Chinese Peking Opera face painting is bright and warm in color, which is the treasure of Chinese folk art. The color of Peking Opera face painting is influenced by Chinese traditional culture and other influences, and the use of color represents the national emotion and national culture, and an in-depth study of its color and an analysis of the traditional culture of the nation will enable us to know more about China’s unique folk customs and cultural connotations.
Beijing Opera Facial Makeup
Peking Opera face painting is a special make-up method with Chinese cultural characteristics. Because every historical figure or a certain type of character has a general style, just like singing and playing music according to the musical score, so it is called “face painting”. The art of Peking Opera face painting is a very popular art among opera lovers at home and abroad, and has been recognized as one of the symbols of traditional Chinese culture. There are three main characteristics of face painting: the contradictory unity of beauty and ugliness, the close relationship with the character’s personality, and its pattern is programmed.
Origins
Peking Opera was formed around 150 years ago. In the 55th year of Emperor Qianlong’s reign in the Qing Dynasty (1790), the famous Anhui troupe from Jiangnan, the Sanqing Troupe, came to Beijing to celebrate the 80th birthday of Emperor Qianlong. Huiban refers to the theater troupe that performed Huizhou opera, which was very popular in the south of China in the early Qing Dynasty. Since then, many Huiban have followed, the most famous of which are Sanqing, Sisi, Chuntai, and Hechun, commonly known as the “Four Huiban”. Each of them has its own characteristics in performance, Sanqing is good at performing the whole opera; Sisi is good at Kunqiang repertoire; Chuntai has more youth-oriented child actors and Chunwu opera is outstanding.
Classification
crossroads frontsix-pointed face
The Cross Gate Face was developed from the Three Tiles Face, characterized by narrowing the three colors into a single color bar that hooks from the Moon Gate to just below the nose, symbolizing the character’s personality with this color bar. The six-point face is characterized by reducing the main color of the brain into a color bar and exaggerating the eyebrow shape, with the white eyebrow shape accounting for four-tenths of the total and the main color accounting for six-tenths of the total.
crushed facewry face
The “broken flower face” evolved from the “flower three tile face”, retaining the main color, the other parts with secondary colors to add hook pattern, colorful, diverse compositions and fine lines, so it is called “broken flower face”. The crooked face is mainly used to exaggerate the features of the accomplices and fighters are not correct, ugly, characterized by asymmetrical hook, giving a sense of crookedness.
monk’s facecourt eunuch’s face
“Monk face” is also known as “monk face”. Characterized by waist eye sockets, flower nose nest, flower mouth fork, the brain hook a sherry bead round light or nine points, said the Buddhist precepts. Eunuch face dedicated to the performance of trespassing power to harm the eunuchs, the color is only red and white two, the brain and both cheeks of the fat lines, showing the pampered, full of fat brain demeanor.
sourpuss facefigurative face
The Yuanbao face has different colors for the brain and face, and its shape is like a Yuanbao, so it is called “Yuanbao face”. The pictorial face is generally used in mythological plays, and the composition and colors are all based on the image characteristics of each elf, god and monster, with no fixed spectrum. The painting method should be like non-like, not too realistic, pay attention to the “intention to pen not”, so that the audience at a glance, a look will know what kind of gods and monsters.
Peking Opera Face Painting Ten Color Symbols
1、Red face symbolizes loyalty, righteousness, uprightness and bloodiness, such as Guan Yu in “Three Kingdoms” and Wu Han in “Chopping the Scripture Hall”.
2、Black face not only shows the serious character, unsmiling, such as “Bao Gong play” in the Bao Zheng; and symbolizes the mighty and powerful, rude and bold, such as “Three Kingdoms play” in the Zhang Fei, “Water Margin play” in the Li Kui. Li Kui in “Water Margin Play”.
3、White face shows treachery and suspicion, such as Cao Cao in “Three Kingdoms Opera” and Yan Song in “Fighting Yan Song”.
4, the blue face to show the character of straight, untamed, such as “on the rooftop” in the Ma Wu, “chain of traps” in the Douerdun.
5, purple face shows solemn, stable, rich sense of justice, such as “two into the palace” in the Xu Yanzhao, “Fish Intestine Sword” in the Zhuanzhu.
6, gold face symbolizes the majesty and solemnity, the performance of a class of roles in the gods and goddesses. For example, Rulai Buddha and Erlang Shen in “Trouble in Heaven”.
7, the green face symbolizes courage, strong, fierce, violent and other characters, reckless heroes. Such as Cheng Bite Jin, green-faced tiger.
8, yellow face symbolizes the martial arts warrior valor, brutality, plagiarism, ferocious, sinister, scheming and other personalities. Such as Deng Wei, Yuwen Chengdu and so on.
9, silver face symbolizes the gods and monsters in the drama of small demons or gods, there is the Jade Emperor, and Huishi walker, that is, Muzha.
10. The pink face symbolizes the aged red-faced characters, such as Su Xian in “The Taking of Luoyang”, Yuan Shao in “The Battle of Panhe”, and Hua Zhenfang in “The Village of Four Masters”.
Badaling Great Wall has a history of 2,500 years and is located at the north entrance of Guandou Ancient Road in Jundu Mountain, Yanqing District, Beijing, with a total length of 3.74 kilometers. It is an important part of the Great Wall of China’s great ancient defense project, and is one of the passes of the Ming Great Wall. Badaling Great Wall is an important outpost of Juyong Pass, and it is said in ancient times that “the danger of Juyong is not in the Pass but in Badaling”. The Badaling section of the Ming Great Wall is called “Jade Pass and Heavenly Moat”, which is one of the eight scenic spots of Juyongguan Pass in the Ming Dynasty.
Badaling Great Wall
Badaling Great Wall is about 15 kilometers from Juyongguan Great Wall, 44 kilometers from Dingling Mausoleum, 67 kilometers from Bird’s Nest; 60 kilometers from Summer Palace; 75 kilometers from Mutianyu Great Wall; 77 kilometers from Tiananmen Square; and 79 kilometers from Temple of Heaven.
Chairman Mao once said “He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a real hero”, Badaling Great Wall every day to receive a maximum of 65,000 tourists, minors under the age of 18 years old and the elderly over the age of 60 years old with a valid ID or passport can be in the ticketing window to get free tickets, the price of tickets are Peak season (April 1 to October 31) 40 yuan, off-season (November 1 to March 31) 35 yuan, open daily from 5:30 to 16:30 a total of 11 hours, but if you want to take the cable car or slide are required to buy!
Badaling Great Wall Map
Badaling Tourist MapBadaling Tourist Map
Badaling Great Wall cable car
Badaling Great Wall is divided into north and south sections, children under 1.2 meters ride the cable car for free, cable car and slide are divided into one-way ticket and round-trip ticket, aerial cable car service time: 5:30 – 17:30 (14:00 stop selling round-trip ticket), ground cable car service time: 7:50 – 16:30
Type
Single Trip
Round Trip
Cable Car
CNY 100
CNY 140
Pulley
CNY 80
CNY 120
North Section: Aerial cable cars and slides
South Section: Surface cable car, no slides
How to get to Badaling Great Wall from downtown Beijing
1.Bus 877: Deshengmen ⇔ Badaling
It departs from Deshengmen, about 10 minutes’ walk from Jishuitan subway station (Exit B2) of subway line 2. It is a non-stop bus, taking about an hour and costing CNY 12. The drop-off site is close to the pulley car lower station and about 10 minutes’ walk to the entrance.
2.Tourist Bus Line 1: Qianmen ⇔ Badaling
Boarding Point: southwest of Qianmen Arrow Tower, to the south of Tiananmen Square
Hours at Qianmen: about 7:00 to 11:00
Destination: Badaling Guntiangou Parking Lot
3.By Train:
High Speed Train: Take a high speed train from Beijing North Railway Station to the Badaling Great Wall Railway Station near the Badaling Great Wall Scenic Area. It takes only 30 minutes for a single-way trip.
S2 Train: The trains depart from Huangtudian Railway Station, which is near the Huoying Station along subway line 8 and subway line 13. One should get off at Badaling Railway Station; the entrance to the scenic area is a 15 to 20 minutes’ walk. Just follow the passenger flow or direction boards and one will get there easily. A single rail ride takes about 1.5 hours and the fare is CNY 7. There are free shuttle buses between S2 train station and cable car station. If you don’t want to walk, you can queue up to take it.
Beijing, as the capital of China, attracts thousands of tourists with its rich history and culture and modern cityscape. The convenient and fast transportation network makes travelling even easier and more enjoyable. Beijing’s transportation network is very well developed, covering a variety of transportation modes such as subway, buses and cabs. Among them, the subway lines cover a wide area, with 23 lines and a total length of more than 600 kilometers. Bus lines are even more well-connected, covering almost the whole city. In addition, cabs can be found everywhere, providing passengers with convenient travel services.
Beijing cab, license plate similar to 京B***
Beijing taxi price standards: the starting price, that is, up to 3 kilometers is charged at 13 yuan (1.60 euros / 1.8 U.S. dollars), 2.3 yuan (0.29 euros / 0.32 U.S. dollars) per kilometer, and after 15 kilometers, the price will become 3.45 yuan (0.43 euros / 0.48 U.S. dollars) per kilometer, and the fuel surcharge will be charged at 1 yuan each time, and if you travel by taxi from 23:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., you will be charged at the basic unit price. If you travel by cab between 23:00 pm and 5:00 pm the next day, you will be charged 20% more on top of the basic unit price. Payment can be made in cash or by using the Beijing Transportation Smart Card, WeChat, Alipay and UnionPay; international credit cards are not supported.
Regular cabs in Beijing have license plates that start with the letter “B” and use meters. The name of the cab company and the driver’s name are displayed on the front passenger seat. Most cab drivers do not speak English, so it is advisable to bring a card with your hotel’s name and address in Chinese.
It’s cheap to take a taxi in China, mainly because of the difference in prices, and also because of the low labor costs on the mainland, so cabs will be cheaper.
Taxi Stop Sign
How do I call a taxi in Beijing?
Beijing has developed transportation, you can get a cab almost anywhere, most cabs are distributed around the city center, such as tourist attractions and landmarks, if there is no cab nearby, you can call +86 96106 or download the DiDi app to make a reservation for a taxi, DiDi is a kind of taxi hailing software similar to Uber.
There is no UBer in China. In 2016, DiDi acquired all the assets of Ubitus China’s brand, business, data and other assets operating in mainland China.
When you arrive at your destination and want to say thank you and goodbye to the driver, you can say this / xiè xiè . zài jiàn /
A taxi from Beijing International Airport (PEK) to the city center costs about 135 RMB(18.5 U.S. dollars), but the price may vary depending on the traffic jam or the distance and travel time.
2. Are Beijing cabs reliable?
Beijing cab drivers are very professional and willing to help passengers, but it is still recommended to ask for an approximate price before you take a taxi, ask for a ticket when you arrive at your destination, and if you find that you have been overcharged, you can write down the license plate of the car and report it to the police station.
The Mutianyu Great Wall requires hiking in many places, so it is recommended to wear comfortable shoes, and there are steep uphill slopes, check the weather forecast in advance, as it is dangerous to travel in bad weather areas.
Mutianyu Great Wall is located in Mutianyu Village, Huairou District, 70 kilometers from the center of Beijing, about an hour and a half drive from downtown Beijing. It is bordered by Gubeikou in the east, Huanghuacheng and Badaling in the west, and far away from Juyongguan, Zijingguan and Yimaguan. The Mutianyu Great Wall is strategically located and is the most well-preserved and representative section of the Ming Dynasty Great Wall of China. It served as a military barrier to protect the capital and the imperial tombs and has always been a contested area for military purposes.
Mutianyu Great Wall
The architectural style of the Mutianyu Great Wall is unique. For example, there are three towers standing side by side at the main pass, forming a central watchtower, which is rare in the Great Wall section. In the northwest, there are the famous Great Wall landscapes of Arrow Valley and Eagle Flying Inversion. The terrain is steep and steep, rolling, like a soaring dragon. In spring, the mountains are full of flowers; in summer, they are lush and green with flowing water; in fall, the mountains are full of red leaves and fruits; in winter, they are snow-covered with white snow, making the northern scenery picturesque. The Mutianyu Great Wall is famous both at home and abroad, and is regarded as the best part of the Great Wall of China.
Tourist Map of Mutianyu Great Wall
Mutianyu Great Wall Ticket Prices
Ticket
Adult(18 – 60 years old)
Child(6 – 18 years old)
Senior(over 60 years old)
Main Entrance
CNY 40
CNY 20
CNY 20
Shuttle bus (single way)
CNY 10
CNY 10
CNY 10
Shuttle bus (round way)
CNY 15
CNY 15
CNY 15
Cable car (one way)
CNY 100
CNY 100
CNY 100
Cable car (round way)
CNY 140
CNY 140
CNY 140
Chairlift
CNY 100
CNY 100
CNY 100
Toboggan
CNY 100
CNY 100
CNY 100
Chairlift + Tobbogan
CNY 140
CNY 140
CNY 140
Opening Hours
Monday to Friday: 07:30-18:00
Saturday and Sunday: 07:30-18:30
Ticket sales stop 1 hour before the park closes, and ticket inspections stop half an hour.
The Great Wall at Mutianyu’s Structure
Which is better, Mutianyu Great Wall or Badaling Great Wall?
Mutianyu Great Wall: Located in Huairou District of Beijing, Mutianyu Great Wall is characterized by its well-preserved masonry and archery towers, which enable visitors to feel the history and culture of the Great Wall. In addition, the scenery of Mutianyu Great Wall is also very beautiful, with rolling hills and pleasant views.
Badaling Great Wall: Also located in Yanqing District of Beijing, Badaling Great Wall is characterized by more modernization and better facilities, with more tourist services and amenities, such as restaurants and stores. In addition, Badaling Great Wall is also a flatter Great Wall, suitable for hiking and sightseeing.
Both Mutianyu Great Wall and Badaling Great Wall are good choices, and which one to choose depends on tourists’ personal preference and travel purpose. For a more in-depth understanding of the history and culture of the Great Wall, you can choose the Mutianyu Great Wall; for more modernized tourist services and facilities, you can choose the Badaling Great Wall.
History of Mutianyu Great Wall
Mutianyu Great Wall, connected to Juyong Pass in the west and Gubeikou in the east, was initially built under the command of General Xu Da during the early Ming Dynasty.
