BEIJING (Day 1 - part 6)

Gardens and North Gate

The imperial garden (Yu Hua Yuan) is 295 feet long and 425 feet wide. It was built in 1417 during the Ming Dynasty and was the private garden of the imperial family.


A lion guards the door on the Gate of Terrestrial Tranquility (KunNingMen) leading into the gardens.


Yujing (Imperial View) Pavilion rests atop Duixiu (Collecting Elegance) Hill.


In each of the four corners of the garden there is a pavilion, symbolizing the four seasons. This is Qianqiuting (the Pavilion of One Thousand Autumns).


The garden was constructed using a type of limestone rock known as Taihu Rock that is found at the bottom of Taihu Lake in the Yangtze River Delta.


Chengruiting (the Pavilion of Auspicious Clarity) is a square pavillion over a pond. The pond is filled with fish, which are symbolic of surplus. In the old days, people always worried about where their next meal was coming from.


The ceiling

Pavillion to Usher in Light:

During the Qing Dynasty, Yan Hui Ge (Pavillion to Usher in Light) was the place where the emperor's concubines were selected.


Imposing old cypress trees fill the garden.

Gate of Divine Prowess (Shenwumen):

This is the north gate of the Forbidden City. From the tower, bells were struck each morning and drums were beaten each evening to mark time. The empress and imperial concubines left the palace through this gate to attend the ceremony of the new silkworm-breeding season.

City moat:

The Forbidden City is surrounded by a moat which is 20 feet deep and 170 feet wide.


Jingshan (also Feng Shui Hill, Coal Hill or Prospect Hill) lies immediately north of the Forbidden City. The artificial hill was constructed in the Yongle era of the Ming Dynasty entirely from the soil excavated from the moat and nearby canals. All of this material was moved only by manual labor and animal power. On the top of each of the five peak sits an elaborate pavilion. Originally an imperial garden, the area is now a public park.

It was now time for dinner, which was at the lovely Temple of Earth restaurant.


The charming restaurant was set in a picturesque park setting.


The year of the rat!


The decorative ceiling


Dinner was served lazy-susan style with a wide variety of regional dishes.

We then had a nice drive back through the city which was filled with all types of buildings on an impressive scale.


The 'billboard' on the lower left is actually a giant tv screen.


Yonghegong Lamasery (or Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple)

Built in 1694, the temple was originally the home of Qing Emperor Yongzheng before he ascended the throne and was renamed Yonghegong. In 1723, he contributed half of the grounds to the Tibetan monks of the Yellow (Geluk) sect and left the other half as his temporary palace residence. After his death in 1735, his successor, Emperor Qianlong, upgraded it to an imperial palace and replaced its turquoise tiles with yellow ones (yellow being the imperial color of the Qing Dynasty). In 1744, it was converted into a lamasery and became a residence for large numbers of monks from Mongolia and Tibet.


Another passing view

For the next several nights, we stayed at the Jiangxi Grand Hotel. This 4-star business hotel with 322 rooms lies about 6 miles from Beijing's city center. It combines modern Chinese and Jiangxi cultures into the design style. Jiangxi is a southern province.


A view of the city


Complimentary slippers