798 Art Zone

798 Art Zone, or Dashanzi Art District, is a part of Dashanzi in the Chaoyang District of Beijing that houses a thriving artistic community, among 50-year old decommissioned military factory buildings of unique architectural style.

The area is often called the 798 Art District or Factory 798 although technically, Factory #798 is only one of several structures within a complex formerly known as Joint Factory 718. The buildings are located inside alleys number 2 and 4 on Jiuxianqiao Road(酒仙桥路), south of the Dàshānziqiáo flyover.

798 Art Zone in Beijing is always compared with Greenwich Village and SOHO in New York. From 2001, artists in and around Beijing began to move into 798 factory because they thought the factory had unique advantage for art creates. They made use of the architecture features of Bauhaus (Bauhaus is an architecture feature in German formed in 1920s. It belongs to Modernism architectures. Bauhaus thinks much of the functions, techniques and economic effects of the constructions which are represented in 798 factory). The artists decorated the factory and turned it into a special art exhibition and creative room. Now 798 is now becoming a cultural landmark of Beijing.

798 Space is a new rising, avant-garde and trendy space that hosts high-level cultural, artistic and commercial activities. Mottled red-brick wall,Scattered orderly industrial plants, crisscross pipelines, slogans of different ages on the wall. Uniformed workers and fashion visitors form unique scenery. History and reality, industry and the arts perfectly fit here. The art zone can hold more than 1000 guests with ease.

More than 100 cultural institutions including publish, architecture design, fashion design, furniture design, music performance, film and art studios are set up here. Besides art galleries, bars, restaurants, book stores, clothes shops and Yoga centers could also be found in the art zone. 798 Art Zone was awarded as one of the 22 best city art centers by Time Magazine in 2003.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Badaling Great Wall

Badaling Great Wall is the site of the most visited section of the Great Wall of China, approximately 50 miles (80 km) northwest of urban Beijing city in Yanqing County, which is within the Beijing municipality. It is the best preserved and the most magnificent. Badaling means "giving access to every direction". The name itself reminds us of its historical and strategic importance.The portion of the wall running through the site was built in 1504 during the Ming Dynasty, along with a military outpost reflecting the location's strategic importance. The highest point of Badaling is Beibalou, approximately 1,015 meters above sea level.

It is made of large blue bricks. The sides are covered in stone, the top in layers of brick. Inside the stone in brick is a mixture of soil and rubble, painstakingly tamped into place. The wall was made wide enough for five or six horses to be ridden abreast on its top. At regular intervals are window embrasures and castellated crenels. Beacon towers, originally for relaying military information, offer a respite from the weather. In peacetime, the Wall has proved useful as a highway, transporting people and supplies over large distances.

The portion of the wall at Badaling has undergone restoration, and in 1957 it was the first section of the wall to open to tourists. Now visited annually by millions, the immediate area has seen significant development, including hotels, restaurants, and a cable car. The recently completed Badaling Expressway connects Badaling with central Beijing. Line S2, Beijing Suburban Railway, served people who wanted to go to the Great Wall from Beijing North Railway Station. People can buy tickets at Beijing North Railway Station to Badaling Station. A bus also runs frequently from Deshengmen to Badaling.

It was here that President Richard Nixon and his wife, accompanied by Vice Premier Li Xiannian, visited on February 24, 1972, during his historic journey to China.

Badaling and the expressway were the site of the finishing circuit of the Urban Road Cycling Course in the 2008 Summer Olympics. Laps of the circuit passed through gates in the wall.

Set in a steep, forested mountain range, Badaling offers superb views and for those willing to travel beyond the restored sections, worthwhile hiking. The climb is so demanding, especially in the summer heat, that the crowds thin out after a few hundred meters (unless you take the cable car to the top, which some think spoils the experience). However, the guard towers are uniquely constructed so that the cool mountain breezes naturally air condition the interior. Weary travelers can literally "chill" in the guard towers before continuing along.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

The Olympic Green (Beijing Olympic Park)

The Olympic Green is an Olympic Park in Chaoyang District, Beijing, China constructed for the 2008 Summer Olympics. Since then, the streets around the park have been used for an exhibition street race of the FIA GT1 World Championship in 2011, after a race at Goldenport Park Circuit in the vicinity.

