Top 10 of Beijing in my eyes：Great Wall &Peking roast duck
Great Wall
What strikes one first in a bird’s -eye view of Beijing proper is a vast tract of golden roofs flashing brilliantly in the sun with purple walls occasionally emerging amid them and a stretch of luxuriant tree leaves flanking on each side. That is the former Imperial Palace, popularly known as the Forbidden City, from which twenty-four emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties ruled China for some 500 years——from1420 to 1911. The Ming Emperor Yong Le, who usurped the throne from his nephew and made Beijing the capital, ordered its construction, on which approximately 10,000 artists and a million workmen toiled for 14 years from 1406 to 1420. At present, the Palace is an elaborate museum that presents the largest and most complete ensemble of traditional architecture complex and more than 900,000 pieces of court treasures in all dynasties in China.
Lying at the center of Beijing, the Forbidden City, called Gu Gong, in Chinese, was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Now known as the Palace Museum, it is to the north of Tiananmen Square. Rectangular in shape, it is the world’s largest palace complex and covers 74 hectares. Surrounded by a six meter deep moat and a ten meter high wall are 9,999 buildings.
The main buildings, the six great halls, one following the other, are set facing south along the central north-south axis from the Meridian Gate, the south entrance, to Shenwumen, the great gate piercing in the north wall. On either side of the palace are many comparatively small buildings. Symmetrically in the northeastern section lie the six Eastern Palaces and in the northwestern section the six Western Palaces.
The wall has a gate on each side. Opposite the Tiananmen Gate, to the north is the Gate of Devine Might (Shenwumen), which faces Jingshan Park. The distance between these two gates is 960 meters, while the distance between the gates in the east and west walls is 750 meters. There are unique and delicately structured towers on each of the four corners of the curtain wall. These afford views over both the palace and the city outside.
The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court was where he lived with his royal family. Until 1924 when the last emperor of China was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. Listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace Museum is now one of the most popular tourist attractions world wide.
The main entrance to the Palace is the Meridian Gate(1), which was so named because the emperor considered himself the “Son of the Heaven” and the Palace the center of the universe, hence the north-south axis as the Meridian line going right through the Palace. The gate is crowned with five towers, commonly known as the Five-Phoenix Towers(2), which were installed with drums and bells. When the emperor went to the Temple of Heaven, bells were struck to mark this important occasion. When he went to the Ancestral Temple, it was the drums that were beaten to publicize the event.
Beyond the Meridian Gate unfolds a vast courtyard across which the Inner Golden Water River runs from east to west. The river is spanned by five bridges, which were supposed to be symbols of the five virtues preached by Confucius——benevolence, righteousness, rites, intelligence, and fidelity(3).
At the north end of the courtyard is a three-tiered white marble terrace, seven meters above the ground, on which, one after another, stand three majestic halls; the Hall of Supreme Harmony(4), the Hall of Complete Harmony(5), and the Hall of Preserving Harmony(6).
The Hall of Supreme Harmony, rectangular in shape, 27 meters in height, 2,300 square meters in area, is the grandest and most important hall in the Palace complex. It is also China’s largest existing palace of wood structure and an outstanding example of brilliant color combinations. This hall used to be the throne hall for ceremonies which marked great occasions: the Winter Solstice, the Spring Festival, the emperor’s birthday and enthronement, and the dispatch of generals to battles, etc. On such occasions there would be an imperial guard of honor standing in front of the Hall that extended all the way to the Meridian gate.