In 1404, Mutianyu Great Wall was established as a fortified pass.
In 1983, with the approval of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China, the restoration of Mutianyu Great Wall was initiated.
In 1987, Mutianyu Great Wall was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In 2000, Mutianyu Great Wall was transformed into a scenic area following the decision of Huairou district government.
In 2006, Mutianyu Great Wall was listed by the State Council as a major historical and cultural site protected at the national level.
In 2011, Mutianyu Great Wall was rated as a 5A-level tourist scenic area by the China National Tourism Administration.
In 2014, as part of the APEC Summit supporting renovation project, the comprehensive service area of Mutianyu Great Wall was put into operation. Since its establishment, the tourist area has received more than 70 international dignitaries, including former British Prime Minister John Major, former US President Bill Clinton, former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, as well as former US First Lady Michelle Obama.
In 2016, Mutianyu Great Wall was listed in the Travelers’ Choice Best of the Best Top Attractions— the top 25 most iconic landmarks.
In 2021, Muyianyu Great Wall was designated as a national-level demonstration unit for civilized tourism.
How to get to mutianyu great wall
There are three types of buses available:
1. Public Transportation:
Take bus 916 Express from Dongzhimen Bus Hub and alight at Huairou Beidajie Station.
Cross the road and transfer to bus H23, which heads towards Tiekuangyu.
Get off at Mutianyu Huan Dao Station and walk for five minutes to reach the entrance.
Pros: This option is cheap and affordable for budget-conscious travelers.
Cons: However, the journey takes over two hours and is physically demanding, especially if you have luggage or mobility issues.
2. Tourism Express Bus:
Departure location: The bus departs from Dongzhimen, but the location is difficult to find. Make sure to plan ahead and leave plenty of time to locate the bus station.
Departure and return times: There is only one daily departure at 8:30 am, so make sure to arrive early to avoid missing the bus. The return trip departs at 4:00 pm, giving you ample time to explore Mutianyu.
Ticket price: The ticket price for a one-way journey is 30 RMB, making it an affordable option for budget-conscious travelers.
Pros: It provides a direct bus from Beijing to Mutianyu, so you don’t need to change buses. This can save you time and make the journey more convenient.
Cons: As mentioned earlier, the location of the bus station is difficult to find, so make sure to plan ahead.
Additionally, there is only one departure per day, which is convenient for travelers with tight schedules.
Finally, cash payments are the only accepted method of payment, so make sure to have enough cash on hand.
3. Mu Bus Run by Mubus Company:
MuBus departs from the Swiss Apartment (Exit C of Dongsi Shitiao Station, Line 2, which is easily accessible for those living within the second ring road.
There are two scheduled departures at 8:00 am and 10:00 am, with several buses available for each departure.
The bus goes directly to the Mutianyu scenic area, taking only 1.5 hours.
MuBus uses the latest air-conditioned bus. Each passenger has their own seat, ensuring comfort and peace of mind.
In addition, a round-trip shuttle bus service within the scenic area is included in the price, saving 15 yuan per person.
Visitors can enjoy a long visiting time of five hours at Mutianyu, allowing them to make the most of their experience.
In my opinion, taking MuBus is the most comfortable and affordable way to reach Mutianyu.
To check the price or make a booking for MuBus, you can visit Viator or GetYourGuide for details.
MUBUS
Whether you’re traveling alone or with a friend, taking a bus is a great way to experience one of China’s most iconic landmarks without breaking the bank.
However, if you have more than three people, it’s more convenient to hire a private car rather than take the bus.
In the “four nine city (four gates of the Imperial City, the inner city of the nine gates of the general pronouns)”, stands a brilliant and huge “courtyard”, people usually call it the “Forbidden City”, The Forbidden City”, and so on. The construction of the Forbidden City was ordered by Zhu Di, the third emperor of the Ming Dynasty, and began in the fourth year of the Yongle era (1406), with construction beginning in 1417 and completed in 1420.
But not many people know the interesting facts of the Forbidden City, the following piece of the Forbidden City to understand the hidden 10 interesting facts about it!
1. Crotch-covering lion on the broken rainbow bridge
This lion is really more famous! Because of its peculiar shape, even scratching the head scratching the cheeks, teeth grinning to look like a painful expression, and the most prominent is that it has a hand is still grasping their own crotch.
Crotch-covering lion
Is not feel very strange it? This is completely incompatible with the overall style of the Forbidden City, “hip-hop” style is also a bit unseemly. This little lion standing in a stone bridge called “broken rainbow bridge”, the bridge is located in the Forbidden City outside the Gate of Taihe, Wuying Hall East, a single volume of stone bridge, the bridge crosses the Jinshui River above. About the origin of this bridge, it is presumed that the basic was built before the Ming Dynasty, for the Yuan Dynasty Palace is a stone bridge in front of the door. The word “Broken Rainbow” goes well with this bridge, which is like a broken rainbow.
broken rainbow bridge
Legend has it that, when Emperor Daoguang wanted to train his eldest son Yiwei as successor, but Yiwei is uneducated, do not listen to teaching, once even face to face master. Daoguang heard, called Yi Wei, angry kick in its crotch, not a few days, Yi Wei died. Later, Daoguang regretted it to the core. So every time when passing the broken rainbow bridge, see this lion will think of their own son, think of sadness, so ordered eunuchs with red cloth to cover the lion.
Of course, this is just a legend ……
2. Nine Dragon Wall on the wooden dragon belly
Nine Dragon Wall is located in front of the Imperial Palace, is a must-see place for almost every visitor to the Forbidden City. The Nine Dragons Wall is made of complex glasswork firing, and each dragon is assembled from many glass components. But in the Nine Dragon Wall from the east counting the third white dragon’s body, but there is a piece of components are not glass fired, but wood carved from, can you see it?
On the Nine Dragons Wall, the darker colored piece is the backfilled wooden belly
Why is this? Did the craftsmen at that time try to cut corners? Of course not! You have to know that the cost of wood carving is much higher than glass firing.
The fact is that, in the construction of the Nine Dragon Wall, because the firing process is too complex, there is a piece of the components were burned. But the upper part of the schedule will be close, and then go to re-fire has been too late, how can we do it?
Nine Dragons Wall
Many craftsmen like ants on the hot pot, anxious round and round. Suddenly a craftsman thought, if the wood carved, and then coated with white paint can not be fake?
So the craftsmen looked for a master carpenter, with good nanmu, overnight carved this piece of wood dragon belly, and brush good white paint spelled out in the white dragon body. You don’t say, after the good really can’t see, and this piece of wood dragon belly also make many craftsmen to avoid a killing.
Although the wooden dragon belly at that time fooled the acceptance of the officials, but can not fool the passage of time, after hundreds of years, the white paint on the wood has long been off, but also let everyone see this unusual dragon belly.
In ancient times, in order to do projects for the emperor, craftsmen from time to time to play their various counterintuitive wisdom, of course, do not want to play also line, but from time to time to risk the risk of being clicked Oh!
3. The ceremonial pier on the plaza of the Hall of Supreme Harmony
In the north of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, is a huge square in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, an area of 30,000 square meters. And in the square ground, left and right each have a line of small square brick, neatly arranged on the ground, was “eight” shape has been extended to the door of Taihe. Have you ever wondered what it is for?
