Beijing Scenery. Issue 1 (1-4)

Author: Zhang Min
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-09-01
Features: The Summer Palace is located in the Haidian District in the northwest of Beijing. It is the most well-preserved and largest imperial garden in China and one of the world's most famous tourist destinations, classified as a National Key Cultural Relic Protection Unit. Originally the imperial palace and garden of emperors, the Summer Palace was rebuilt as the Qingyi Garden by Emperor Qianlong in 1750. In 1860, Qingyi Garden was destroyed by Anglo-French forces. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi rebuilt it using 30 million taels of silver from the naval budget, renaming it the current name and turning it into a summer resort. By 1900, the Summer Palace suffered further destruction from the "Eight-Nation Alliance," with many buildings burned. It was repaired in 1903. Later, during the periods of warlord and Kuomintang rule, it suffered further damage. After the liberation, it underwent continuous restoration, bringing this ancient garden back to life.
The Summer Palace covers an area of 290 hectares (4,350 acres), with about three-quarters of it being water. The entire garden is centered around the 41-meter-tall Foshan Pavilion on Wanshou Mountain, with exquisite buildings such as halls, pavilions, towers, corridors, and pavilions arranged according to different locations and terrain. A 728-meter-long corridor is built at the foot of the mountain, linking various buildings with lush greenery and clear waters. The garden's artistic conception is ingenious, holding a significant place in the history of Chinese and foreign garden art. It is a rare masterpiece of garden art worldwide.
The Summer Palace mainly consists of Kunming Lake and Wanshou Mountain, covering a total area of over 290 hectares. Must-visit attractions include the Foshan Pavilion and copper pavilion built on Wanshou Mountain, the 1,000-meter-long gallery by the lake, the 17-arch bridge in Kunming Lake, and the stone boat. Located in the western suburbs of Beijing, about 10 kilometers from the city, it can be reached by suburban buses or special tour buses.
The Beijing Badaling Hot Spring Resort is located 75 kilometers northwest of Beijing, accessible in just 40 minutes via the Badaling Expressway. Situated at the center of tourist attractions such as the Badaling Great Wall, the Badaling Wildlife Park, Longqingxia Valley, Shijinglong Ski Resort, and the Songshan Primitive Forest Nature Reserve in the summer capital of Yanqing, it is an international three-star resort hotel offering accommodation, dining, entertainment, conferences, and tourism.
Upon entering the European-style Badaling Hot Spring Resort, the red-tiled, white-walled buildings and the beautiful environment of distant mountains, near waters, small bridges, and green grass will instantly lift your spirits. The resort boasts 381 rooms across 10 categories, ranging from high-end to budget, capable of accommodating over 800 guests simultaneously. The 24-hour hot spring water in each room originates from 2,000 meters underground, with a temperature of 54°C above normal, and is of excellent quality, containing various minerals essential for the human body, such as iron, sulfur, silicon, and trace elements, which are beneficial for health and skin beauty.
The dining options include Huaiyang, Sichuan-Canton, local specialties, hot spring hotpot, lakeside barbecue, and more, catering to diverse tastes. The water stage adds a romantic touch to your dining experience. With ten conference rooms, multi-functional halls, a conference center, and advanced simultaneous interpretation equipment, the resort can host various domestic and international conferences to meet your business needs.
The resort's most distinctive feature is the indoor hot spring water park, spanning 4,800 square meters. It includes a standard swimming pool, a wave pool, a slide pool, a children's play pool, a hot spring massage pool, and a Sichuan-style hot spring bath. It is the perfect water playground for relaxation and fun. Additionally, the leisure center offers bowling, billiards, table tennis, sandball, badminton, tennis, video games, darts, movie halls, karaoke, hot springs, outdoor rock climbing, fishing, ice skating, boating, and go-karting, allowing you to fully experience leisure and relaxation.
Here, the paths wind through tranquil beauty, far from the hustle and pollution of the city—like paradise, yet not quite. The resort also offers buffet parties, lakeside barbecues, and the water stage, adding endless charm. In the quiet of the night, enjoy the serenity and comfort of the rural outskirts. Come! Let us escape the city's noise and meet at the Badaling Hot Spring Resort.
The Yonghe Palace is located on Yonghe Palace Street in the Dongcheng District. Formerly the Qing Yongqing Royal Mansion, it was the residence of Emperor Yongzheng before his accession. In 1736, it was converted into a palace and renamed Yonghe Palace. In 1748, it was transformed into a Tibetan Buddhist temple, commonly known as a Lamasery. In 1961, it was declared a National Key Cultural Relic Protection Unit by the State Council. Today, 14 halls are open to the public.
The Yonghe Palace faces south and consists of five courtyards, with a well-organized and strict layout. Its towering red walls, yellow glazed tiles, and majestic halls exude imperial grandeur. Passing through the gate tower courtyard, Zhaotai Gate, and Yonghe Gate, visitors arrive at the third courtyard, which features the Qinglong Pavilion inscribed with Emperor Qianlong's "Lama Discourse." The pavilion houses the "Lama Discourse" stele written in Manchu, Han, Mongolian, and Tibetan. On both sides are the Four Learning Halls: the Lecture Hall, Esoteric Hall, Medicine Hall, and Astronomy Hall, where monks study Buddhist scriptures, medicine, astronomy, and geography. At the northern end of the courtyard is the Yonghe Palace, housing the Three Sages Buddha.
The main hall of the fourth courtyard is the Dharma Wheel Hall, which enshrines the statue of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa sect. The walls are adorned with Buddhist story murals, and the hall preserves 315 volumes of the Tibetan Buddhist Canon and the Continuation Canon. On both sides are the Panchen's Lodge and the Vajra Platform. The Panchen's Lodge exhibition displays daily utensils of past lamas and nearly 300 exquisite ritual instruments and Buddha statues. The Vajra Platform exhibition showcases the Golden Urn used for selecting reincarnated lamas and some artifacts from the Qianlong era.
Passing through the Dharma Wheel Hall, visitors reach the final courtyard—the famous Ten Thousand Pavilion. Inside, it enshrines a 18-meter-tall wooden statue of Maitreya, carved from a single piece of sandalwood, considered a world wonder. In addition to the original arrangement, the pavilion also features long-term exhibitions such as the "Qing Dynasty Tibetan Gift Exhibition" and "Tibetan Buddhism and Yonghe Palace," introducing the history of the palace to visitors.
The Beijing Grand View Garden is a unique classical garden in the city. Within its 13-hectare area, over 40 pavilions, towers, and courtyards are complemented by mountainous water systems, blooming flowers, and rare trees, creating a fairyland on earth. Red scholars believe it realizes the "dream beyond the dream" of Dream of the Red Chamber, architectural scholars see it as a fusion of Red Chamber studies, classical architecture, and traditional garden art, literary scholars credit it with creating a new model of integrating film and television set design with garden construction, and cultural relic scholars consider it to have added a new concept of "literary garden" to Chinese garden design. It has become a Red Chamber cultural (art) museum and a potential cultural relic of the future.
The artistic charm and profound value of the Grand View Garden are widely recognized. Over the past 15-16 years, it has welcomed nearly 26 million visitors, including heads of state and military leaders from dozens of countries. The Beijing Grand View Garden eagerly invites countless Red Chamber dreamers to experience its beauty firsthand.