I have some relatives living in New York City. Most of them have their own car but sometimes they have to commute when needed. Some are used to take taxi when they go somewhere. One of my cousins shared her experience with me when sometimes she is in a hurry going to her appointment. She [...]
Tian’anmen Square: First built in 1420s in the Ming Dynasty, Tian’anmen is the large plaza near the center of Beijing, China, named after the Tiananmen (literally, Gate of Heavenly Peace) which sits to its north, separating it from the Forbidden City. It has great cultural significance as a symbol because it was the site of [...]
The Temple of Heaven (Admission: 50rmb/$7.1): literally the Altar of Heaven, built in 1406 to 1420 A.D. during the Ming Dynasty, The temple was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. It is regarded as a Taoist temple, although Chinese Heaven worship, [...]
Shichahai Lake: Shichahai consists of 147 hectares and dates back to the Jin Dynasty. From the time of the Yuan Dynasty (1115-1234) it was the northernmost part of the Grand Canal linking Hangzhou in the south to Beijing in the North of China. Shichahai is a famous scenic area that includes three lakes (Qian Hai, [...]
Summer palace (Admission: 40rmb/$5.7): literally “Garden of Nurtured Harmony”, The Summer Palace covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters of which is water. Constructed in the Jin Dynasty (1115-1234), .by the time of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the summer palace had become a luxurious royal garden providing royal families with rest and entertainment. [...]
Forbidden City (Palace Museum) (Admission: 60rmb/$8.6): the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing and now houses the Palace Museum. Built from 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 surviving buildings with 8,707 bays of rooms and [...]
The Great Wall (Badaling Great Wall) (Admission: 40rmb/$5.7): Stretching over approximately 6,400 km (4,000 miles), the great wall is a series of stone and earthen fortifications in China, built, rebuilt, and maintained between the 6th century BC and the 16th century to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire from Xiongnu attacks during the [...]