The Olympic Green is centerpiece for the 29th Olympic Games, held in China for the very first time. Located in the northern tip of the city, it covers a total area of 1,215 hectares (3000 acres), of which 760 (1878 acres) are wooded areas and greenery.

 A forest park, a central area including 10 competition venues, the Olympic Village, the Main Press Center (MPC), and the International Broadcasting Center (IBC) are a few of the important buildings and regions for the Olympics that can be found at the Olympic Green. The most spectacular of all is the newly built National Stadium, where the opening and closing ceremonies of the Olympic Games were held.

A 60-meter-wide road penetrates the public region from south to north. In the center, an 11-meter-wide road is paved in imitation of the axis of the Forbidden City, which embodies the passing of the Chinese traditional culture. The largest venue at the games in terms of seating capacity was the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the "Bird's Nest", which can held some 91,000 spectators for the opening and closing ceremonies. The Olympic Green was a smashing success, flawlessly hosting the competitions of some 15 Olympic sports as well as serving millions of foreign visitors, tourists, dignitaries, and athletes.

Near the Olympic Cauldron, on the northwest side of the Bird's Nest Stadium is the Linglong Pogoda. The Ling Long Pagoda or Linglong Tower (Multifunctional Studio Towe) houses a part of the International Broadcast Center (IBC). "Ling Long" means delicate, and is referred to as the Delicate Tower in Chinese. The permanent structure is a three-sided tower. The tower contains 6 occupiable pods with open space in between. One of the pods displays the Olympic rings. It is 128m tall, with 7 occupiable floors, each an equilateral triangle. The floors are subdivided into two levels. The glass-walled pods are held up by three supporting ribs at the three corners. The tower is operated by Beijing Olympic Broadcasting. Some international broadcast studios are located in the pods of the tower, offering skyline views as backdrops of Olympic broadcasts. CCTV, BBC, CBC Television for both French and English networks, France Télévisions - France 2 & France 3, Televisa, and TV Azteca share use of the tower's studio facilities. CBC occupies the fourth pod from the bottom. BBC occupies the second pod from the bottom. France Television is also on the third floor. NBC's Today Show tapes from the ground floor.

It opened to the public for the first time during the National Holiday in October of 2008. Post-Olympics the Olympic Green has become a center of cultural, recreational, and sporting activities in Beijing. Thousands of people, both Chinese and foreigners, have taken the chance to visit the grand site and flocked to see the sports venues as well as watch a number of special exhibitions and performances. It is expected that the site will continue to attract many visitors and will also serve as an excellent place for China to host more intra-country sporting events in the future.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Peking University

Peking University is a major Chinese research university located in Beijing, and a member of the C9 League. It is the first established modern national university of China, founded as the "Imperial University of Peking" in 1898 as a replacement of the ancient Guozijian. By 1920 it had become a center for progressive thought. Today, Peking University is frequently listed by many domestic and international rankings as one of the top universities in China. In addition to academics, Peking University is especially renowned for its campus grounds, and the beauty of its traditional Chinese architecture.

Throughout its history, the university has educated and hosted many prominent modern Chinese thinkers, including figures such as: Lu Xun, Mao Zedong, Gu Hongming, Hu Shih, Li Dazhao, and Chen Duxiu. Peking University was influential in the birth of China's New Culture Movement, May Fourth Movement, the Tiananmen Square protest of 1989 and many other significant events

The university campus is in the former site of the Qing Dynasty royal gardens and it retains many traditional Chinese-style landscaping including traditional houses, gardens, pagodas as well as many notable historical buildings and structures. There are several gates that lead into campus — East, West and South gates, with the West Gate being the most well known for the painted murals on its ceiling. Peking University is known throughout China, with its neighbour, Tsinghua University, for their beautiful campuses. Weiming lake is in the north of the campus and is surrounded by walking paths and small gardens.

The university hosts many museums, such as the Museum of University History and the Arthur M. Sackler Museum of Art and Archaeology. Notable items in these museums include funerary objects that were excavated in Beijing and date back thousands of years from the graves of royalties of the Warring States period. There are ritual pottery vessels as well as elaborate pieces of jewelry on display. There are also human bones set up in the traditional burial style of that period.

