During your china travel, don’t forget to Travel to Beijing and check out The Summer Palace for its amazing parks and outstanding view. The Summer Palace is a very popular tourist’s destination but it also serves as a recreational park for everyone. In December 1998, UNESCO has included the Summer Palace on its World Heritage List. So it is definitely and must-see destination.
The Summer Palace or Yihe Yuan means the “Garden of Nurtured Harmony” and it is a palace in Beijing and it is located in the northwest of Beijing’s centre; it is easily accessible from most parts of the city. It was mainly dominated by Longevity Hill which is 60 meters high and the Kunming Lake. It also covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometres and three quarters of which is water. The central Kunming Lake which covers 2.2 square kilometres was entirely man made and excavated soils were used to build the Longevity Hill. You can find a variety of palaces, gardens and other classical-style architecture structures that will just blow you away. So do wear comfortable shoes and also camera as there are lots to take.
One of the View in Summer Palace
During your visit around Summer Palace, if you are lucky, you would get to see a man doing calligraphy on the pavement just infront of the lake and also if you do visit the Summer Palace during winter season, you would get to ice-skate in the huge lake in front of the Summer Palace. Also, there is not much variety of food that is being sold around the Summer Palace so it is best to eat before you visit.
Calligraphy Work
A Brief History of Summer Palace:
When the Jin Dynasty emperor Wanyan Liang moved his capital to the Beijing area, he had a Gold Mountain Palace built on the site of the hill. In the Yuan Dynasty, the hill was renamed from Gold Mountain to Jug Hill (Weng Shan). The name change is explained by a legend according to which a jar with a treasure inside was once found on the hill. The loss of the jar is said to have coincided with the fall of the Ming Dynasty as had been predicted by its finder.
The Qianlong Emperor of the Qing Dynasty (1644 – 1911), who commissioned work on the imperial gardens on the hill in the 1749, gave Longevity Hills its present-day name in 1752, in celebration of his mothers 60th Birthday. The hill is about 60 meters high and houses many buildings positioned in sequence. The front hill is rich in the splendid halls and pavilions, while at the back hill, in sharp contrast, is quiet with natural beauty.
Things to see in the Summer Palace:
The Seventeen-Arch Bridge
1) You can paddle boat across the lake to enjoy amazing views of the Summer Palace and Longevity Hill.
2) Visit the Seventeen-Arch Bridge.
3) Check out the Marble Boat in the grounds of the Summer Palace.
4) Check out the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity.
5) Visit the Tower of Buddhist Incense.
6) Climb up Longevity Hill to the Summer Palace.
7) Walk through the Long Corridor.
The Long Corridor
Address: The Summer Palace, Haidian District.
Opening Hours: 7.00am to 5.00pm (Nov 1 to March 31), 6.30am to 6.00pm (April 1 to Oct 31).
So go on and book your Beijing Tours and come experience Beijing for yourself!
Related posts:
