what's Chinese react to Obama´s inauguration

In China, many people have been keeping a close watch as Obama prepares to take the presidential oath. With the US a key player on the world stage, a change in Washington may well affect the rest of the world.

Barack Obama's inauguration has become headline news around the world. Many Chinese are concerned about how he will tackle pressing issues in the first months of his presidency.

A Beijing resident said, "I will watch closely how Obama deals with the financial crisis. China will be a good partner to the US in solving the problem."

Others are interested in future China-US relations and the change Obama would bring to the US.

A Beijing resident said, "Obama is opening a new chapter by becoming the first black president in US history. I hope China-US relations will turn a new leaf too."

source from: xinhua.com

travel to Beijing: You will never get hungry in Beijing

You will never get hungry in Beijing.

While in Beijing, historical and cultural legacies come to mind more quickly than any of its dishes. However, as the capital of China for centuries, Beijing has absorbed the culinary traditions of provinces around the country. Today, also as a large modern city, you can find almost anything you want to eat in Beijing, both Chinese and western. With a thriving international food scene, globally famous dishes, and a legacy of royally sanctioned cuisine, it surely won’t disappoint anyone either.

When talking about eating in Beijing, it’s uncompleted without mentioning Beijing roast duck (Originally prepared for a Yuan Dynasty emperor). It really belongs to a famous Beijing specialty, few visitors leave Beijing without trying it. Beijing duck is served with thin pancakes, plum sauce，and slivers of scallions and cucumbers. You dip the duck in the sauce and roll it up in the pancake with a few slivers of scallions and/or cucumbers. The end result is a mouthwatering combination of the cool crunchiness of the cucumber, the sharpness of the scallions, and the rich flavors of the duck. Your best bet is to try one of the centuries-old institutions specializing in the dish, such as Quanjude, Bianyifang, Guolin Home-style Restaurant and Dadong Duck Restaurant, which are nationally renowned.

travel to Beijing: Flag-raising Ceremony at TianAnMen Square

Everyday, a grand ceremony called Flag-raising Ceremony in Beijing's Tiananmen Square will attract many people. Believe it or not, going to Beijing and watching the national Flag-raising Ceremony is a dream to many people in China, especially to those who are poor and live far away from Beijing. What’s the charm of Flag-raising Ceremony?

The national flag was first raised over Tian'anmen Square in 1949, marking the birth of New China. And it has been repeated every day since then. In the morning, Chinese military honor guards march with perfect rhythm and synchronicity to raise the national flag. The ceremony begins at different time each day but precisely at sunrise and last exactly 127 seconds. And it is accompanied with a military band on the first day of every month.

While standing at the square, watching the national flag going up the pole slowly, listening to the national anthem, a feeling of patriotism grows inside of every Chinese people. That’s so impressive that somebody even cries. Although the flag has meant different things to different people, we love our great country and get power from the ceremony. I think that’s why it attracts so many people.

If you want to see the ceremony, then get up very early and arrive at the Square before sunrise. Only by doing so can you see the ceremony clearly as there are crowds of people attending the ceremony every day, especially during these important days and festivals, such as on May 1st (Internationa l Labor day),on Oct 1st (National day), every New year, and China 's New Year as well.

After the ceremony, tourists can also take a visit to Tiananmen Tower, Monument to the People's Heroes, Great Hall of the People, Mao Zedong Memorial Hall, they are just on the Tian'anmen Square.

travel to Beijing: the Temple of Heaven

Today, we will explore another worthwhile visiting place in Beijing, --- the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan in Chinese). It is a comprehensive expression of the unique construction techniques from Ming and Qing Dynasties, also the world's largest architectural complex for worship heaven. Along with the Summer Palace, it was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.in 1998.

Built magnificent and gloriously in 1420 A.D, with an solemn and respectful environment, the Temple served as an exclusive altar for Chinese rulers during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Offering sacrifices was a serious task! The ancient Chinese believed that the entire empire relied on the emperor praying for good fortune and abundant harvests from Heaven. Thus the emperors had quite a responsibility! There were specific rites of worship in ancient times, especially during the Ming and Qing dynasties when elaborate ceremonies were held.

It’s interesting when we research the shape and structure of the Temple buildings. With an area of about 2,700,000 square meters, it’s much bigger than the Forbidden City. As Chinese emperors called themselves 'The Son of Heaven', they dared not to build their own dwelling, 'Forbidden City' bigger than a dwelling for Heaven. On the other hand, the buildings reflect an ancient Chinese thought of 'The heaven is round and the earth is square'. Thus, the Northern part of the park is a semicircular shape symbolizing the heavens and the south a square symbolizing the earth. Meanwhile the northern part is higher than the southern part.

While here, tourist can enjoy both the most important constructions, others of historic interest and scenic beauty. The whole compound is enclosed by two walls, dividing the whole Temple into inner and outer areas. The outer area is characterized by suburban scenery, while the inner part is used for sacrifices with the main structures(such as the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest, the Circular Mound Altar, Imperial Heaven, The Imperial Vault of Heaven, Heaven Kitchen, Long Corridor and so on).

But the Temple of Heaven is not just a solemn and glorious architectures, there are many funny phenomenons. Try the four wonderful sounds!

1. The echo from the Echo Wall – This famous wall encloses the Imperial Vault of Heaven with a perimeter of 193 meters. One person's mere whisper at any point close to the wall can be heard clearly on the other side if you draw your ear close to the wall, it is so clear that it is like talking on the phone. Isn't it interesting? This is possible because the wall is round and hermetically constructed with smooth, solid bricks, so the sound wave can transmit to the other side via the extremely smooth inner circle. The phenomenon utilizes the theory of sound wave.

2. The echo from the Three Echo Stones – It’s outside of the gate of the Imperial Vault of Heaven. If you speak facing the Vault while standing on the first stone, you will hear one echo; standing on the second and then the third stone, you will hear two and three echoes respectively. Why? This is because the distances that the sound wave reflected from the Echo wall to the stone are different, the number of echo is also different. Take a guess which flagstone is at the center of the Echo Wall's? The third one. The echo actually gets repeated more than 3 times, it's just the sound is too weak to be heard after the 4th echo.

3. The sound of the Dialogue Stone - If you speak while standing on the 18th stone in front of The Imperial Vault of Heaven, the sound can clearly pass to the northeast corner of the north side hall and the northwest of the west side hall that are both 36 meters away.

4. The hollow of the Heaven's Center Stone - There is a stone plate in the center of the Circular Mound Altar called the Heaven's Center Stone. Shouting aloud standing above, you will hear the reverberation of the echo. This is due to the refraction of the sound.

travel to Beijing: the Summer Palace

Located in northwest suburban Beijing, the Summer Palace (Yi He Yuan in Chinese) is ranked amongst the most noted and classical imperial gardens of the world. Ingeniously conceived and exquisitely constructed, it is a collection of all the masterpieces in the art of Chinese garden-building and is known as the “Museum of Imperial Gardens”, using to be a luxurious royal garden providing royal families with rest and entertainment. In 1998, it was listed as one of the World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.

The Summer Palace has a tough history, suffering great disaster for twice. Originally named the Garden of Clear Ripples, it was first constructed in 1750 (during the reign of Emperor Qianlong in Qing Dynasty). In 1860 the garden was burned down by Anglo-French allied forces. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to reconstruct it for her own benefit, changing its name to Summer Palace (Yiheyuan). Therefore it became the living place of The Empress Dowager Cixi in her later years, dealing with state affairs and entertaining. In 1900, it suffered again, being ransacked by the Eight-Power Allied Forces. After the success of the 1911 Revolution, it was opened to the public.

In the Summer Palace, tourists can not only enjoy the grandeur of an imperial garden, but also the beauty of nature. Occupying an area of 304 hectares, the Summer Palace integrates the landscape, architecture and plants into a whole! Lakes and hills are dotted with palaces, temples and garden structures. The two main elements of the garden would be the Longevity Hill and the Kunming Lake. Take your time to enjoy the amazing scenery here, I swear you don’t want to miss any detail.

travel to Beijing: The Forbidden City

The Forbidden City, also known as the Imperial Palace, the Palace Museum, the Purple Forbidden City and Gugong(故宫), is a must see! Located in the centre of Beijing, it is a real treasures house of Chinese cultural and historical relics. The splendid architecture of the Forbidden City represents the essence and culmination of the traditional Chinese architectural accomplishment.

Together with the Palace of Versailles in France, the Buckingham Palace in the UK, the White House in the US and the Kremlin in Russia, the Forbidden City is recognized as one of the most important five palaces in the world, enlisted in the World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987.

As home to 24 emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasty, what’s it like? What kind of life has been inside the palace centuries ago when it was populated with royalty, eunuchs, servants and concubines?

The history of the Forbidden City

The construction of the Forbidden City started in 1407, the 5th year of Emperor Yongle reign of the third emperor of the Ming dynasty. It was completed fourteen years later in 1420. Until 1924 when the last emperor of China was driven from the palace, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here, the total is 24. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. It is now one of the most popular tourist attractions world-wide.

The structure of the Forbidden City

The Forbidden City is the largest ancient palatial complex in the world with lots of beautiful buildings, covering an area of about 72 hectares. Try and do a little research before you go to, or the incredible size of the complex can actually make you wandering around aimlessly.

Rectangular in shape, consisting of 90 palaces and courtyards, 980 buildings and 8,704 rooms, It’s surrounded by a six meter deep moat and a 10 meter high wall. the wall has a gate on each side. Most travelers enter the Forbidden City from the Tian'anmen Gate.

The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. It is made up of three main buildings, the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihedian), the Hall of Central Harmony (Zhonghedian) and Bao He Dian or the Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohedian). Want to see the emperors' magnificent Dragon Throne (Longyi in Chinese)? It’s placed in the first hall --- Hall of Supreme Harmony, which is the most important and largest structure in the Forbidden City. Next is the Hall of Central Harmony(Zhonghedian), resting place for the emperor before presenting the grand occasions held in the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Emperors would rehearse their speeches and presentations here before departing to the Temple of Heaven for the sacrifice rites. The last hall is the Hall of the Preserving Harmony used for banquets and later for imperial examinations.

The northern section, or the Inner Court was where the Royal Family actually lived. It contains a number of other halls and the Imperial Garden. Also, it’s composed of three rear main structures, the Palace of Heavenly Peace (Qianqinggong) --- the emperors' sleeping place, the Palace of the Union and Peace(Jiaotaidian) --- where the imperial seals were stored, and the Palace of Terrestrial Tranquility(Kun Ning Gong) --- the emperors' wedding room. Exiting the Hall of Terrestrial Tranquility and going further north, travelers will find the Imperial Garden. The garden offers an aesthetic change from the crimson or gray building complex to a colorful and luxuriant atmosphere. Besides the three rear main buildings are the six eastern palaces and six western palaces, where the emperor used to handle every day affairs and was the living quarters for the emperor, expresses and concubines. Those palaces, however, have been converted into exihibition halls, where a spectacular set of imperial collections is displayed.

The main exit gate of the Forbidden City is the Gate of Devine Might behind the Imperial Garden, which is opposite to the Tian'anmen Gate.

The construction of the Forbidden City

Construction of the palace lasted for fourteen years. It was said that a million workers including one hundred thousand artisans were driven into the long-term hard labor. They must not only finish the royal architectural wonders, the grand and deluxe halls, but also the splendid painted decoration on them. Nowadays, these surprisingly magnificent treasures will certainly satisfy tourists from home and abroad.

Stone needed was quarried from Fangshan, a suburb of Beijing. It was said a well was dug every fifty meters along the road in order to pour water onto the road in winter to slide huge stones on ice into the city. Huge amounts of timber and other materials were freighted from faraway provinces. Ancient Chinese people displayed their very considerable skills in building the Forbidden City. Take the grand red city wall for example. It has an 8.6 meters wide base reducing to 6.66 meters wide at the top. The angular shape of the wall totally frustrates attempts to climb it. The bricks were made from white lime and glutinous rice while the cement is made from glutinous rice and egg whites. These incredible materials make the wall extraordinarily strong.

travel to Beijing: The Great Wall

“He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a true man”, it’s a popular saying in China. The Great Wall, one of the greatest wonders of the world, is meaningful to Chinese people. A visit to the Great Wall is like a tour through the history backwards, it brings strong patriotic feeling and proud of the country in each step of the wall.

The Great Wall is made of a series of stone. Just like a gigantic dragon, the Great Wall winds up and down across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, stretching approximately 6,700 kilometers (4,163 miles ) from east to west of China. Though some of the sections are now in ruins or even entirely disappeared, it is still one of the most appealing attractions all around the world owing to its architectural grandeur and historical significance, enlisted in the World Heritage by UNESCO in 1987.

The history of The Great Wall

With a history of more than 2000 years, the Great Wall was used as a defensive fortification in most of time. But it was in fact independent walls for different states when it was first built, and did not become the "Great" wall until the Qin Dynasty.

The Great Wall was originally built in the Spring and Autumn Period (around the 7th century BC) and Warring States Periods (from the 5th century BC to 221 BC) by the three states: Yan, Zhao and Qin, to defend their own borders, through which period the Chinese were already familiar with the techniques of wall-building. Then the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang made the unification of China. During the reign, Qin Shi Huang succeeded in his effort to have the walls joined together and to fend off the invasions from the Huns in the north. Since then, the Great Wall has served as a monument of the Chinese nation throughout history.

Later, some dynasties repaired, rebuilt, or expanded sections of the Great Wall at great cost. The most important construction took place in Ming Dynasty, which was stronger and more elaborate due to the use of bricks and stone instead of rammed earth.

Now most of the ancient walls have eroded away over the centuries, and very few sections remain today. The Great Wall as we see today was mostly built during the Ming Dynasty. It starts from Shanhaiguan Pass in the east to Jiayuguan Pass in the west traversing provinces of Liaoning, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Shaanxi and Gansu.