Square in front of Taihe Hall
This white small square brick is called “ceremonial pier”. In ancient times, the emperor out of the palace or held a big dynasty, that can not be a person sneaking, sneaking out, and for the display of imperial power, there must be a set of called “law driving halogen book” of the ceremonial procession.
White tiles on the square
The team held a flag, tokens, rituals and other things, majestic; there are also people holding the emperor to use the chair, urinal and so on, is also a dignified. (After all, the emperor is also a person, always have to eat, drink and sleep it) and these people stand on these small square, a square stand a person, similar to our childhood teacher with white chalk drawing a small white dot.
4. The arrow on the plaque at the Longzongmen Gate
Longzongmen is a door to the west of the Palace of Harmony, is the first three halls and the back of the three palaces to the Cining Palace of the important channel.
Arrows on the plaque
However, in such an important door, but inserted a 1813 arrow!
Who is so bold? Dare to shoot arrows here?
It turns out that in 1813 there was such a thing–
After the Kangxi and Qianlong Dynasties, the Qing Dynasty was like an over-exerted long-distance runner. Although it was still running hard, it was already at the end of its strength.
In the 18th year of the Jiaqing period, that is, 1813, a large-scale uprising of the Tianli religion broke out. Rebellion is not a new thing in every dynasty, it is just a general event. But this uprising is quite fierce, very unusual, even drove into the Forbidden City near the Longzongmen.
Longzongmen geographic location is very important! After this gate is the three great halls and the back three palaces, you can directly hit the bed of the Jiaqing Emperor, Tianli sect rebels see the victory is in sight, fighting aggressively. The Qing Dynasty also knew the importance of Longzong Gate and gathered a large number of troops to defend the city. Both sides set out to play for their lives, and after a fight, the Qing army was victorious.
Afterwards, the Qing army cleaned up the battlefield found that there is an arrow shot in the Longzongmen plaque, but the Jiaqing Emperor did not let people remove, but will be retained as a warning, always reminding themselves not to forget that the world there are all kinds of bulls want to rob him of this position.
5. The knife marks on the water tank in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony
Almost every hall in the Forbidden City in front of a few huge tanks, we all know that this is in order to put out the fire and prepare.
There are traces of being scratched by a knife on the vat.
These large tanks called “Taiping tank”, iron, copper, copper gilt, each tank has more than a thousand kilograms.
Taihe Temple in front of the four vats, if you look carefully, you will find that the cylinder above there is a road was scraped by the knife marks. This is when the Eight-Power Allied Forces invaded Beijing left the iron evidence!
At that time, a group of invaders gathered around the tank, took out the knife “click bared click bared” scrape gold, turn a golden vat into black. Immediately after a group of people pounced on another vat ……
6. Baohe Temple behind the cloud dragon stone carving
In the Forbidden City, every palace before and after the two sides, there are stone steps, in the middle of the steps is a slanting system of long stone, carved with dragons, phoenixes, seawater, river cliffs and other patterns, this thing is called “Edward”.
Stone sculpture with clouds and dragons
The Forbidden City has one of the largest Edward, it is well worth a look! This piece of Edward in the back of the Hall of Baohe, is carved from a block of stone, said to have been mined in Fangshan, weighing more than 300 tons, known as “Yunlong stone carving”.
More than 10,000 workers were mobilized to transport the stone, and the coldest day of the year was chosen. They use the method is – in Fangshan to Beijing on the road, every mile workers will cut a well, sprinkle water on the ground into ice, the use of ice to reduce friction, and then the boulder will be pulled to Beijing bit by bit.
Now, the wisdom of the Qing Dynasty workers has been against the sky!
7. Drooping lions in front of Qianqing Gate
The lions in the Forbidden City are formidable, each with ears erected and looking forward. But there are always exceptions, in front of the Qianqing Gate there are two “exceptions” to the lion!
These two gilt lions at first glance look no difference, look closely but found that their ears are like a pug like drooping … as a lion, but set up such a good boy cute shape, so really good?
In fact, the reason for this design, there is a historical reason. Qianqing Gate as a gateway to the three palaces after the placement of two drooping ears of the lion is to tell the concubines: should not listen to don’t blindly inquire, shouldn’t pipe don’t blindly ask.
Some things know as not heard, this is the way of life in the harem.
8. The stone box and stone pavilion in front of the Gate of Supreme Harmony
We enter the Forbidden City, generally can not wait to go through the gate, to see the majestic three halls and the Palace of the halls, but ignored the two things in front of the gate.
Stone Box and Stone Pavilion
In front of the Gate of Supreme Harmony, next to a pair of stone lions, there is a stone box and a stone pavilion, I do not know whether you have noticed.
What are they for?
Stone Box
It is said that the stone box on the left can really be opened, of course, if you invite a dozen people to make a concerted effort, and at the same time there is no security guard to drive you out of the case.
Historical records show that the stone box is filled with grains, red threads and gold, silver and Yuanbao, representing money, grain and cloth, which are some of the town objects.
Stone Pavilion
And the right side of this stone pavilion is called “imperial edict pavilion”, the emperor issued an imperial edict to be placed in this pavilion.
9. Gilt bronze dragon on the roof of the Yu Hua Pavilion
Emperors were called the real dragon son of heaven, and they were often accompanied by dragons throughout their lives. The Forbidden City is the most is about the dragon carving. Forbidden City experts have done a not quite complete statistics, the Forbidden City’s main building, the Hall of Supreme Harmony, inside and outside the dragon, dragon carving there are 13,844 as many.
Gilt bronze dragon
The Forbidden City is said to have more than 8600 palaces, only 6 dragons per palace calculation, there are 50,000 dragons, the fact that the number of course far more than this.
And in this space and time of the dragon, the gilt-bronze dragon at the top of the Yuhua Pavilion is particularly peculiar, it is 3 meters long, prostrate posture posture posture, it seems to just pause in the eaves, so it is known as the “running dragon”.
10. Tortoise and cranes in the Hall of Supreme Harmony
Into the Forbidden City, up the Hall of Supreme Harmony, everyone will first go to see the emperor to do that throne, in fact, there is nothing to see, far away from the big old, you can only look at the door.
In fact, the Hall of Supreme Harmony here is the most worthwhile to see a pair of bronze turtles standing in front of the temple, bronze cranes. Believe that many people have ignored them, but they are the Hall of Supreme Harmony here can best reflect the dreams of the emperors of things.
First of all, the copper crane, ancient people have a special worship for the crane, the crane represents a “immortal” wishes, we know a lot of Taoist and Buddhist texts, who became an immortal is generally driving a crane to fly up to the sky, driving a crane to the west.
In front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the emperors placed a crane, meaning that they hoped that they could become immortal and rule the empire for all eternity!
Bronze Crane
Behind the crane, there is a dragon head turtle, remember, this is a dragon head turtle! Not just any turtle. Turtle! It’s a symbol of longevity.
Bronze turtle
The bronze tortoise and the bronze crane, a powerful combination, symbolizing the eternal strength of the kingdom and the longevity of the people. Besides, this pair of tortoise and crane are empty! Why are they empty? Is not enough copper, the process can not be done, can only get a hollow?
Completely wrong, the reason why made empty, just one reason, inside to burn incense.
