Beijing (Capital of China)
As the capital of China, Beijing
is one of the world's truly imposing cities, with a
3,000-year history and 15.3 million people
(2005). Covering 16,808 square kilometers in area, it is
the political, cultural and economic center of the People’s Republic. Situated in northeast China, Beijing
adjoins the Inner Mongolian Highland to the northwest and the Great Northern Plain to the
south. Five rivers run through the city, connecting it to the eastern Bohai Sea.
Administratively, the Beijing municipality equals
the status of a
province, reporting directly to the central government. Rich in history, Beijing has been China’s primary capital for more than seven
centuries. China’s imperial
past and political present meet at Tiananmen square, where the Forbidden City palace of
the emperors gives way to the Great Hall of the People congress building and the mausoleum
of Chairman Mao Zedong. The old city walls have been replaced by ring roads, and many of
the old residential districts of alleys and courtyard houses have been turned into
high-rise hotels, office buildings, and department stores. Beijing, a dynamic city where
the old and new intermingle, remains a magnet for visitors from inside and outside China. Beijing is a city of broad boulevards,
now full of traffic and pulsating to the rhythms of commerce and entertainment. Museums and parks abound, including the Palace
Museum of the Forbidden City and Beihai Park in the center of town. Nearby, the China Fine
Arts Museum (Zhongguo meishuguan) exhibits the
work of contemporary artists. China’s ancient past and recent history are on view at the Museum of Chinese History
and Chinese Revolution at Tiananmen. Antiques, crafts, and books can be found at
Liulichang, an old antique market district remodeled in the 1980’s to reflect the style of the old city. Some of the spirit of Old
Beijing is also preserved at Qianmen, south of Tiananmen, with stores that date to the
early 20th century and beyond, including the Tongrentang Traditional Medicine Shop, first
established in 1669. Beijing Opera performances and acrobatic troupes keep those
traditional entertainment forms vital, while contemporary music clubs
and discos thrive in an era of liberalization and prosperity.
The major
ceremonial buildings of the palace are aligned on a north-south axis that extends beyond
the walls toward the Temple of
Heaven complex and Yongding Gate in the south. The main entrance to the palace complex is
via the Meridian Gate (Wumen), from which the
New Year was announced each year by the emperor, proclamations were read, and the fate of
prisoners decided. Past five white marble bridges and the Gate of Supreme Harmony, a great
courtyard could accommodate up to several thousand people for state ceremonies such as the
imperial weddings. The three most important
ceremonial buildings are on the north-south axis, raised on a high white marble terrace,
and accessed by ramps carved with ornate dragons over which the emperor was carried in a
palanquin. The three main halls and associated side buildings formed the outer courtyard
of the Forbidden City, devoted primarily to official and ceremonial functions, but
including imperial libraries and studies. The inner chambers at the rear of the Forbidden
City included private living and sleeping quarters of the imperial family, divided into
three palaces and twelve courtyards. The Western Palaces were the residences of empresses,
concubines, and princes. The Eastern Palace halls are now used as museum exhibition spaces,
devoted to ritual bronze vessels, ceramics, craft objects, antique clocks, and paintings,
including objects from the imperial collections and archaeological finds. The back
precincts include the Palace of Aging Peacefully (Ningshou Gong) where the Qianlong
Emperor of the late 18th century spent his retirement years.
Just north of the Altar of
Heaven is the octagonal Imperial Vault of Heaven building, which contained tablets of the
imperial ancestors and astronomical plaques of the constellations and meteorological
occurrences. The outer wall of the Vault of Heaven Hall is known as the Echo Wall, from
its ability to transmit even whispered voices around its length. Farther north is the Hall
of Prayer for Good Harvests, originally built in 1420, remodeled in 1545, destroyed by
lightning in 1889, and rebuilt in the following year, in part using Oregon fir wood for
the supporting pillars. West of these buildings is
the Altar of Farming, where each year in spring the emperor personally ploughed eight
furrows to symbolically assure a good harvest. The Hall of the Year Gods (now housing the
Museum of Chinese Architecture) was where the emperor sacrificed to the gods of the year
and asked for a good harvest. SUMMER
PALACE
THE
GREAT WALL The Ming sections of the wall are only a
late stage in a long history, much of which has little to do with the present structures. The wall is most often associated with the First
Emperor of China (Qin Shi Huangdi, reigned 221-210 BC),
who after unifying China by conquest undertook to link up previously existing sections of
walls belonging to conquered states, but on a course far to the north of the present wall.
The First Emperor mobilized massive conscripted labor forces, including convicts and
prisoners, by some accounts up to a million strong, to conduct this building campaign. While the Great Wall in its various versions had real military defensive functions, it also served symbolic purposes. For long periods Chinese populations lived north of the wall and nomads or semi-nomads lived south of it. The wall served as a symbolic reminder of dynastic authority and also of cultural distinction between settled agrarian culture and cities on the Chinese side and pastoral horsemen on the other. It continues today to serve as a marker of cultural and national identity.
Where Can I Find 24-hour Stores in Beijing?
Many people feel summer evenings are much more agreeable than daytime. It's cooler and the neon lights create a glittering skyline. So to enjoy the evening, some prefer to have fun and stay up until late at night. In case that they may need some snacks, drinks or things urgently to have fun, Beijing has many convenience stores operating around the clock to serve their needs at any hour.
Seven-Eleven Seven-Eleven has lots of food on hand, like instant noodles, biscuits, potato chips, chewing gum, as well as magazines, newspapers, hair care products, batteries, cigars, beer and even Chinese Maotai wine, which is a must for a formal Chinese banquet.
Seven-Eleven features fresh -made food as well as fresh local food, such as deep-fried dough sticks, soybean milk, hot rice porridge, and various breads.
Location: No.5 Dongzhimei Neidajie, Dongcheng District Tel: 010-84060189
Beijing Green Tree Market Green Tree Market features Korean goods ranging from food to things for daily use. Here ice cream lovers can find original Korean ice cream which are reasonably priced, about 10 yuan each.
Green Tree Market also has a counter dedicated to Korean skin care product line The Face Shop, which aren't too expensive. Shoppers who are hungry late at night can also find fresh sushi here, which are made by chefs on the spot.
Location: No.18 Wangzhuanglu, Wudaokou, Haidian District Tel: 010-62318113
Hi-24 This is the favorite spot of middle school students who come here for lunch.
Hi-24 stores are usually not big and things here are priced a bit higher than most other convenient stores. Yet here shoppers can always find the latest snacks and drinks. Besides, at Hi-24 stores shopper can also recharge their IC bus transportation card here.
Location: No.178 Di'anmen Waidajie, Xicheng District Tel: 010-64045257
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