The construction of The Great Wall

The construction of the wall was considered to be huge and tough project even in today’s tools and techniques, let alone ancient times. Can you image how they transport the large quantity of materials and stones, some were over thousand kg weight; and how they cut the stones to almost the same shape. It’s said that builders always tried to use local resources. Stones from the mountains were used over mountain ranges, while rammed earth was used for construction in the plains. A great army of manpower, composed of soldiers, prisoners, and local people, built the wall. The construction result demonstrates the manifestation of the wisdom and tenacity of the Chinese people.

However, the construction of The Great Wall was a suffering to the people at that time. A lot of people died. There are some beautiful but sad legends, the most famous one is about the collapse of a section of the Great Wall caused by Meng Jiangnu, who cried bitterly over the death of her husband in the construction of the Great Wall. This legend has been spread widely through textbooks, folk songs and traditional operas.


The following three sections are in Beijing, which were renovated and which are regularly visited by modern tourists today. "North Pass" of Juyongguan pass, known as the Badaling; "West Pass" of Jiayuguan_(pass), near the western edges of the Great Wall; "Pass" of Shanhaiguan, near the eastern edges of the Great Wall.

Make a trip to at least one section of the Great Wall should be a must for your China Trip. Elaborate tour plans make travel comfortable, memorable, enjoyable and informative.

travel to Beijing: overview

Beijing, the capital of China, being host of the 2008 Summer Olympic Games, is the political, economic, cultural and educational center as well as China's most important center for international trade and communications. It is China's second largest city, after Shanghai. This week, we will explore the city and all that it has to offer.

Together with Xian, Luoyang, Kaifeng, Nanjing and Hangzhou, Beijing is one of the six ancient cities in China. Beijing's long and illustrious history started some 500,000 years ago. It is here that the ancestors of modern Homo sapiens, Peking men, lived in caves. Records show that Beijing has been an inhabited city for more than three thousand years and has endured invasions by warlords and foreign powers, devastating fires, the rise and fall of powerful imperial dynasties and has emerged each time as a strong and vibrant city. For more than 800 years, Beijing was a capital city - from the Yuan Dynasty (1271 - 1368) to the Ming (1368 - 1644) and Qing (1644 - 1911) dynasties. Thirty-four emperors have lived and ruled the nation in Beijing. Throughout its long history, there is an unparalleled wealth of discovery to delight and intrigue travelers as they explore Beijing's opulent palaces, temples, and huge stone walls and gates. Such as the Forbidden City, also known as the Palace Museum, the home of the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties, is a great building of human being; Temple of Heaven (Tiantan), also a UNESCO World Heritage Site; the Summer Palace, displays a comprehensive collection of imperial gardens and palaces that functioned as the summer retreat for the Qing Dynasty emperors; Great Wall, as well as Tian'anmen Square, the biggest central square in the world, etc.

Besides the historical relics, tourists can experience authentic Beijing life and become acquainted with 'old Beijing' by exploring its many teahouses, temple fairs, Beijing's Hutong and Courtyard and enjoy the Peking Opera. Add any or all of these to your Beijing tour and you will leave with a feeling of special appreciation in your heart for this ancient city that has truly seen it all and tells its story with matchless grace, charm and vigor.

But Beijing is more than an ancient city, tourists can also enjoy its exciting modern development. Strolling around Beijing, you'll find it has much in common with any other great metropolis elsewhere in today's world. There are towering skyscrapers; busy shopping malls and an endless stream of traffic that makes the city much the same as others. The most famous and popular commercial circles and commercial pedestrian streets are predominantly located near the Yansha Shopping Mall, Tiananmen and Wangfujing Street, Guomao Shopping Mall, Qianmen Street and Xidan Street, etc. However, although you will find multinational chains with their own brands to offer, nowhere else on earth will you find such a variety of gourmet Chinese restaurants offering the very best of the eight different styles of Chinese cuisine as well as western style dishes.

In addition, the Olympic Games has already brought huge change to Beijing. Besides the improved beijing air and a nice new subway system and sport facillities, some excellent Olympic buildings become Beijing’s new landmark, such as the Beijing National Stadium, also known as the bird's nest; and the Water Cube. They are also a must see!

Its art treasures and universities have long made the city a centre of culture and art in China. Beijing has the most and highest level universities, comparing with other cities in China. After a day's Beijing tours, nighttime can hold other surprises for you. These can vary from traditional performances such as the Beijing Opera, acrobatics and martial arts to modern ones including concerts, ballroom dancing, pubs and clubs. Each and every one has its individual enchantment for the tourist.