We know that the Hall of Supreme Harmony is held, such as the Emperor’s enthronement ceremony, the Empress, the promulgation of imperial edicts and other such major ceremonies only when used, when held this so-called great rituals, civil and military officials kneeling in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, and the Hall of Supreme Harmony would have been very high, this time, if the copper tortoise and the copper crane body incense burning, the aroma diffused out of the entire hall are covered in the aroma, think about it, is not very much like the sky in the heavenly palace covered in the The heavenly palace in the sky is covered with immortal air!
Trivial little place may hide a little secret unknown, a small history neglected or even forgotten by future generations, this is the real charm of the Forbidden City!
The Great Wall is one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and a World Heritage Site. Countless Chinese and foreign literature, art and research studies have been conducted on the Great Wall, and even Hollywood has made a film about the Great Wall, which shows its immense historical importance.
the great wall of China
The Great Wall is “really” “10,000 miles long.” The total length of the Great Wall is 21,196.18 kilometres (2012 data from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China), and it crosses over 15 provinces in China today, with three dynasties – Qin, Han and Ming – investing a lot of time and manpower in its construction. Built by three dynasties – the Qin, Han and Ming – with a great deal of time and manpower, this single structure, the longest in the history of human civilisation, was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1987 and remains one of the first attractions you think of visiting when you travel to China.
But when you come to the Great Wall, you will think of Qin Shi Huang, and even think that the existing Great Wall was built in the Qin Dynasty, to see the Great Wall in Beijing ….. In fact, these perceptions are wrong, the following we will one by one for you to solve.
1. The first person to build the Great Wall was not Qin Shi Huang.
When we talk about the Great Wall, the first thing that comes to mind is Qin Shi Huang, we all think that the first to build the Great Wall is Qin Shi Huang, in fact, as early as in the Spring and Autumn and Warring States period has begun, the famous story “Beacon Fire Playing the Marquis” on the Great Wall in the Western Zhou Dynasty. Qin Shi Huang was the first to use more than 300,000 people to build the Great Wall on a large scale, and he made the achievement of building the Great Wall for 10,000 miles, which made people associate the Great Wall with Qin Shi Huang.
Qin Shi Huang was not the first to build the Great Wall
Qin Shi Huang was the first emperor to spend a lot of money and manpower to build the Great Wall to defend against foreigners.
2. The most complete Great Wall was not built during the Qin Dynasty.
And we travel today, the Great Wall point, is not the Qin dynasty Qin Shi Huang’s masterpiece, most of the Great Wall of the Ming dynasty, because the Ming dynasty since the founding emperor Zhu Yuanzhang ascended to the throne, has been to the last emperor Chongzhen, are not keen on the construction of the Great Wall. In the Ming Dynasty ruled for more than 270 years, has not stopped on the Great Wall of the construction and consolidation, long time, the project is huge, is incomparable to successive dynasties. Because the Ming Dynasty was the closest in time (1368-1644 A.D.), and relative to the Qin and Han Dynasties, it was technologically advanced and structurally huge and sturdy. Starting from Jiayuguan in Gansu in the west, the Great Wall stretched over six thousand kilometres through Ningxia, Shaanxi, Inner Mongolia, Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, and up to the Yalujiang River in Liaoning, stretching across nine provinces in total, and the majority of the Great Walls we see today are those built during the Ming Dynasty. Ming Dynasty.
Map of the location of the Great Wall
3. The starting point of the Great Wall is not in Shanhaiguan
Regarding the starting point of the Great Wall, it was believed that the Great Wall started from Shanhaiguan in the east and reached Jiayuguan in the west. It was not until 1992 that historians affirmed that Hushan Mountain in Dandong, Liaoning Province, was the starting point of the Great Wall, rewriting the textbook version of Shanhaiguan.
The Great Wall starts from Hushan in Liaoning in the east and reaches Jiayuguan in the west.
The starting point of the eastern end of the Great Wall of China
Why was Hushan forgotten? The Liaodong Great Wall in Liaoning was built to defend against the Jurchen tribe, and was still very important during the Ming Dynasty. However, after the Manchurian Qing Dynasty entered the capital, in order to protect the birthplace of Liaodong, the Great Wall was constructed with a willow border (trench), which made the Great Wall of Liaodong disappear from many records and maps, and Hushan Mountain was then forgotten.
At present, the Ming Dynasty Great Wall is the most well-preserved, and Liaoning has the largest number of Ming Dynasty Liaodong Great Walls.
The Hushan Great Wall itself is also very unique. In addition to being the starting point of the eastern end of the Great Wall, it is adjacent to North Korea across the Yalu River, and when you climb up to the top, you can have a panoramic view of the fields and houses of North Korea. In addition to the beautiful environment of Hushan itself, you can enjoy the beautiful scenery, beacon towers, and enemy platforms when strolling along this section of the Great Wall. The Hushan Great Wall Museum also displays excavated artefacts, artworks, and large-scale landscape paintings of weapons excavated from the ruins, and cookers used by soldiers defending the fortress.
4. The Great Wall is invisible from the Moon’s view of the Earth
There used to be a popular saying: “When astronauts go to the moon, the only man-made structure they can see when they look back at the Earth is the Great Wall of China”. Later, China’s first astronaut Yang Liwei went into space in 2003 and confirmed that the Great Wall is invisible to the naked eye! The main reason is that the Great Wall is only a few tens of metres wide at its widest point, and is made of natural materials, so it is easy to disappear into the surrounding environment, and is impossible to be seen from the distant moon.
You can’t see the Great Wall from space.
The Great Wall is only a few dozen feet wide, and outer space is impossible to see with the naked eye.
5. The Great Wall is not exclusive to Beijing, but the Liaodong Great Wall is even better.
When it comes to the Great Wall, people still think of going to Beijing, because the Beijing section is the first section of the Great Wall to be developed for tourism, and Badaling was even opened in 1961, but…the Great Wall in Beijing is often crowded like a food market, and if you want to avoid the crowds, there are many alternatives to the 15 provinces and autonomous regions in China, and among them we recommend the Liaoning section, which is the best preserved and has the richest view – “Liaodong Great Wall”. “The Liaodong Great Wall. The Great Wall, also known as the Liaodong Border Wall, was built in the town of Liaodong during the Ming Dynasty, starting from the southern foot of today’s Hushan Mountain in Dandong in the east and ending at the bottom of Cone Hill in Lijiaobao Township, Suizhong County in the west, passing through 568 villages in 12 cities and running through the entire Liaoning Province.
The Great Wall of Cone Hill in Liaoning Province is a very precious ancient Great Wall, which was built on the danger of the mountains and has a very high construction strength, and is now listed as a national key cultural relic.
Liaoning Cone Mountain Wild Great Wall
There are not only the above mentioned – the eastern end of the Great Wall starting point Hushan, there is also a section of the original ancient Great Wall Xigou, its uniqueness lies in what people call the “Wild Great Wall”, sparsely populated, no modern repairs, almost retained the Ming Dynasty handed down the pattern of the stone intact, the green bricks knocking up the clanking, the vicissitudes of more than six hundred years, which is the real history of the ancient taste. (Note: The Wild Great Wall is undeveloped, and there will be a collapsed section to climb, so be careful when you visit the Great Wall).
Shanghai is China’s largest economic centre and an important international financial centre city, and is one of the first coastal open cities. It has a long history, wonderful modernisation, beautiful modern attractions, ancient attractions, fun Disney, sweet-smelling food, flavourful food streets, magnificent architecture, the spirit of the sea and so much more. If you want to know China, Shanghai is a must-visit place, so what are the top 10 attractions in Shanghai? Let’s take a look.
