Beijing / 北京:
The Great Wall of China:
(万里长城, Wan Li Chang Cheng)
(万里长城, Wan Li Chang Cheng)
(the most famous is the wall built between 220–206 BC by the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang)
(A UNESCO world heritage site since 1987)
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/438
(A UNESCO world heritage site since 1987)
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/438
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Summer Palace:
(颐和园, Yi He Yuan)
(The Summer Palace started out as the Garden of Clear Ripples in 1750 (Reign Year 15 of Emperor Qianlong). In 1888, it was given the current name, Yi He Yuan. It served as a summer resort for Empress Dowager Cixi.)
(a UNESCO world heritage site since 1998. It declared the Summer Palace "a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design. The natural landscape of hills and open water is combined with artificial features such as pavilions, halls, palaces, temples and bridges to form a harmonious ensemble of outstanding aesthetic value." ) http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/880
The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill 万寿山 (Wan Shou Shan) (60 meters high) and the Kunming Lake 昆明湖 (Kun Ming Hu):
The Long Corridor:
(长廊, Chang Lang)
It is a covered walkway. It is famous for its length (728 m) in conjunction with its rich painted decoration (more than 14,000 paintings).
(It was built in 1750, when the Qianlong Emperor commissioned work to convert the area into an imperial garden. As a part of the Summer Palace, the Long Corridor was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List in December, 1998.)
佛香阁 (Fo Xiang Ge) of the Summer Palace:
The Marble Boat:
(石舫, Shi Fang)
(also known as the Boat of Purity and Ease (清晏舫) (Qing Yan Fang), it is a lakeside pavilion)
牌坊 (pai fang)
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The Forbidden City:
(紫禁城, Zi Jin Cheng; also called 故宫, Gu Gong)
(For almost five centuries, it served as the home of the Emperor and his household, as well as the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government.
Built in 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 surviving buildings with 8,707 bays of rooms and covers 720,000 m2 (7,800,000 sq ft). 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)http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/439
The Forbidden City, viewed from Jingshan Hill (景山公园) to the north:
The Hall of Supreme Harmony:
(太和殿, Tai He Dian)
(It is the largest hall within the Forbidden City)
The Nine Dragons Screen 九龙壁 (Jiu Long Bi) in front of the Palace of Tranquil Longevity (宁寿宫):
珍妃井 story of Imperial Consort Zhen and the well:
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Tian'anmen Square:
(天安门广场, Tian'anmen Guangchang)
(It is the large plaza near the centre of Beijing. It has great cultural significance as it was the site of several key events in Chinese history.
The Tiananmen Square is the largest city square in the world (440,000 m² - 880 m by 500 m) . It has been the site of many events, among which a gathering of pro-democracy protesters in 1989.)
The Great Hall of the People:
(人民大会堂, Renmin Dahuitang)
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The Temple of Heaven:
(天坛, Tiantan)
(It is a complex of Taoist buildings. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest.)
(It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1998 and was described as "a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world’s great civilizations..." as the "symbolic layout and design of the Temple of Heaven had a profound influence on architecture and planning in the Far East over many centuries".)
The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests:
(祈年殿, Qi Nian Dian)
(It is a magnificent triple-gabled circular building, 32 metres in diameter and 38 metres tall, built on three levels of marble stone base, where the Emperor prayed for good harvests. The building is completely wooden, with no nails.)
the interior:
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Xi'an / 西安:
Mausouleum of the First Qin Emperor (秦始皇陵):
(Qin Shihuang Ling)
The Terracotta Army 兵马俑(bingma yong):
literally "soldier and horse funerary statues" is the Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses of Qin Shi Huang the First Emperor of China. The terracotta figures, dating from 210 BC, were discovered in 1974 by some local farmers near Xi'an, Shaanxi province, near the Mausouleum of the First Qin Emperor. (秦始皇陵,Qin Shihuang Ling). A UNESCO world heritage site since 1987.
秦兵马俑坑博物馆:
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Huaqing Hot Spring 华清池 (Hua Qing Chi):
飞霞阁:
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Xi'an Banpo Museum (西安半坡博物馆):
A museum that houses artifacts from the archaeological site of Banpo, a 6,500 year old Neolithic village. The museum gives access to the excavated buildings, has a collection of artifacts from the site, and also has several reconstructed houses
designed to resemble the Neolithic settlement.
Performance by the people of Gui Zhou (贵州):
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Big Wild Goose Pagoda (大雁塔):
(Dayan Ta) is a Buddhist pagoda located in southern Xi'an. It was built in 652 AD during the Tang Dynasty.