A performance of Kunqu at Peking UniversityIn 2008, the THE-QS World University Rankings ranked the Peking University as the 23rd best university in the world in arts and humanities; it is also the highest ranked university from Asia in this field. The Peking University was ranked as the 18th (2007 rankings), 10th (2006 rankings), 6th (2005 rankings), and 7th (2004 rankings) best arts and humanities university in the world.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Acrobatic shows in Beijing

Acrobatic shows in Beijing are definitely worth seeing. There are many world class acrobatic troupes. The amazing feats showcase strength, skill, and dexterity that literally boggle the mind. Some of the more popular acts include: a lion dance, where two acrobats work together doing stunts in a lion costume; Chinese yoyo tricks, gravity-defying body contortions, juggling, unicycling, chair-stacking, and more.

Acrobatic show is one entertainment that must not be missed by the young and old on a visit to Beijing. China has many world class acrobatic troupes because practically every province and major city will have its own acrobatic troupe, and children are selected to be trained as performers from a young age. In Beijing one can see breath-holding acrobatics, some of which can be so demanding in the timing and balancing skill as to verge on the impossible.

Chinese acrobatics is said to have started during the Warring States Period (475-221 BC) two thousand years old, though some claim it is four thousand years old on the basis of the mythical Yellow Emperor, Huangdi, having started a martial form of acrobatics at a victory celebration in Wuqiao some 300 km south of Beijing. Since 1987, Wuqiao has held the Wuqiao International Acrobatics Festival which is an event for the international acrobatic fraternity. In the Tang Dynasty (618-907), acrobatics received royal patronage with shows performed for the imperial court as depicted by a Dunghuang Grotto mural. By the Song Dynasty (960-1279) acrobatics become upstaged by opera as an entertainment for the literati and the ruling class. As it descended to be an entertainment for the ordinary folks, it was continually sustained and nurture by the commoners into the fascinating Chinese acrobatics of today.

Success of acrobatics depends also on good stage arts like stage images, music, choreography and costumes backed up by props and lighting. The frequent local competitions in China for acrobatic excellence have made China a nation unique in an oriental form of acrobatics that is second to none in the world. Tickets can be obtained in Beijing at the Chaoyang Juchang and the Tiandi Juchang.

We recommend that you to sit in the lower seating area so that you will have the best vantage point. The show is usually performed at night and lasts about one and a half hours. After it is over, you will be allowed to go onto the stage and take photos with the performers.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA)

The National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA), and colloquially described as The Giant Egg, is an opera house in Beijing, People's Republic of China. The Centre, an ellipsoid dome of titanium and glass surrounded by an artificial lake, seats 5,452 people in three halls and is almost 12,000 m² in size. It was designed by French architect Paul Andreu. Construction started in December 2001 and the inaugural concert was held in December 2007.

With an excellent location to the west of Tiananmen Square and the Great Hall of the People, it is very near the Forbidden City. The exterior of the theater is a titanium accented glass dome that is completely surrounded by a man-made lake. It is said to look like an egg floating on water, or a water drop. It was designed as an iconic feature, something that would be immediately recognizable.

The dome measures 212 meters in east–west direction, 144 meters in north–south direction, and is 46 meters high. The main entrance is at the north side. Guests arrive in the building after walking through a hallway that goes underneath the lake. The titanium shell is broken by a glass curtain in north–south direction that gradually widens from top to bottom.

National Centre of the Performing Arts of Beijing, stands the highest level of performing house in China, counterparting with famous Broadway Theatre of New York city. As the most bright spiritual symbol, National Centre of the Performing Arts once was highly praised by USA Today as a strong evidence for increasing comprehensive strenghs of China for its perfect modern architecture and highest status in Performing Arts and Music.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Beijing Capital Museum

Although Capital Museum in Beijing pales in comparison to the visitors received in other major attractions, such as Forbidden City (Palace Museum) and Badaling Great Wall, it has became more and more popular among home and abroad. With its incomparable cultural function, the museum offers systematic presentation and knowledge to visitors on China history and culture.

