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The Long Corridor is a covered walkway in the Summer Palace. First erected in the middle of the 18th century, it is famous for its richly painted decorations with more than 14,000 paintings.
The Long Corridor was first built in 1750, when the Qianlong Emperor commissioned work to convert the area into an imperial garden. The corridor was constructed so that the emperor's mother could enjoy a walk through the gardens protected from the elements. Like most of the Summer Palace, the Long Corridor was severely damaged by fire which Anglo-French allied forces laid in 1860 during the Second Opium War. It was rebuilt in 1886. During the Cultural Revolution, many of the original paintings were painted over.
The Long Corridor leads from the Gate for Greeting the Moon (Yao Yue Men) in the east westwards along the northern shore of Kunming Lake. The total length of the Long Corridor is 728 meters, with crossbeams under the roof dividing it into 273 sections. Along its course, there are four octagonal pavilions which symbolize the four seasons.
Updated Aug 3, 2005
Address: Summer Palace
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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Summer Palace (Yiheyuan in Chinese) is located about 20km northwest from Beijing downtown. It was built more than 800 years ago and rebuilt several times.
When Xitaihou made renovation in 1888, the name of the garden changed to Yiheyuan. As this garden is called for Summer Palace in English, it was used as a summer detached palace. They say that this palace is the biggest and the most beautiful garden in the world and it is a world’s cultural heritage.
Summer Palace is too large to look around for a short time, so you need enough time for sightseeing in it.
Written Jul 23, 2005
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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This is the largest imperial garden in the world with classical Chinese garden architecture.
The construction of this palace took place in 1750 by Emperor Qinglong as a gift for his mother's birthday and took 15 years to complete.
Written Jul 9, 2005
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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The Summer Palace is a nice place to relax from your travel stress. You can strawl around, cruise over the lake or enjoy the great view from the main building all over the place. Enjoy the outlook along with a picnic!
Written May 12, 2005
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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The construction of the Summer Palace first started in 1750. At that time, the Qing Dynasty was in its heyday and China was a powerful Asian country with vast territories. The monarch in power then was Emperor Qianlong. With supreme power and large sums of money, he summoned skilful and ingenious artisans from all over the country to carry out this construction work in honours of his mother's birthday.
Written Feb 11, 2005
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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We spent an entire afternoon there. It was easy to get there, too (From Qianmen, the bus is 826 or 725 and it's 10RMB...1 1/2 hour ride).
A cab ride will set you back 35 RMB, more or less.
Or you can take the subway to Xizhimen, then a minibus, but I don't recommend that...take the bus from Qianmen (@ tianenmen).
Anywayyyyyyy it was a great trip there. The longest corridor in the world warrants at least 12-15 pictures. It depicts Chinese's history through more than 8000 drawings...awe-inspiring stuff. Entry was 50 RMB / person. Open from 8:30-5:00 Mon-Fri. and 9:00 to 4:00 Sat-Sun.
Worth the price! The emperor really knew where to spend his summer holiday!
Written Nov 28, 2004
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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The Summer Palace is a huge park which was where the Chinese Royalty used to spend the Summer months.
Within this complex is a huge marble 'boat' that sits just inside the lake. Empress Dowager Cixi built this boat in 1888. She had been allocated money to help build China a modern navy. Instead of doing this, she decided to blow the lot building a completely immobile boat on the waters edge, where she used to dine out in the evenings.
The boat is however very well made and well worth a look.
Written Nov 26, 2004
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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I had no itention of going to the Summer Palace, but everyone recommended it to me. I thought is was jsut more Qin Dynasty architecture. In fact it is Qin Dynasty articture around a lake. The two together with some thing unique and beautiful, escpecially with some leaves changing.
I walked arond the entire lake which I would recommend only if you walk to get away from the other tourists. Most sites are on the north and east sides. The rest, though scenic, doesn't have sites.
Written Nov 20, 2004
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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The Long Corridor stretches symmetrically to the east and the west along the foot of the hill and the water bank, linking all the structures scattered along the Longevity Hill side into a whole. Of all the corridors in Chinese classical gardens, the Long Corridor is the longest. On the beams are more than 8,000 colorful paintings depicting stories from Chinese classical novels, folk tales, landscapes as well as flora and fauna.
Picutred here though taken in the Summer Palace, it is not a part of the Long Corridor. However, the outlook of its paintings and design give the same notion
Updated Nov 13, 2004
Address: Northwest of Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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Above the Paiyundian, is the Foxiangge or Fragrant Buddha Tower, the most elegant building at the Summer Palace. Long flights of stone stairs zig-zag up to the tower, and the view from this point is superb, out over the lake and towards the nearby Western Hills.
The three-storey, four-tiered octagonal tower sits between a series of pavilions and buildings which once held important books, manuscripts and information about China. On the ground floor of the Foxiangge is a 5 metre high statue of a Bodhisattva. On the second and third floors, there are stunning murals and impressive inscriptions by a number of emperors.
Nearby is the Zhuanluncang, or Revolving Archive, set into the hillside. The two archive towers actually turned on their base, like huge carousels, to avoid the overworked, exhausted emperors having to actually doing any walking.
To the west of the Foxiangge is the famous Pavilion of Precious Clouds, a 200 tonne bronze pavilion, sat in the centre of the Wufangge or Five Square Tower buildings, a line of small pavilions. The bronze pavilion, cast in 1755, is on a tall marble platform, so it towers above the surrounding pavilions. On the first and fifteenth of each unar month, Lamaist monk would be summoned to conduct prayers around the little temple. It, and the Sea of Wisdom Temple were the only two structures left standing by the European troops - perhaps significant that these were the two most obvious religious buildings perhaps?
At the very top of the hill is the Zhihuihai or Sea of Wisdom Temple, a completely unique building in the Summer Palace. It is a brick structure, covered by green and yellow tiles. The outside wall is covered in niches holding little buddhas: many of the heads of these buddhas were smashed by the Europeans.
All along the ridge of the hill are simple and elaborate pavilions set among the wooded slopes and crags.
Written Nov 13, 2004
Address: Yiheyuan Lu, Northwest Beijing
Website: http://www.summerpalace-china.com
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Write a ReviewAbove the Paiyundian, is the Foxiangge or Fragrant Buddha Tower, the most elegant building at the Summer Palace. Long flights of stone stairs zig-zag up to the...
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