Major Tourist Attractions

  • The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City is such a massive site and it used to be the home to multiple Chinese Emperors for half a millennium. In the past, only Chinese Royalty and their servants were allowed in and if anyone else entered, they would be executed. It is unbelievable but this also applied to the local fire brigade who could not enter the site even if there was a fire.

As a result, the Royal servants had to make do with river water in case of a fire. The site is predictably massive and amazing, though some say that after a while it could get a bit tedious as the huge buildings get extremely repetitive. However, it is definitely worth a visit since it’s still one of the best preserved old buildings in the whole of China.

  • Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square is a reasonable walk from the famous Forbidden City. It is absolutely enormous and can hold up to one million people. Standing in the middle of the Square is the Mausoleum of Chairman Mao. His body is preserved and contained in a transparent glass coffin. To get in, you need to queue which shouldn’t take too long as the queues are not as long as they used to be.

In short, it’s a rather interesting view and different from the darker and smaller Lenin’s Mausoleum in Moscow. Unfortunately, it is still not possible to take photos inside the mausoleum.

  • The Summer Palace

This is a massive park where the ancient Chinese Royalty spent the summer months in the past. There is an enormous marble boat in this complex, sitting just inside the lake. The boat was built in 1888 by Empress Dowager Cixi, who had received money to help transform the Chinese navy. Instead, she decided to splash out on a totally immobile boat and build it on the water’s edge, which is where she would dine out in the evenings. Ironically, the marble boat is fantastically well made and well worth a look.

  • The Great Wall

You visit to China and in particular Beijing would not be complete without a visit to this amazing symbol of China’s total isolation. Parts of the Great Wall were built from 750 to 205 B.C. in an attempt to resist barbarians’ invasion. Two thousand years ago, Emperor Qin Shi Huang, notorious for his cruelty, ordered his workers and soldiers to connect all parts and make the whole.

The Great Wall truly makes unforgettable impression and today the crowds of people of many different colours and races make you think that however high or long the walls might be, they can never separate people.

  • The Temple of Heaven

The Temple of Heaven is unique and different from the Forbidden City in that it feels much more human and humane. For instance, individuals are not overwhelmed by the buildings and even the leitmotif of the Temple does not feel at all massive and repressive. It truly is beautiful - its optimal lines and proportions perfectly match any building’s in the world.

The Temple of Heaven is very well cared for and Chinese visitors pay great respect to it. Commercialisation is kept at a minimum though this has resulted in inadequate cafes and restaurants. Yet, it’s still well worth a visit.