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Forest of Stone Steles:
(or Xi'an Beilin Museum) (碑林 Beilin)
(It is a museum for steles and stone sculptures. In 1944 it was the principal museum for Shaanxi Province on the site of what was formerly an 11th century Confucius Temple. Then because of the large number of steles, it was officially re-named as the Forest of Stone Steles in 1992. All together, there are 3,000 steles in the museum, which is divided into seven exhibitions halls, which mainly display works of calligraphy, painting and historical records.)
A Stele with the potrait of Confucius , 孔子像:
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City Wall of Xi'an, 西安城墙:
(fortifications of Xi'an, an ancient capital of China, represent one of the oldest and best preserved Chinese city walls. Construction of the first city wall of Chang'an began in 194 BCE and lasted for four years)
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Qing Zhen Temple, 清真寺:
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Shanghai / 上海:
The Jade Buddha Temple, 玉佛禅寺:
(Yufo Chan Si) literally Jade Buddha Chan Temple
Shanghai Sheraton Hotel:
The Huangpu River, 黄浦江:
(Huangpu Jiang)
A 97km-long river in China flowing through Shanghai.
Huangpu River is the largest river in Shanghai, and Suzhou Creek is its main branch.It is an average of 400 meters wide and 9 meters deep. Shanghai gets most of its drinking water from the Huangpu, which thus plays an important part for the metropolis. It divides the city into two regions: Pudong (east) and Puxi (west).
The Bund in Shanghai is located along the river.
Suzhou Creek, 苏州河 (Suzhou He):
(also called Wusong River, 吴淞江 (Wusong Jiang) ) It is a river in China that passes through the Shanghai city centre. It is named after Suzhou, a city in neighbouring Jiangsu province which was the predominant city in this area prior to the rise of Shanghai as a metropolis.
One of the principal outlets of Lake Tai, Suzhou Creek has a length of 125 km, of which 54 km are within the administrative region of Shanghai and 24 km within the city's highly urbanized parts. The river flows into the Huangpu River at the northern end of the Bund in Huangpu District.Suzhou Creek is crossed by a number of distinctive bridges, often European in style, the most famous one being Waibaidu Bridge (Garden Bridge) right at its confluence with Huangpu River:
2012 updates on Shanghai places of interest:
1) House of Flour or hOF (30-1 Sinan Rd, near Middle Huaihai Rd, www.houseofflour.com) is a desert lounge serving a range of chocolate-flavoured pastries and drinks.
2) Gatten Sushi (818 Nanjing West Rd, Jingán District Plaza B1F, www.gatten-shanghai.com) is a well-known sushi chain that serves the freshest sushi and sashimi including yellowtail, swordfish, tuna belly and salmon. It is very good value for money because it serves chunky slices of sashimi for only about $3 to $8 a plate.
3) Hai Di Lao Hot Pot (various locations, www.haidilao.com), a steamboat restaurant with many outlets in Shanghai. Queue may be up to a few hours. While waiting, you will be offered complimentary services such as a manicure or shoe polishing. The 4 soup choices - sweet & sour, tomato, ma la and clear broth - are thick & tasty. Budget about $12 per person.
4) Jia Jia Tang Bao in Huanghe Rd for xiaolongbao. Go by 11 am because the dumplings run out very fast. The dumpling, which contains egg yolk & hairy crab, is worth the 45-minute queue. It is so juicy & tender that you will not want to eat xiao long bao anywhere else again. Ten dumplings cost $4.
5) Xiao Yang Sheng Jian, opposite Jia Jia, for its crispy and juicy panfried sheng jian bao, a cross between a xiao long bao and a potsticker. The estimated queueing time is 30 minutes. Four dumplings cost $1.
6) Cultural Sites:
Si Nan Gong Guan in Sinan Rd, where old townhouses called Shikumen are converted into commercial buildings housing exhibitions, shops and cafes. These residential buildings are given a new lease of life without compromising on their architecture heritage.
Tian Zi Fang, Taikang Rd, Luwan District, where ground floor of the townhouses are converted into shops, restaurants, cafes and art galleries.
7) Shopping:
Qipu Rd, a cluster of wholesale buildings for bargain hunters, with clothes, winter wear & shoes for as low as $5 to $10.
Qing Sha Fang Factory in Lu Jia Bang Lu 339 in Huangpu District, where you can find tailors to make clothes of any style. You can make a tailored lambskin leather jacket for $100, suits for $80 and cheong-sam for less than $120. The clothes can be ready within 3 days.
Changle Rd & Fuming Rd for unique pieces where the indie boutiques are located.
(Info from ST Sunday Life 5/8/12, go, Live it up in Shanghai)