Běijīng bounces to the beat of 21 million
people, working and playing under a
sometimes smoggy sky. Reminders of
the mega-city’s extraordinary history
are everywhere, but so are signs that
Běijīng is looking ahead, too. Futuristic
buildings and plans are already in place
for when the city hosts the Winter
Olympics in 2022.
SO SQUARE
Tiān’ānmén Square sprawls across a brain-
boggling 440,000 sq m (4,700,000 sq ft). That’s the size of 352
Olympic swimming pools! Despite being the world’s biggest
public square, there is nowhere to sit down. The site contains the
burial chamber of communist revolutionary Mao Zedong. After
previous protests the area is now strictly patrolled by police,
who zoom around on Segways. Every morning during the
flag-raising ceremony, Chinese soldiers march through the
Gate of Heavenly Peace and cross the square. Each soldier
takes exactly 108 paces per minute, in strides that are 75cm
(29.5in) long.
Wonder wall
Sadly it’s not true that astronauts can see the
Great Wall of China from outer space, but the
ancient structure is truly colossal. Built by six ruling
dynasties, the 2,300-year-old wall was originally
21,196km (13,170mi) long. What remains is mostly
the 8,850km (5,500mi) Ming Dynasty
Wall. The majority of the parts that
can still be explored are clustered
around Běijīng, including the
most popular stretch, 80km (50mi)
northwest of the city at Bādálˇıng.
EMPERORS’ PLAYGROUND
The Summer Palace was once an
exquisite outside complex reserved
for emperors of the Jin dynasty, but it’s
now open for everyone to enjoy. Three-
quarters of the grounds are covered
by wonderful water features. The
palace is also home to a menagerie
of bronze animals, including the
mythical fire-breathing, hoofed and
horned qílín
.
Peking man
The fossilized skulls and bones of very
early human beings were discovered in a
cave system in Běijīng in 1927. The Peking
Man bones are believed to be 750,000
years old. During World War Two when
Japan invaded China, the Chinese asked
the USA to take the fossils out of China to
protect them. The bones were last seen in
December 1941 when they were packed
into boxes to be handed over to US Marines.
What happened next remains one of the
greatest archeological mysteries of all time.
The bones have never been seen again.
Big Bird’s Nest
The city’s national stadium was unveiled for the Běijīng Olympics in 2008,
soon earning itself the nickname of ‘The Bird’s Nest’. The woven design was
inspired by the idea of a single thread wrapped round a ball. The stadium
was built like this to make the structure earthquake-proof.
Ugly Dumplings
Deep-fried scorpion anyone? How about
a seahorse on a stick? Wángfˇujˇıng Snack
Street and night market in Běijīng’s
Dōngchéng district is the place to come
if you have an adventurous stomach!
There’s everything here from multi-
coloured jiǎozi
(boiled dumplings) to
sizzled snake, fried starfish and
braised chicken feet. Local
sweets are offered too, such
as tánghúlu
(candy covered
fruits on bamboo sticks).
Kung Fu kids
Lots of traditional forms of fighting were born in China, including
kung fu. Collectively these are known as wˇushù
, which means ‘martial
arts’. Wˇushù
is very popular in Běijīng, with boys and girls learning
it from a young age. There are many academies operating in the
city and tournaments happen all the time. Some feature full-contact
fighting whilst others are displays using swords and other weapons.
Pagodas and parks
There are almost as many people in Běijīng as there
are in all of Australia, but it’s still possible to escape the
crowds. The city has plenty of parks and green spaces,
such as Beihai Park and the Back Lakes. These pagoda-
studded playgrounds feature tranquil gardens and
ancient buildings – including the Ming-dynasty
Five-Dragon Pavilions.