Located on Chang'an Avenue of Xicheng District, Capital Museum began its initial work at 1953, and till 1981 it opened to the public. In 2001, the museum started to develop its construction with taking Beijing Confucian Temple as its precursor, and finished in May 2006. By adopting advanced technology and first-class management, the Capital Museum collects over 200,000 cultural relics and exhibits in several different theme halls. Good news for us that since 2008, the museum has been free to visitors with a limit of 4000 per day.

The majority of exhibits at the Capital Museum are cultural relics unearthed in Beijing. The Museum is a modern exhibition center with unique Beijing characteristics representing Beijing's history, cultural relics, archaeological discoveries and cutting-edge research results of relevant disciplines. The Museum has cast out dull exhibition modes of the past and offers an experience-based tour fully capitalizing on modern exhibition techniques.

The museum opens several major exhibition halls according to different themes, such as bronze, jadeware, chinaware, painting, calligraphy and buddha, etc. Famous for the oval-shape Bronze Exhibition Hall and Jade Ware Exhibition Hall, also, museum's some temporary exhibition halls often accept a amount of relics and collections from other museums or private exhibitions to exhibit for a short term.

The most distinctive feature of the Museum is its unswerving focus on the transformation and development of Beijing and telling the story of an ancient Chinese city with a multi-dimensional interpretation involving such aspects as geography, folk customs, antiques, etc. Permanent exhibitions at the Museum include Ancient Capital - History and Culture, Ancient Capital Beijing - Urban Construction, and Old Stories of Beijing - Exhibition of Old Beijing Folk Customs. The core purpose of the exhibitions is to meticulously display Beijing's history and culture. These exhibitions are like a history book by which we can try to decipher Beijing.

In addition to the above, other permanent exhibitions at the Museum include seven exhibitions on the Fine Art of Ancient Chinaware, Bronzeware, Calligraphy, Paintings, Jade Ware, Buddhist Statues and fine articles of the scholar’s study. The exhibitions assist and reinforce the visitors’ understanding of Beijing culture.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Beijing Zoo------a Zoological Park in Beijing

The Beijing Zoo is a zoological park in Beijing, China. Located in the Xicheng District, the zoo occupies an area of 89 hectares (220 acres), including 5.6 hectares (14 acres) hectares of lakes and ponds. It is one of the oldest zoos in China and has one of the largest animal collections in the country.

The zoo and its aquarium has over 450 species of land animals and over 500 species of marine animals. In all, it is home to 14,500 animals. More than six million visitors come to the zoo each year. The zoo was founded in 1906 during the late Qing Dynasty. Like many of Beijing's parks, the zoo's grounds resemble classical Chinese gardens, with flower beds amidst natural scenery, including dense groves of trees, stretches of meadows, small streams and rivers, lotus pools and hills dotted with pavilions and historical buildings.

The Beijing Zoo is best known for its collection of rare animals endemic to China including the Giant Pandas, which are zoo's most popular animals, the golden snub-nosed monkey, South China Tiger, white-lipped deer, Pere David's Deer, Crested Ibis, Chinese Alligator and the Chinese Giant Salamander. Other endangered or threatened species include Siberian tiger, yak, Przewalski's horse, snow leopard, Tibetan gazelle, and kiang.

The zoo also has a broad collection of megafauna such as lion, jaguar, clouded leopard, Asian and African elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, black bear, polar bear, tapir, sea turtle, penguin, gorilla, chimpanzee, kangaroo, muntjac, addax, zebra, otter, bat, flamingo and lemur. The Beijing Zoo has 13 of the world's 15 species of cranes.

Inside the Zoo, the Beijing Ocean Hall was opened to the public in 1999. It is the biggest ocean hall in China. The spacious hall is subdivided into several zones: the Hall of Tropical Rain Forest, the Hall of the Shark, the Ocean Theater, and the Ocean Library and Reading Hall as well as a few others. Visitors can expect to see a variety of sea creatures up close and personal, learn more about their natural living environment in the ocean, and enjoy an entertaining sea animal show. The beauty and grace of the animals will make your trip hard to forget.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Prince Gong's Mansion-----One of the Most Exquisite Imperial Mansions in Beijing

The Prince Gong Mansion is located in the western part of central Beijing, China, north of the Shichahai Lake. Consisting of large mansions in the typical siheyuan layout and gardens, the Prince Gong Mansion is known as one of the most ornate and extravagant residence compounds in all of Beijing. It is now a museum.

