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Great Wall Beijing
34 Reviews Visiting the Great Wall of China is a must when in Beijing. Most people will visit the extremely touristy and most visited section of the wall at Badaling which is only about 50 miles (80km) outside...
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Hutongs Beijing
35 Reviews For visitors looking for a fun way to experience Beijing's hutong, you should consider doing a motorcycle sidecar tour. I know someone who recently started a company called Peking-Around...
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Beijing's Parks Beijing
25 Reviews Not many people go to the Botanical Gardens when in Beijing. I did as I am into botany somewhat and particular flowers. The spacious grounds are full or various ornamental gardens such as the Rose...
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Beijing Underground City Beijing
8 Reviews Don't bother with The Underground City. It is very difficult to find and when you find the entrance you will discover that is no longer open to tourists. We looked for it on two trips to Beijing. On...
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Rural Areas of Beijing Beijing
8 Reviews Beijing International Art Camp (BIAC) is situated near the highway to the airport and frankly speaking, it is not very easy to find, even on a taxi. It's situated inside a village called "Suojia...
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Markets Beijing
6 Reviews There are numerous markets throughout the city. I visited one of the larger ones. It had seperate sections for produce (fruits and vegetables), spices, meats and fish, clothing and beverages. There...
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Ming Tombs Beijing
11 Reviews 50 kilometers (30 miles) northwest from Beijing lies the Ming Tombs - the general name given to the mausoleums of 13 emperors of the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644). The mausoleums have been perfectly...
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Shops/Souvenirs Beijing
9 Reviews If you feel like a bit of pampering and have a little spare time - treat yourself to a hairdresser's visit. They are open till really late which is perfect and as it was very cold during our visit to...
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CCTV Tower. Beijing
3 Reviews CCTV auxiliary is burned down 2009 March in a ridiculous accident caused by people making fires on top of the building to celebrate a Chinese traditional holiday. What's in the picture is the...
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Museums Beijing
7 Reviews This museum is very interesting, if you want to see enormous scelletons of dinosaurus and other animals from millions of years ago. It also houses an exhibition about Beijing man and evolution. In...
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Marco Polo Bridge Beijing
4 Reviews There's plenty more to see around the Marco Polo bridge area (or Lugouqiao Bridge as it's known in Chinese) than just the bridge itself. The bridge leads directly to the gates of the recently restored...
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Chengde Beijing
3 Reviews In 1703, Chengde, (located approx 150 miles, 250km north-east of Beijing), was chosen by the Kangxi Emperor as the location for his summer residence. Constructed throughout the eighteenth century, the...
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Universities Beijing
8 Reviews The Beijing Language Institute is a wonderful place with many trees and a lot of nice people from all over the world. Please see my travelogue! It is the best place in China to learn Mandarin. Now it...
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Beijing Zoo Beijing
2 Reviews Beijing Zoo is one of those places that is *just* off the beaten track, but one which is often on that secondary list of places once visitors ahve seen the main sights of Beijing. I am not a great...
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Great Bell Temple Beijing
1 Review Da Zhong Si. The temple was known as Juesheng Si (Awakened Life Temple), but clearly there wasn't enough awakening going on, so a 46 1/2-ton bell was transported here on ice sleds in 1743. The third...
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Lama Temple - Yonghegong Beijing
2 Reviews Lama Temple, short for Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple, is better known as Yonghe Temple. I was intrigued to visit this 315-year old significant temple which is said to be one of the largest...
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When you are at Yuyuantan Park in Beijing, you will come across a bazaar located along the footpath of the park near to the Cherry Blossom tree section. This bazaar is usually very busy with local people and sells many items such as food, daily household items, Chinese medicines, tea leaves etc.
Here are more photos of the museum at the Beijing University of Chinese Medicine. These photos were taken at the history section of the museum, which depicts the historical evolution of traditional Chinese medicines which date back several thousands of years ago in Chinese history when human civilisation was just beginning.For China, traditional Chinese medicine is more than just medicine, as it is part of the culture of the Chinese people which follows them throughout their history. The fact that it is still here today shows that it has withstood the test of time.