Shanghai Bund
Located on the banks of the Huangpu River, the Bund is about 1.5 kilometres long and is a symbolic attraction of the city of Shanghai, with a cluster of very different styles of universal architecture and the night view of the Pu River as its essence.
Shanghai Bund
The Bund is home to dozens of classical revival buildings in different styles, including the famous Bank of China Building, Peace Hotel, Customs Building and HSBC Building, which recreate the style of the former “Wall Street of the Far East”. Surprisingly, these buildings were not designed by the same designer or built in the same period, but they have a unique harmony. The Bund’s many architectural styles, including French Classical, French Residential and Gothic, are important historical sites and representative buildings of modern China, as well as a beautiful scenery along the Huangpu River.
At night, the neon lights on both sides of the river reflect each other, take a cruise or ferry on the Huangpu River, the river wind gusts on your face, on one side there is the Bund which witnesses the development of history, on the other side there is Lujiazui which is the landmark of Shanghai’s modern construction, and there is also the beautiful figure of the Waibaidu Bridge, which will allow you to appreciate the beauty of this bustling city in a different perspective.
Huangpu River Night Cruise
A night cruise on the Huangpu River is the perfect choice if you want to take in the sights of the Bund complex in Pudong and the Lujiazui Financial Centre in Puxi, which stands on the tip of the clouds. The classic and modern architectural styles of the bustling city complement each other, revealing the beauty of the riverbank and the lights on both sides at night.
Huangpu River Night Cruise
Shanghai Centre Tower
With a total height of 632 metres, 127 floors above ground and 5 floors below ground, the Shanghai Center Tower was completed on 12 March 2016 and opened in October 2008, making it currently the tallest skyscraper in China and the second tallest in the world. With a speed of 18 metres per second, the Shanghai Centre Tower’s express lifts can take visitors to the 119th floor observation deck in less than 55 seconds. The architectural appearance of the Shanghai Centre Tower is in the form of an ascending spiral, with openings in the surface of the building rotating from the bottom until they run up to the top of the building, just like the city skyline of the cosmopolitan city of Shanghai. That’s why it’s in the top 10 must-do things in Shanghai.
Shanghai Centre Tower
Shanghai Disneyland
Shanghai Disneyland is a theme park with pure Disney style and a blend of Chinese flavour. It is the first Disneyland in mainland China and the sixth in the world, with the theme of Magical Kingdom, full of creativity, adventurous spirit and endless excitement. Shanghai Disney Theme Park boasts a number of global projects and world’s best, including the world’s first “Adventure Island” park and Pirates Park in a Disney park, the first castle to bring together all the Disney Princesses, the first attraction themed on the live-action Tim Burton film Alice in Wonderland, and the music and children’s music from the classic Disney film Fantasia. Fantasia”, the first Disney and Disney-Pixar animated characters to take on the Chinese zodiac, the tallest and largest Disney castle in the world, and the largest Disney Store in the world.
Shanghai Disneyland
It’s recommended to avoid holidays and weekends, as you’ll have to wait in long queues if you go during these times.
Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street
Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street is a shopper’s paradise, where many famous brands are located, such as Nike, Adidas and Apple. In addition, there are also many speciality shops on both sides of the pedestrian street, selling a variety of creative gifts, snacks, local specialities and so on. While shopping, why not pay attention to the historical buildings on Nanjing Road and feel the flavour of old Shanghai? Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street is home to a wide range of cuisines from all over the world, from Shanghai’s local favourites to exotic dishes. Famous Nanjing Road food stalls, such as Shen Dacheng and Wang Jia Sha, serve a variety of delicious pastries, such as pan-fried buns, xiao long bao and sugar gourds. In addition, there are numerous restaurants around the pedestrian street, such as Lugang Town and Money Leopard, to satisfy your taste buds.
Nanjing Road Pedestrian Street
Yuyuan Garden
Yuyuan Garden is one of the must-see places in Shanghai. It is a private garden in the Ming Dynasty, with the name of “Yu Yue old relatives”, built during the Jiajing and Wanli reigns, with a history of more than 450 years, covering an area of more than 30 acres. Inside the garden, there are different pavilions, lofty mountains and rocks, verdant trees, and to this day, there are still preserved the “Collection Building”, the birthplace of the “Hai School of Calligraphy and Painting”, and the “Spring Hall”, where the commanding headquarters of Shanghai’s Small Dagger Society Uprising is located, Jade Linglong, one of the three most famous stones in Jiangnan, and other historical relics. Yuyuan Garden is favoured by tourists from all over the world, and dignitaries and celebrities such as American President Bill Clinton and British Queen Elizabeth II have visited the garden.
Yuyuan Garden
Chenghuangmiao Snack Street
Adjacent to the Yuyuan Garden, Shanghai Chenghuangmiao Snack Street is a famous snack street in Changhai. It deals with all kinds of Shanghai flavour snacks: the special snacks of Green Wave Gallery, the vegetarian buns of Songyue Building, the pigeon egg rounds of Guihua Hall, the eight treasures rice of Songyun Building, Nanxiang Cage, Ningbo Soup Dumplings, and Stuffed Wine Round, and so on. Shanghai Old City God Temple Snack Plaza is located in Shanghai City God Temple Snack Street, is a large operating area of Shanghai Yuyuan Shopping Centre supplying a rich variety of food, receiving consumers more flavour characteristics of snacks restaurant.
Chenghuangmiao Snack Street
Tianzifang
As one of the most famous tourist attractions in Shanghai, Tianzifang is a place full of culture, preserving many traditional buildings and cultural heritages, such as Shikumen buildings, lane halls and temples. In addition, Tianzifang has many art studios and galleries, providing visitors with a platform to learn more about local artists and culture. If you like food, there are many snack bars and restaurants offering a variety of flavours. If you like art, there are many art shops selling all kinds of art. Tianzifang is also very beautiful with many gardens and landscaped gardens for visitors to stroll through.
Tianzifang
Nightlife on Hengshan Road
Hengshan Road is most famous for its bars and pubs, which are synonymous with “bar street” in many people’s minds. At night, it is a flashy place with a lot of people and the French sycamore trees on the roadside, illuminated by the lights, also shed their quietness during the day and appear a bit ghostly in the darkness. Bubble bar among the people and many foreigners, lights, European-style buildings, ghostly French sycamore, these elements are mixed together, the tune is a strong European and American mood.
Nightlife on Hengshan Road
Zhujiajiao
Zhujiajiao Ancient Town is located in Qingpu District, Shanghai, is one of the four major historical and cultural towns in Shanghai, known as the “Pearl of Jiangnan”. With a total area of 136.85 square kilometres (including water), Zhujiajiao has humanistic landscapes that are more characteristic of an ancient town, i.e., a bridge, a street, a temple, a temple, a hall, a pavilion, two gardens, three bays and twenty-six lanes, which present the simple and rustic style of the Jiangnan water town of “small bridges, running water and homes”. The ancient town has rivers and harbours, nine long streets stretching along the river, a thousand buildings of Ming and Qing Dynasties standing by the water, 36 stone bridges still surviving in the ancient style, and places of interest abound, such as Chenghuang Temple, Humanities and Arts Museum, Zhuxi Garden, Lesson Planting Garden, Tai’an Bridge, and Yuanjin Zen Temple.