The Prince Gong Mansion was constructed in 1777 during the Qing Dynasty for Heshen, a prominent court official in the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. From a young age, Heshen earned the favour of the Qianlong Emperor and he rose swiftly through the ranks in the imperial administration to become one of the top and wealthiest officials in Qianlong's court. In 1799, Qianlong's successor, the Jiaqing Emperor, accused Heshen of corruption and had him executed and confiscated his property. The mansion was given to Prince Qing, the 17th and youngest son of the Qianlong Emperor.

 

In 1851, the Xianfeng Emperor assigned it to his brother Yixin, Prince Gong. The mansion is named after this Prince Gong.

In 1921, after the collapse of the Qing Dynasty, Prince Gong's grandson offered the property as a mortgage to the Benedictine Order of the Catholic Church. The Benedictines invested significant resources into restoring the badly dilapidated mansion for use as a university. It was then known as Furen Catholic University until the monks were evicted from China in 1951. The former Fu Jen campus was converted into Beijing Normal University, and then the Chinese Music Academy.In the 1980s it had a new revival. In 1982 it has been declared as one of the Chinese National Cultural Heritages in Beijing. Since November 1996, the buildings and the gardens have become a tourist attraction.

Prince Gong's Mansion is one of the most exquisite and best-preserved imperial mansions in Beijing and used to house several families, and has a total area of 60,000 square metres.

The mansion buildings are located in the south; the gardens are in the north. The buildings include several siheyuan courtyards, two story buildings, and even a grand Peking opera house.In addition to the mansion, there is a 28,000-square-metre garden, with twenty scenic spots, pavilions, artificial hills including rock originating from the Taihu Lake in Jiangsu, and ponds.There is an 8-meter-long stele which has the character 福 (fú: good fortune), carved based on the calligraphy of the Kangxi Emperor on it.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

The Beijing National Aquatics Center(the Water Cube)

The Beijing National Aquatics Center, also known as the Water Cube, is an aquatics center that was built alongside Beijing National Stadium in the Olympic Green for the swimming competitions of the 2008 Summer Olympics. Despite its nickname, the building is not an actual cube, but a cuboid (a rectangular box). Ground was broken on December 24, 2003, and the Center was completed and handed over for use on January 28, 2008. Swimmers at the Water Cube broke 25 world records during the 2008 Olympics.

The outward appearance of the Center is a semi-transparent "cube", with "bubbles" spread out all over its surface, a shape very similar to the structure of "H2O". The Water Cube design was chosen from 10 proposals in an international architectural competition for the aquatic center project. It was initiated by a team effort: the Chinese partners felt a square was more symbolic of Chinese culture and its relationship to the Bird's Nest stadium, while the Sydney based partners came up with the idea of covering the "cube" with bubbles, symbolizing water. The Water Cube has set a new standard in environmental sports design, not only in China but throughout the world.

 

The Aquatics Center hosted the swimming, diving and synchronized swimming events during the Olympics. Water polo was originally planned to be hosted in the venue but was moved to the Ying Tung Natatorium.

Many people believed the Water Cube to be the fastest Olympic pool in the world. It is 1.314 meters deeper than most Olympic pools. The London 2012 Aquatics Centre is the same depth, which leads many to believe the London pool is as fast if not faster than the Beijing pool. Up to a certain limit, beyond which swimmers will lose their sense of vision, deeper pools allow the waves to dissipate down to the bottom, leading to less water disturbance to the swimmers. The pool also has perforated gutters on both sides to absorb the waves.

The Aquatics Center saw 25 world records broken in the Beijing Olympics, however, all the records broken were accomplished by athletes using the super-slick swimwear which have become banned at the beginning of the 2010 season by the International Swimming Federation (FINA).