The Beijing University of Chinese Medicine is one of the most famous universities in the world for teaching traditional Chinese medicine. I managed to visit this university during a working trip in 2008, and part of the visit is going to their museum on traditional Chinese medicine where there are lots of exhibits of Chinese herbs, history of traditional Chinese medicine etc. I think this museum is opened to the public and is worth a visit if you are interested in traditional Chinese medicines. Please go to part 2 of this tip.
When visiting the temple of Heaven, most tourists start from the south gate and work their way through the major monuments by heading straight upwards to the north gate. The areas surrounding the Temple of Heaven to the east and west sides are very beautiful and consists of gardens and some ancient buildings which is worth exploring when you have the time. You will also experience many locals relaxing at these areas as this is one of their favourite hangouts.
The Beijing Film Studio. An old Russian era complex once used to make propaganda films. Now, it is the site where Kill Bill, House of Flying Dagger, Painted Veil made used of old leaking sound stages to make movie magic. Located next to the north Third Ring Road, the studio takes up a huge area that including indie TV production houses, post facilities, actor studios, diners, apartments, and even a small park. It is all old and run down. There is even a knock off version of the studio tour on a cheap rusty tram. Lots of people hang out in front of the studio seeking extra work. I think they get around 75 RMB a day. Tough gig!
Have you ever had the urge to put your crazy screaming kids in a big bubble? Now featured at the Chaoyang Park....yep...kids in bubbles! What do they do in the bubbles? Roll around, run, whatever they want! What about leaks? Well, the last time I went, it seemed alright, but then again it's China...heheThere's also fake horse riding for the little ones if water sports are not your cup of tea.Chaoyang Park is huge. So you might have to walk around a bit to find this pond with the bubbles.
Due to just having arrived back in Beijing from a 3 week holiday back home in Gibraltar, I was a little jet lagged. I hadn't helped matters either by sleeping during the day instead if keeping awake till night time! So as the sun came up somewhere between 430 and 500am this morning and the day looked like it was going to be beautiful, I decided to go for a bike ride to one of my favourite areas in Beijing, Hou Hai. Camera in hand, I was ready!So the next few tips are more a travelogue of Beijing from 6am to 8pm on July 21st 2006!They will be in themes, with this one being the ' hustle and bustle of morning breakfast buying!'I hope you enjoy reading and seeing the photos as much as I did seeing it first hand and experiencing a beautiful Beijing morning!
This park is called Yuan Da Du Yi Zhi Park. It is located north of the north Third Ring Road near the Beijing Film School. What is special about this park is that it is built on top of the dirt mound that used to be the outer wall for Beijing when it was the capital for Yuan dynasty around the 1300s. The locals used to call it the Stinky Canal because well, the water used to stink. But now it is quite a pretty park full of small bridges and trees. Of course, as in all the city parks here, no stepping on grass...hehe
And to finish the day off, this last theme is 'sights around the lake'.I cycled for two hours in this area stopping now and then to take photos. I was amazed at how many I could get without people walking in front of them which is usually the case in every photo in China. It was peaceful, serene and beautiful. If only every day in China could be like this! And the one thing i enjoyed was the fact that there was no shouting and no hassling me into bars or shops..pure heaven!
The third theme is 'ways people get about the city'This was an interesting one as I saw so many forms of transportation. There was of course myself and hundreds of others on their bicycles, some on battery powered motorbikes, buses, taxis, 'iron dragons' which are the little bikes with a seat on the back facing the opposite direction to take a passenger (usually see an old man driving his wife around!), tandem bikes, people being pushed in wheelchairs by their loved ones and of course walkers and joggers!Later on in the day, it will turn to purely taxis, buses and private cars with poor bicycles not getting a look in and pedestrians frightened to cross the roads!
Park Plaza Beijing Wangfujing Beijing
4 Reviews and 1096 Opinions Located centrally in the Wangfujing area, this hotel is close to everywhere you want to get to...
Beijing Huakun Manor Hotel Yanqing
St. Regis Beijing Hotel Beijing
1 Review and 339 Opinions At the moment of stepping in the hotel, I said 'Fantastic'. The building has high ceiling with...
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