Travelling by taxi in Beijing is a breeze because there are plenty of cabs in operation. But it can be pretty hard in rush hour periods 07:00 – 09:00 & 17:00 – 20:00 due to heavy demand and the traffic jam. Beijing taxis are available day and night, and each car holds normally four adult passengers.
Beijing Taxi Price
Flag-down Rate
CNY13 for the first 3km (2mi)
Unit Fare
1. CNY2.3/km over 3km in the daytime
2. CNY2.76/km from 23:00 to 05:00 the next day
Low-Speed Drive and Waiting Fare
Extra CNY4.6 for each 5mins’ waiting or driving with a speed of lower than 12km/h during rush hours. CNY2.3 during other time.
Empty-run Fee
CNY3.45/km for the extra distance beyond 15km (9mi)
Notes:
1. The price is usually rounded up/down to a whole number of Chinese Yuan. For example, CNY16 will be charged if the taximeter shows CNY15.7.
2. The toll fee should be paid by passengers if driving on the highway is needed.
Taxi Fare for Reference
Drivers use mileage meters for downtown travels, but negotiate a flat rate for long-distance trips. The taxi fare from Beijing Capital Airport to Tian’anmen is CNY100-140, and it costs CNY600-800 for a round trip by cab from the airport to Badaling Great Wall. Generally, an 8-hour day taxi rental with a dedicated driver costs CNY500-800 in downtown Beijing.
Stand by the roadside or at a designated taxi stand in Beijing and wave down a cab. Avoid intersections, otherwise, the driver won’t stop. Do not do it on the ring roads, urban expressways, and highways.
Beijing TaxiBeijing Taxi Stand
2. Taxi Despatch Number: +86 010 – 96103
Dial the number to call an official taxi. The service fee is CNY6 when calling over 4h in advance, and CNY5 within 4h in advance.
3. Online Car-Hailing Apps:
Didi, Shouyue Limousine & Chauffeur …
Payment: cash, Wechat Pay, Alipay, UnionPay
Passengers can call a taxi or a private car using these apps. During rush hours, the price may be much higher or even doubled particularly in bustling areas like Wangfujing, Xidan and Sanlitun Bar Street.
How to Pay the Taxi Fare
The payment may be by cash, Beijing Transportation Smart Card, Wechat Pay, Alipay and UnionPay, but international debit cards like Visa Card and MasterCard cannot work.
Tips on How to Take a Taxi in Beijing
1. How to spot available cars & share a taxi
Cabs with the light behind the windscreen on are available. If the light is off, the taxi is occupied. An exception to the rule is the passenger in the car is willing to share the ride. The driver may pull over to carry additional passengers going in the same direction. When sharing, each passenger pays 60% of the total fare.
2. First come, first served & on queue in airport and railway stations
A number of passengers may hail a taxi simultaneously near subway stations, bus stops, shopping malls or attractions. The person gets the door first wins. So be fast! However, this doesn’t apply in airports and railway stations, where there are designated waiting zones and long queues for cabs.
3. Walking or cycling rather than waiting
Rush hours traffic jam in Beijing is normal, and walking or cycling to the destination outweighs waiting for a cab. In addition, many drivers are picky on short rides. At places like the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and Wangfujing Pedestrian Street, it can be very hard. Just walk further to hail one, or choose city buses or subways.
4. Drivers speak little English
Since most Beijing taxi drivers speak little English, do make some preparations to overcome the language barrier. A note with Chinese characters showing your destination and detailed address would help a lot. Or show the driver a map with your destination clearly marked. Experienced drivers know the city well. From a hotel, ask the concierge to call a taxi for you.
Taxi call in Beijing
Taxi Call Tel: 96106
Taxi Call Fee: ￥6 ( book over 4 hours in advance ); ￥5 (book within 4 hours )
For taxi complaints:
Tel: 96123
Remark: Pre-book a Taxi in advance with a Beijing taxi company so that your taxi driver can “meet & greet” you, your clients, friends or family at the Beijing Airport, Train Stations, your hotel, or at your Office, Home or any other place.
Taxi Meters and driver ID
Every Beijing cab has a meter. On the top of the meters is a big lever to start and stop it. When the meter is turned off, the “For Hire” sign will appears in the window. It is a small red sign, which lights up at night easily to be seen.
When you enter the taxi and tell the driver where you are going, the driver should drop the lever, so other potential customers can see the cab is already occupied. Once the lever has been put down and removed from the window, the meter should then start.
On the dashboard on the passenger side is a placard with the drivers registration number. If this placard is missing then avoid it. So every official taxi should have his license prominently displayed in the front of the cab facing the front passenger seat. If your taxi has no license displayed, we suggest you find a different taxi.
On the dashboard on the passenger side is a placard with the drivers registration number
Beijing Taxi rider’s rights
As a taxi rider, you have the rights below:
Direct drive to your destination;
The car pooling is legal in Beijing;
Booking a taxi on phone
Calling a taxi at a taxi stand;
Your car driver knows the streets in Beijing and the way to major destinations in Beijing;
Your driver should know and abide by all traffic laws;
Air-conditioning on demand;
A radio-free trip;
No Smoking
A clean passenger seat area;
A clean trunk
A driver uses the horn only when necessary to warn of danger;
No Tip.
How to identify black taxi?
How to identify black taxi, counterfeit taxi cab and cloning?
To identify these counterfeit taxi, the key is to look at the vehicle registration number. Beijing legitimate taxi license plates starts with “Beijing B”. If the taxi has the license plate of “Beijing E”, or “Beijing ” and not “Beijing B” license plates, then cab is possibly a black car. Fake Cloning “Beijing B” brand of taxis in the night have no taxi light. “If you have wrongly taken a cloned car”, you must request invoices! You can tell it is a cloned car from its invoice if he gives you a handwritten invoices instead of a computerized one.
What are the places most upset with the black cars?
Black cars could be found around the subway stations, shopping malls, and also aound some major tourist attractions. The most serious areas are the railway stations and Beijing capital airport. When arriving at the airport, keep away from drivers who approach you in the terminal or outside the terminal as they will ask for much more than the actual price.
There is a taxi stand just outside the terminal. Drivers should use their meter; make sure that the driver puts down the flag. Taking a taxi from the airport to Beijing downtown costs between around RMB120 according to the different distance. Beijing airport expressway toll will be paid by passengers. After paying a legal taxi, you will get a legal computerized receipt in which you can find the taxi company’s phone number while a black driver only offers you a hand-written receipt with which you will never find him! A black driver would charge you RMB 400 – RMB 500 for the airport downtown drive.
All the cab drivers are encouraged to learn English. But the situation is that most of them speak little English. The city bureau has devised a 12-item evaluation chart for cab services. Just name some of the items as follows:
Cab drivers are not allowed to smoke while driving, overcharge, spit or litter. They are requested to dress neatly and cleanly. They should be friendly and polite. Taxi drivers who refuse to use taximeters and pick up passengers will lose their job.
