Beijing, capital of the People’s Republic of China, is the nations political, economic and cultural center as well as a hub of transportation and international exchanges. Situated on the northwestern tip of the North China Plain, the city consists of 18 districts and counties. As a world-renowned ancient cultural city, it was home to Peking Man about 500,000 years ago. Beijing’s history as a city goes back to 1045 BC. For a span of 800 years, Beijing was the capital of China, or to be specific, the provisional capital of Liao(907-1125) and capital for Jin(1115-1234), Yuan(1279-1368),Ming(1368-1644) and Qing(1644-1911) a celebrated international tourist centre, Beijing’s land is beautified by green trees and lots of well-manicured lawns, and strewn with former imperial mansions and other old buildings, religious shrines and modern structures. Beijing’s folklore holds forth the fascination of old-time peculiarities. A rich heritage in culture and art brought to life by burgeoning urban development has made Beijing the dream place to be for travelers from around the world.
Tian'anmen Square, also called the Gate of Heavenly Tian'anmen SquarePeace Square, lies in the heart of Beijing. It is 880 meters long from south to north, and 500 meters wide from east to west with the area of 440,000 square meters. As the largest city square in the world, it allows one million people to hold a rally.
Located at the centre of Beijing, the Palace Museum, previously Forbidden Citycalled the Forbidden City, was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Tian'anmen Gate is its front entrance. At the rear of it is Coal Hill. Until 1924 when the last Emperor of China was driven from the Forbidden City, fourteen emperors of the Ming Dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing Dynasty had reigned and lived here, lasting as long as 491 years.
As the capital of many dynasties, Beijing is known for its beautiful imperial gardens and parks, which blend the exquisiteness of southern China's gardens and the boldness of the northern parks, farming an unique style of garden architecture and landscape. The best-known are the Summer Palace, the Winter Palace, the Garden of Perfection and Brightness, and the Temple of Heaven, though there are many others worth a visit.
The city is ancient, because it boasts a 500, 000-year history of civilization; as a city, Beijing has a history ofmore than 3,000 years (the city was established in 1045 BC), and as acapital (Jin Dynasty, the first dynasty in the Chinese history, made Beijing its capital in AD 1115), it has a history of nearly 900 years. This ancient city of Beijing is a masterpiece of the longest history and the largest scale in the world and also is the crystal lisation of the capital constructionin the history of China.
Visiting temples in the daytime V-'and going to bed early in the evening," This was a complaint many tourists to China made in the early days of China's development of tourism when night life was virtually unknown in China. Beijing has been the centre of Chinese religious activities, since ir became the capital of a unified China in the 13th century. The temples, mosques and churches around the city are not only places for religious worship but are interesting places to visit because of their close links to Chinese culture and the life of the people. Just like visiting churches in the West, tourists to China will find that there is much to see, learn, admire and understand in the temples. Temple buildings ate always in traditional styles of Chinese architecture, the statues of the Buddhas in the temples represent Chinese sculptural arts, and legends based on temples provide vivid stories about people's life in the past.