After the Olympics, the Water Cube was opened to the public on select days of the week beginning in June 2009, and was also used as the site for a production of Swan Lake amongst other shows. On October 19, 2009, the Water Cube was closed to the public to begin a massive renovation of a portion of the complex into a water park. The building reopened on August 8, 2010, marking the two-year anniversary of the beginning of the 2008 Summer Olympics. The redesigned facility contains numerous water rides and slides, a wave pool, and spa areas. The renovations were performed in order to bring renewed interest to the Olympic Green area as part of the games' legacy.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Shichahai------A Historic Scenic Area

Shichahai (Chinese: 什刹海) is a historic scenic area consisting of three lakes in the north of central Beijing in China. They are located to the north-west of the Forbidden City and north-west of the Beihai Lake. Shichahai consists of the following three lakes: Qianhai, Xihai and Houhai. In imperial times it was called the Riverbank.

Shichahai consists of 147 hectares and dates back to the Jin Dynasty. From the time of the Yuan Dynasty it was the northernmost part of the Grand Canal linking Hangzhou in the south to Beijing in the North of China. Because of this, the Shichahai area used to be the most important commercial district with all kinds of activities going on. It harbors several temples and mansions.

With the development of hundreds of years, Shichahai combines different cultures of all estates from emperors to common people. The abnormity but dense Hutongs and Quadrate Yards around the lake represent the culture and history of ancient Beijing. Like pearls sprinkle the lake, the around natural scapes and historical sites reflect the style and features of ancient Beijing. Some well-known attractions are the Prince Gong Mansion, the Silver Ingot Bridge and Yandaixie Street (Tobacco Pipe Lane); the bar street here are popular among locals and tourists from in and abroad. In 1992 the municipal government of Beijing declared the district a "Historical and Cultural Scenic District".

Around the lake there are ten famous Taoist and Buddhist temples and several formal royal mansions and gardens. The most well known are the Prince Gong Mansion and the Prince Chun Mansion.

In 1992 the municipal government of Beijing declared the district an "Historical and Cultural Scenic District". Shichahai is a famous scenic spot in Beijing, and it is near the north-gate of the Beihai Park. With borders of the lakes surrounded by large trees, tourists can rent boats to paddle on the lakes in summer. And in the winter many people come to ice-skate.

For more information, please visit www.top-chinatour.com

Peking Opera

Peking opera or Beijing opera is a form of traditional Chinese theatre which combines music, vocal performance, mime, dance, and acrobatics. It arose in the late 18th century and became fully developed and recognized by the mid-19th century. The form was extremely popular in the Qing Dynasty court and has come to be regarded as one of the cultural treasures of China. Major performance troupes are based in Beijing and Tianjin in the north and Shanghai in the south. The art form is also preserved in Taiwan, where it is known as Guoju. It has also spread to other countries such as the United States and Japan.

Peking opera features four main types of performers. Performing troupes often have several of each variety, as well as numerous secondary and tertiary performers. With their elaborate and colorful costumes, performers are the only focal points on Peking opera's characteristically sparse stage. They utilize the skills of speech, song, dance, and combat in movements that are symbolic and suggestive, rather than realistic. Above all else, the skill of performers is evaluated according to the beauty of their movements. Performers also adhere to a variety of stylistic conventions that help audiences navigate the plot of the production. The layers of meaning within each movement must be expressed in time with music. The music of Peking opera can be divided into the Xipi and Erhuang styles. Melodies include arias, fixed-tune melodies, and percussion patterns. The repertoire of Peking opera includes over 1,400 works, which are based on Chinese history, folklore, and, increasingly, contemporary life.

Peking opera was denounced as 'feudalistic' and 'bourgeois' during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s, and replaced with the eight revolutionary model operas as a means of propaganda and indoctrination. After the Cultural Revolution, these transformations were largely undone. In recent years, Peking opera has attempted numerous reforms in response to sagging audience numbers. These reforms, which include improving performance quality, adapting new performance elements, and performing new and original plays, have met with mixed success.

In ancient times, Beijing Opera was performed mostly on stage in the open air, teahouses, or temple courtyards. Since the orchestra played loudly, the performers developed a piercing style of song that could be heard by everyone. The costumes were a garish collection of sharply contrasting colors to stand out on the dim stage that was illuminated only by oil lamps. It is also a visual art from that integrates music, actor 's performances, literature, aria, and face-painting. The rules for Beijing Opera have been standardized and must be followed strictly. Only the very top actors and musicians can ever perform in a big time show.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Peking duck ------A National Dish Of China

Peking duck is a famous duck dish from Beijing that has been prepared since the imperial era, and is now considered a national dish of China.