Travel Tips for taking taxi
1) Official taxis have a taxi sign on the roof, and on the dashboard on the passenger side is a placard with the drivers registration number. If this placard is missing then avoid it. At your destination, you should requrst a fappiao (a receipt, which is generated by the meter). If the meter isn’t working, you can refuse to pay, and if the driver threatens to call the police, encourage him to do so. At this point he will write a hand-written fappiao, but make sure he (or you) writes down the car registration and the driver registration before paying your money for the taxi.
2) Please keep the address card from your hotel or written by your hotel staff in Chinese to show the taxi driver. A hotel card with the Hotel’s name in Chinese for your return trip. So always carry a card from the hotel in the event you get lost in the city. Show the card to the driver and ask him to bring you there. Most of the drivers are not able to speak in English.
3) You can also charter a taxi ( as a private your own car ) for day trips to the Great Wall ( which is around 1.5 hour drive from city) or just to transfer you around various locations like Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven, Panjiayuan, Wangfujinging, etc. As long as it is within the city, most drivers are more than willing to let you charter their car for the day. A typical taxi will cost around RMB450 to RMB600 for an 8-hour day rental with driver. Each car can hold 4 comfortably. If you are sharing the car among 4, that is less than US$20 for a day.
4) Travelling around Beijing by taxi is quite easy. However, when it rains, it becomes a totally different situation. Keep in mind if you have a plane or train to catch, expecially if you have an unchangeable ticket! Firstly, cabs can be very difficult to find in the rain. Secondly, many taxis will simply refuse to take on longer journeys, especially to the airport and they also will refuse to go anywhere if it involves driving on the 3rd Ring Road which is jammed completely in the rain! So check the weather report and it is better to plan to get to the station or airport three hours before check-in time if your ticket is unchangeable.
5) The bridge and road tolls will be paid by passengers. For a journey that takes longer than 10 kilo or running after 23:00, the fares will be charged at 20% more.
China has a total of five major Forbidden City, these five major Forbidden City distributed in the five lakes: Beijing Imperial Palace is located in Chang’an Street, Dongcheng District, Beijing; Zhongdu Imperial Palace is located in Fengyang County, Anhui Province; Shengjing Imperial Palace is located in Shenhe District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province; the Ming Imperial Palace is located in Nanjing City, North and South of Zhongshan East Road; Taipei Imperial Palace is located in the Shilin District, Taipei City, Taiwan Province.
1. Beijing Imperial Palace
Geographic coordinates are 39 degrees 54 minutes 26.92 seconds north latitude, Tokyo 116 degrees 23 minutes 26.93 seconds, is located in the Dongcheng District of Beijing, Chang’an Street, in the centre of Beijing, to the Forbidden City, the optional means of transport to the Forbidden City, buses and underground.
Beijing Imperial Palace
Centred on the Three Great Halls, it covers an area of 720,000 square metres, with a building area of about 150,000 square metres. There are more than 70 palaces and 9,000 houses. It was the royal palace of China during the Ming and Qing dynasties and was originally known as the Forbidden City. It is located in the centre of Beijing’s central axis and is the essence of ancient Chinese palace architecture. It is one of the largest and best-preserved ancient wooden structures in the world. It is a national 5A-level tourist attraction and was listed as a World Heritage Site in 1987.
The Forbidden City is arranged along a north-south central axis. The three great halls, the three rear palaces, and the imperial gardens are all located on this central axis. And it unfolds to both sides, straight from north to south, symmetrical from left to right. This central axis not only through the Forbidden City, south to the Yongding Gate, north to the Drum Tower, Bell Tower, throughout the city.
2. Zhongdu Imperial Palace
Zhongdu Imperial Palace, formerly known as the Forbidden City, also known as the Ming Zhongdu Forbidden City, Ming Zhongdu Imperial City, Fengyang Ming Imperial Palace and so on. Located in fengyang county, anhui province. Zhongdu Imperial Palace, covers an area of about 840,000 square metres. Now part of the site is located in today’s Chang’an Street north and south, has been listed as a national key cultural relics protection units.
Zhongdu Imperial Palace
The construction of the Zhongdu Imperial Palace began in the second year of Emperor Hongwu of the Ming Dynasty (1369) and was finished in the eighth year of Hongwu (1377). It is a rectangular city with a circumference of 3702 metres. Due to the relatively short time of construction and use, it did not form a political centre, but its urban planning and palace layout directly influenced the planning of Ming Dynasty Beijing, and it occupies an important position in the history of capital city construction in China and the world.
3. Shengjing Imperial Palace
Shenyang Imperial Palace, also known as Shengjing Palace, located in Shenhe District, Shenyang City, Liaoning Province, for the early Qing Dynasty Palace. Shenyang Imperial Palace was built in the Qing dynasty in the tenth year (1625), built in the first year of the Qing dynasty Chongde (1636). The total area of 63,272 square metres, building area of 18,968 square metres. It is not only one of the two remaining royal palace complexes in China, but also the only one royal complex outside the Chinese customs.
Shengjing Imperial Palace
After the Qing dynasty moved the capital to Beijing, the Imperial Palace was called “Palace with the capital” “to stay in the Palace”. Later called the Shenyang Imperial Palace. Experienced Nurhachu, Huang taiji, Qianlong three construction period, lasted 158 years. Building more than 100 seats, more than 500 rooms. After entering the customs, Kangxi, Qianlong, Jiaqing, Daoguang emperors, successive ten times “east tour” as the residence.
4. Ming Imperial Palace
Nanjing Imperial Palace is the capital of the Ming Dynasty Yingtianfu (Nanjing) of the Imperial Palace, also known as the Ming Imperial Palace, formerly known as the Forbidden City, the Imperial City area of 6.53 square kilometres, the Palace City area of 1.16 square kilometres, is located in Nanjing City, Zhongshan East Road north and south, Nanjing Imperial Palace as a collection of China’s palace architecture, is to follow the example of the order of the system of etiquette, and its architectural form for the Imperial Palace in Beijing, inherited, is the blueprint for the Imperial Palace in Beijing, the mother of the Ming and Qing dynasty official architecture. It is the blueprint of the Forbidden City in Beijing and the mother of official buildings of the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Ming Imperial Palace
The Nanjing Imperial Palace was first built in the 26th year of the Yuan Dynasty (1366), and was basically completed in the 25th year of the Hongwu Dynasty (1392), which lasted 26 years before and after. The layout of the Imperial Palace is based on the principle of “left ancestor, right community, face to face and back to the city” contained in “Zhou Rites – Kao Gong Ji”. Imperial City perimeter of 10.23 km, the Palace City perimeter of 3.45 km, Hongwumen to Chengtianmen on both sides of the Central Government Offices, Chengtianmen to the Wumen on both sides of the Temple, the altar of the Jikji Temple; the former dynasty to Fengtian Temple, Huagai Hall, the Honourable Hall as the core, east of the Mandarin Palace, Wenlou, west of the Palace of Wuying Hall, martial arts building; after the court to the Palace of qianqing, kuning palace as the core, east of the Spring and Palace, west of the soft Yi Hall, Fengxian Hall, the Hall of the Great Goodness, the Palace of the Ninety-five Flying Dragons! , Western Palace, flanked by the East West six palaces.
5. Taipei National Palace Museum
Taipei National Palace Museum (Taipei Palace Museum), also known as the Zhongshan Museum, located in Shilin District, Taipei City, Taiwan Province of China, covering a total area of 160,000 square metres, its opening in 1965, and a number of expansion and renovation.
