Beijing's Must-see
- Forbidden City,
Summer Palace and Tiananmen Square
Forbidden City Information
The magnificent Forbidden City is the largest
and the best-preserved imperial palace complex in the world. It has
9,999 rooms with just a single room short of the number that ancient
Chinese belief represents 'Divine Perfection'. The Forbidden City is
surrounded by a moat six meters deep and ten-meter high wall. For
five centuries, this palace functioned as the administrative center
of the country. In the time of the emperors, if any outside dared to
enter and tour the Forbidden City he/she would pay for it with their
life. The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern
section or the Outer Court, was where the emperor exercised his
supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner
Court was where he lived with his royal family. Until 1924 when the
last emperor of China was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen
emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty
had reigned here. Having been the imperial palace for some five
centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. Listed
by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace
Museum is now one of the most popular tourist attractions
world-wide.
Tiananmen Square Information
The solemn and respectful Tiananmen Square is
the largest central city square in the world, which serves not only
the city's symbol but also the whole of China. This immense
courtyard is surrounded by a variety of significant edifices such as
the Tiananmen Tower, Great Hall of the People, Mao Zedong Memorial
Hall, Monument to the People's Heroes and National Museum. Once the
sight of great turmoil, tours to Tiananmen Square are now the norm.
The present square has an area of 440,000 square meters and has
become a relaxing place for the common people to fly kites and walk.
On a public holiday the whole square is covered with fresh flowers.
Summer
Palace Information
Being the largest and most well-preserved royal
park in China, The Summer Palace greatly influences Chinese
horticulture and landscape with its famous natural views and
cultural interests, which also has long since been recognized as
'The Museum of Royal Gardens'. The construction started in 1750 as a
luxurious royal garden for royal families to rest and entertain. It
later became the main residence of royal members in the end of the
Qing Dynasty. However, like most of the gardens of Beijing, it could
not elude the rampages of the Anglo-French Allied Force and was
destroyed by fire. According to historical documents, with original
name as 'Qingyi Garden' (Garden of Clear Ripples), the Summer Palace
(Yiheyuan) was renamed after its first reconstruction in 1888. It
was also recorded that Empress Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to
reconstruct it as a resort in which to spend the rest of her life.
In 1900, the Summer Palace suffered another hit by the Eight-Power
Allied Force and was repaired in the next two years. In 1924, it was
open to the public. It ranked amongst the World Heritage Sites by
UNESCO in 1998, as well as one of the first national AAAAA tourist
spots in China. Now, Summer Palace travel has
become one of the premier highlights for any visitor to Beijing.
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