The dish is prized for the thin, crisp skin, with authentic versions of the dish serving mostly the skin and little meat, sliced in front of the diners by the cook. Ducks bred specially for the dish are slaughtered after 65 days and seasoned before being roasted in a closed or hung oven. The meat is eaten with scallion, cucumber and sweet bean sauce with pancakes rolled around the fillings. Sometimes pickled radish is also inside, and other sauces (like hoisin sauce) can be used.

Two notable restaurants in Beijing which serve this dish are Quanjude and Bianyifang, both centuries-old establishments which have become household names. The two both have their own style: Quanjude is known for using the hung oven roasting method, while Bianyifang uses the oldest technique of closed oven roasting.

Duck has been roasted in China since the Southern and Northern Dynasties. A variation of roast duck was prepared for the Emperor of China in the Yuan Dynasty. By the mid-20th century, Peking Duck had become a national symbol of China, favored by tourists and diplomats alike. For example, Henry Kissinger, the Secretary of State of the United States, met Premier Zhou Enlai in the Great Hall of the People on July 10, during his first visit to China. After a round of inconclusive talks in the morning, the delegation was served Peking Duck for lunch, which became Kissinger's favourite. The Americans and Chinese issued a joint statement the following day, inviting President Richard Nixon to visit China in 1972. Peking Duck was hence considered one of the factors behind the rapprochement of the United States to China in the 1970s. Following Zhou's death in 1976, Kissinger paid another visit to Beijing to savor Peking Duck. Peking Duck, at the Quanjude in particular, has also been a favorite dish for various political leaders ranging from Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro to former German chancellor Helmut Kohl.

A number of restaurants in Beijing specialize in Peking Duck. Examples include Quanjude, Bianyifang, Changan Yihao, Beijing Xiaowangfu and Dadong Kaoyadian. Some restaurants, in particular Quanjude and Bianyifang, have long histories of serving high quality duck that they are now household names, literally "old brand name". In addition, Quanjude has received worldwide recognition, having been named a China Renowned Trademark in 1999. Duck Chang's Restaurant, established in 1975 in Virginia, USA, was the first Chinese restaurant to prepare and serve Peking Duck without a 24 hour advanced notice. 
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

Beijing National Stadium -------Bird's Nest

The Beijing National Stadium, also known as the "Bird's Nest", is located at the southern part of the Olympic Green in Beijing, in the northeast of the city. As the main stadium for the 29th Olympiad in 2008, the National Stadium covers an area of 258,000 square meters (64 acres) and accommodates a maximum of 91,000 spectators with a permanent capacity of 80,000.

Located at the Olympic Green, the stadium cost US428 million. The design was awarded to a submission from the Swiss architecture firm Herzog & de Meuron in April 2003 after a bidding process that included 13 final submissions. The design, which originated from the study of Chinese ceramics, implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof; giving the stadium the appearance of a bird's nest. Leading Chinese artist Ai Weiwei was the artistic consultant on the project. The retractable roof was later removed from the design after inspiring the stadium's most recognizable aspect. Ground was broken on 24 December 2003 and the stadium officially opened on 28 June 2008. A shopping mall and a hotel are planned to be constructed to increase use of the stadium, which has had trouble attracting events, football and otherwise, after the Olympics.

The stadium looks like a nest from the outside, symbolizing a cradle holding the hopes of mankind for the future. The main body of the National Stadium is a colossal saddle-shaped elliptic steel structure weighing 42,000 tons. It is 333 meters (1092 feet) long from north to south, 294 meters(964 feet) wide from east to west, and 69 meters (226 feet) tall. The stadium was designed to remain functional for 100 years. Its fire resistance capability is first-rate, and it can withstand an eight-magnitude earthquake.

The spatial effect of the stadium is radical and yet simple and of an almost archaic immediacy. There is no exterior facade. But it lies open and exposed to allow for natural ventilation of the stadium, which is the most important aspect of the stadium's design. The main body's elements support each other and converge into a grid formation, almost like the interlocking branches and twigs of a bird's nest. The design meets all the functional and technical requirements of an Olympic Stadium, but without communicating the insistent sameness of technocratic architecture dominated by large spans and digital screens.

