directly under the Central Government, a national central city, a mega-city, a national political center, a cultural center, an international exchange center, and a science and technology innovation center.

北京市，简称“京”，是中华人民共和国省级行政区、首都、直辖市、国家中心城市、超大城市，全国政治中心、文化中心、国际交往中心、科技创新中心，是世界著名古都和现代化国际城市。

It is a world-famous ancient capital and a modern international city. Beijing is a charming city with both classic and modern style. Small alleys, tea houses, bar streets, commercial districts, infinite modern elements and old Beijing authentic Beijing flavors blend together to build a profound cultural heritage and orthodoxy of Beijing City without losing its elegant lifestyle. The places that must come to Beijing are Tiananmen, the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall. In addition, you can make a variety of choices based on your interests. Whether it's a couple's trip or a parent-child trip, looking for a royal monument or a fashion district, you can find the best place to go in Beijing.

1.故宫 The Forbidden City

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颐园新居 [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]

China and even the world's most intact and largest wooden structure of ancient buildings, here to experience the inheritance of Chinese civilization.
The Forbidden City in Beijing is the royal palace of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in China. It was formerly known as the Forbidden City. It is located in the center of Beijing's central axis and is the essence of ancient Chinese palace architecture. The Forbidden City in Beijing is centered on the three main halls. It covers an area of 720,000 square meters and has a construction area of about 150,000 square meters. There are more than 70 large and small palaces and more than 9,000 houses. It is one of the largest and most preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.

2.颐和园 the Summer Palace

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Located in the western suburbs of Beijing, the Summer Palace is the first of Chinese classical gardens. It was listed on the World Heritage List on December 2, 1998.
· It is composed of Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake. The whole park is surrounded by the peaks of Xishan Mountain. The buildings are integrated with the situation of mountains and lakes, and the scenery is endless.
· The whole park is divided into three areas, namely, the political activity area centered on Renshou Temple; the empress living area with Yushou Hall and Le Shoutang as the main body; and the scenic tourist area composed of Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake.

3.八达岭长城 Badaling Great Wall

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The Great Wall is a military defense project in ancient China. It is a tall, sturdy and continuous long raft that is used to limit enemy riding. The Great Wall is not a purely isolated city wall, but a defense system that combines a city wall as the main body and a large number of cities, barriers, pavilions, and standards.

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The Badaling Great Wall is known as one of the “Nine difficult places to attack” and is the essence of the Ming Great Wall scenery. It is 1015 meters above the sea level and is also the outpost of Juyongguan.
It is divided into two parts: the South Great Wall and the North Great Wall. There are 7 defense buildings in the South Great Wall. There are few tourists. There are 12 defense buildings in the North Great Wall, which is difficult to climb.
It is a must place to visit in Beijing.More than 300 world-renowned people such as Nixon and Thatcher have climbed the Great Wall.
· It is a 5A-level scenic spot and is listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage List. Its popularity is second only to Tiananmen Square.

4.天坛 Temple of Heaven (in Beijing)

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The Temple of Heaven is a special altar for the Emperor of the Ming and Qing Dynasties to worship the heavens, ask for the rain, and pray for the harvest. It is divided into two parts: the inner altar and the outer altar. There are mainly the Hall of Prayer for Good and the Emperor.
In addition to the intricate architecture of the various halls, the whimsical design of the echo wall and the three-tone stone also evoke the wisdom of the ancients.
Visit the South Gate to enter the North Gate (or East Gate), and then visit the Qiuqiu, Huangfuyu, Tanjung Bridge, the Hall of Prayer and the Emperor's Palace.

5.圆明园 Old Summer Palace

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颐园新居 [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)]
Adjacent to the Summer Palace, it consists of Yuanming, Changchun and Hunchun. It is a large royal palace built and operated by the Qing emperors in more than 150 years.
· In 1860, the British and French coalitions burned the main buildings to ashes. Nowadays, visitors can only hang in the wreckage and look for the glory of the empire.
· There are many small attractions in the Hunchun Garden, which is a large collection of small water gardens. Today, it is the main venue for the annual Lotus Festival in Yuanmingyuan.

6.天安门 Tiananmen Square

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Stanislav Kozlovskiy Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

The largest square in the world, located on the south side of Chang'an Street, on the traditional central axis of Beijing City.
· The center of the square is the Monument to the People's Heroes. The west side is the Great Hall of the People. The east side is the National Museum. On the opposite side of the square is the Tiananmen Gate.
· Every day in the morning and evening, a flag-raising ceremony will be held. For those who are new to Beijing, watching a flag-raising ceremony is a must.
· There are many people who come to see the flag-raising ceremony in the morning, so be sure to go out early or travel in the wrong peak.

Conclusion:

There are many famous attractions in Beijing, a city with modern and classical culture. Visit, it is recommended to visit in autumn/winter, sometimes there is sand in spring.
The next article will introduce a modern city, Shanghai. Welcome everyone to leave a message and give suggestions.