Juyong Great Wall (Juyong Pass) - it is very near Badaling, just a little south in Changping County.The most recently restored part of the Wall, It spans one fo the nine narrow passes crossed by the wall. It lies in the midest of a 20 kilometer long gully; to the north is the important border city of Zhangjiakou: to the south lies Beijing. It located 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of Changping County, about 60 kilometers (37 miles) from Beijing, is a renowned pass of the Great Wall of China. Enlisted in the World Heritage Directory in 1987, it is a national cultural protection unit.Situated in…more>>

The Temple of Heaven is situated in the southern part of Beijing. It was first built in 1420 in the Ming Dynasty during the time when the Forbidden City ans some other important imperial structures were constructed. It covers an area of 273 hectares, which is 3 times larger than th Forbidden City. The Temple of Heaven is not only the largest group of temple building in China, but also the largest heaven-worshipping architecture in the world.The Temple of Heaven was the place where the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties worshipped heaven and prayed for good harvests. The emperors visited t…more>>

The Forbidden City is located in the center of Beijing. It used to be the former Imperial Palace for the Ming and Qing emperors. Now known as the Palace Museum, it is to the north of Tiananmen Square. Rectangular in shape, it is the world's largest palace complex and covers 72 hectares. Surrounded by a six meter deep moat and a ten meter high wall are 9,999 buildings. The wall has a gate on each side. Opposite the Tiananmen Gate, to the north is the Gate of Devine Might, which faces Jingshan Park. The distance between these two gates is 960 meters, while the distance between the gates in the e…more>>

The Summer Palace in northwest suburban Beijing is the largest and most complete imperial garden existing in China. It was first built in the 12th century as an imperial palace. Renovation and extension in the following several hundred years till the end of the 19th century led it into the scale we see today, and was officially named Summer Palace.The Summer Palace is the archetypal Chinese garden, and is ranked amongst the most noted and classical gardens of the world. In 1998, it was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Constructed in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), during the s…more>>

Once the capital of four dynasties in history and the capital of P.R.China today, Beijing is one of the world's truly imposing cities. with a 3,000 years History and 11 million people. Covering 16,808 square kilometers in area, it is the political, cultural and economic center of the People's Republic of ChinaSituated 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 , repo…more>>

Located on Guozijian Street inside Anding Gate, the Temple of Confucius in Beijing is the place where people paid homage to Confucius during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Now the temple houses the Beijing Capital Museum.The Temple of Confucius was initially built in 1302 and additions were made during the Ming and Qing dynasties. It has a total area of 22,000 square meters (5.4 acres). It is the second largest temple constructed for Confucius, the greatest thinker and educationalist in ancient China, ranking only behind the Temple of Confu…more>>

The Prince Gong's Mansion is Beijing's largest and the best preserved Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) princely mansion and is located at Qianhai Xijie to the north of Shichahai. This fine example of ancient Chinese architecture with its cultural connotations is important not only for its aesthetic value but as an asset to those who wish to study the lifestyle of the privileged classes in the feudal society of a bygone era; it also has an interesting history.The mansion was constructed around the year 1777 and was originally the private residence of Heshen. A member of the imperial guard, the handsome…more>>

A word " Hutong " which is what the small back streets or lanes of Beijing are called, is anunusual term used only in Beijing and a few northern cities in China, In fact, the word was originally a Han language term, but came from Monggolian roots.In the northern grasslands communities tended to from around wells, so " hot" or "well" in Monggolian, came also to mean a town, and a Hudu or Hudun, variants of it, a camp or village.Later it was applied to a small street. The sound gradually changed to Hutong. Small streets in Beijing baganbto be called Hutong after th…more>>

Lama Temple, also known as the Lamasery, lies on the eastern side of Lama Temple Street. It is a renowned lama temple of the Yellow Hat Sect of Lamaism, which is located in the northeast part of Beijing city. The Lama Temple is the largest, the most well-protected and typical lamasery in Beijing.Beijing Lama Temple, an ancient temple recomposed up in Ming and Qing Dynasty for lama from Mongolia and Tibet, which formerly was a Xanadu of Emperor QianLong. Lama Temple features five large halls and five courtyards with beautifully decorative archways, upturned eaves and carved details. It houses a…more>>

Located at the center of Beijing City is Tiananmen Square, situated south of Tiananmen Rostrum, 880 meters long from north to south and 500meters wide from eas to west, with a total area of 44 hectares. It can hold half a million people but once itaccommodated as many as one million people for public gathering.At the north end of the Square is Tiananmen Tower. Initially built in 1417 during the Ming Dynasty, the Square was the front door of the Forbidden City. The most important use of it in the past was to declare in a big ceremony to the common people who became the emperor and who became th…more>>

Many foreigners visiting the Great Wall of China at Badaling or Juyongguan will stop en route at Changping County, some fifty km northwest of Beijing, to visit the Ming Tombs. They will usually be taken directly to the Dingling, which is the resting place of one of the most insipid Chinese rulers, the Wanli Emperor. Hence, the visitors will miss the Spirit Way or Sacred Way lined by the guardian statues of 24 animals and 12 officials.The Ming Tombs, covering a hilly area of 40 acres, was selected in 1409. In 1424 the Yongle Emperor, Zhu Di, was the first Ming Emperor to be buried here in his m…more>>