The Bird’s Nest is a complex structure that posed great difficulties for its designers and constructors. The workers had to overcome tremendous engineering and technical challenges in the process of construction. Because of the limited time to finish construction, workers had to defy both rainy and cold conditions in the winter to continue their work. The huge workload combined with the short timeframe caused a lot of tension. But finally the project that was started on December 24, 2003, was eventually completed in June, 2008, just in time for the Olympic Games.

The eastern and western stands of Beijing National Stadium are higher than northern and southern stands, in order to improve sightlines. A 24-hour per day rainwater collector is located near the stadium; after water is purified, it is used throughout and around the stadium. Pipes placed under the playing surface gather heat in the winter to warm the stadium and coldness in the summer to cool the stadium. The stadium's design originally called for a capacity of 100,000 people; however 9,000 were removed during a simplification of the design. The new total of 91,000 would be shaved further when 11,000 temporary seats were removed after the 2008 Olympics; bringing the stadium's capacity to 80,000. The farthest seat is 460 feet (140 meters) from center field. Temperature and airflow of every surface were optimized to increase ventilation.

Beijing National Stadium hosted the Opening and Closing Ceremonies, athletic events, and football final of the 2008 Summer Olympics from 8 to 24 August 2008. The stadium also hosted the Opening and Closing ceremonies and athletic events of the 2008 Summer Paralympics from 6 to 17 September 2008. Though designed for track & field events of the Olympics, the stadium will continue to host sporting events, such as football, afterwards. A shopping mall and a hotel, with rooms overlooking the field, are planned to help increase use after the Olympics.

For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com

The Forbidden City------Served as the Home of Emperors for 500 Years

Located in the center of Beijing, the Forbidden City (also named The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty. It is located in the center of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum. For almost 500 years, it served as the home of emperors and their households, as well as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government.

Since 1925, the Forbidden City has been under the charge of the Palace Museum, whose extensive collection of artwork and artifacts were built upon the imperial collections of the Ming and Qing dynasties. Part of the museum's former collection is now located in the National Palace Museum in Taipei. Both museums descend from the same institution, but were split after the Chinese Civil War.

The Forbidden City is a rectangle, measuring 961 metres (3,153 ft) from north to south and 753 meters from east to west. It consists of 980 surviving buildings with 8,886 bays of rooms; however this figure may not include various antechambers. Another common figure points to 9,999 rooms including antechambers; although this number is frequently cited, it is likely an oral tradition, and it is not supported by survey evidence. The Forbidden City was designed to be the centre of the ancient, walled city of Beijing. It is enclosed in a larger, walled area called the Imperial City. The Imperial City is, in turn, enclosed by the Inner City; to its south lies the Outer City.

The Forbidden City remains important in the civic scheme of Beijing. The central north–south axis remains the central axis of Beijing. This axis extends to the south through Tiananmen gate to Tiananmen Square, the ceremonial centre of the People's Republic of China, and on to Yongdingmen. To the north, it extends through Jingshan Hill to the Bell and Drum Towers. This axis is not exactly aligned north–south, but is tilted by slightly more than two degrees. Researchers now believe that the axis was designed in the Yuan dynasty to be aligned with Xanadu, the other capital of their empire.

The Forbidden City is surrounded by a 7.9 meters high city wall and a 6 meters deep by 52 meters wide moat. The walls are 8.62 meters wide at the base, tapering to 6.66 meters at the top. These walls served as both defensive walls and retaining walls for the palace. They were constructed with a rammed earth core, and surfaced with three layers of specially baked bricks on both sides, with the interstices filled with mortar.

Traditionally, the Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The Outer Court or Front Court includes the southern sections, and was used for ceremonial purposes. The Inner Court or Back Palace includes the northern sections, and was the residence of the Emperor and his family, and was used for day-to-day affairs of state. Generally, the Forbidden City has three vertical axes. The most important buildings are situated on the central north–south axis.

Built in 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 buildings and covers 180. The palace complex exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture, and has influenced cultural and architectural developments in East Asia and elsewhere. The Forbidden City was declared a World Heritage Site in 1987, and is listed by UNESCO as the largest collection of preserved ancient wooden structures in the world.
For more information, please visit http://top-chinatour.com