On the north face of the hall in the center of four coiled-golden dragon columns is the “Golden Throne”, which was carved out of sandalwood. The throne rests on a two-meter-high platform with a screen behind it. In front of it, to the left and right, stand ornamental cranes, incense burners and other ornaments. The dragon columns entwined with golden dragons measure one meter in diameter. The throne itself, the platform and the screen are all carved with dragon designs. High above the throne is a color-painted coffered ceiling which changes in shape from square to octagonal to circular as it ascends layer upon layer. The utmost central vault is carved with the gilded design of a dragon toying with pearls. when the Emperor mounted the throne, gold bells and jade chimes sounded from the gallery, and clouds of incense rose from the bronze cranes and tortoises and tripods outside the hall on the terrace. The aura of majesty created by the imposing architecture and solemn ritual were designed to keep the subjects of the “Son of the Heaven” in awe and reverence.
The Hall of Complete Harmony is smaller and square with windows on all sides. Here the emperor rehearsed for ceremonies. It is followed by the Hall of Preserving Harmony in which banquets and imperial examinations were held.
Behind the Hall of Preserving Harmony lies a huge marble ramp with intertwining clouds and dragons carved in relief. The slab, about 6.5 meters long, 3 meters wide and 250 tons in weight, is placed between two flights of marble steps along which the emperor’s sedan was carried up or down the terrace. It is the largest piece of stone carving in the Imperial Palace. Quarried in the mountains scores of kilometers southwest of Beijing, this gigantic stone was moved to the city by sliding it over a specially paved ice road in winter. To provide enough water to build the ice road, wells were sunk at very 500 meters along the way.
The three halls of the Inner Palace are replicas of the three halls in the front, but smaller in size. They are the Palace of Heavenly Purity(7), the Hall of Union(8), and the Palace of Earthly Tranquility(9).
The Palace of Heavenly Purity was once the residence of the Ming emperors and the first two of the Qing emperors. Then the Qing Emperor Yong Zheng moved his residence to the Palace of Mental Cultivation and turned it into an audience hall to receive foreign envoys and handled the state affairs. The promotion and demotion of officials were also decided in this hall. After the emperor’s death his coffin was placed here for a 49-day period of mourning.
the Badaling Great Wall occupies on the Judu mountain. In the Spring and Autumn Period Warring States time,our country ancient times the people on already started to constructthe Great Wall, at that time the feudal lord strove for hegemony, inorder to protect own territory not to encroach, therefore hasconstructed the Great Wall in abundance in respective boundary, wascalled mutually guards against the Great Wall.
But our country once appeared three to construct the Great Wall thepeak, respectively was the Qin Great Wall, the Chinese Great Wall,bright Great Wall. Chin Shihhuang in 221 B.C. unified area south ofYellow River, has established the Qin dynasty, in order to strengthenthe rule north, defends nomads’ invasion, therefore will send thesenior general to hoodwink 恬 300,000 armies and very many laborforces the original north swallow, Zhao, the Qin Great Wall haslinked, and performed to expand, the lasted 9 years constructed westnear 洮 east to be continuous Wan Li to Liaodong the Great Wall, thisalso will be in the Chinese history the together Great Wall.To theHan Dynasty, Martial emperor of Han dynasty also was for strengthenthe defense, “was not called Hu Madu the Yin”, has constructed anearly 20,000 mile Great Wall, simultaneously this also has protectedthe new development Silk Road, the Chinese Great Wall is the Qin GreatWall together the front position and the defense line, west itXinjiang, east arrived Liaodong, was in the Chinese history constructsthe Great Wall longest dynasty. But the bright Great Wall is in theChinese history constructs the Great Wall the high point, the projectis big, essence of the technical is unique. Same year Zhu Yuanzhangestablished Ming Dynasty in the unification nation in the process, hasaccepted “Gao Zhuqiang, Guang Jiliang, slow name king” suggestion. Atthat time Yuan Dynasty although already perished, but also ismaintaining the quite complete military power, in addition graduallyrises Nuzhen race’s unceasing invasion, therefore starts to constructthe Great Wall.The Ming Dynasty large-scale constructed the GreatWall to achieve 18 were next many, only then basically has last yearsfinished to the Ming Dynasty, east nearby Liaoning Dandong YaluRiver’s Hushan, west to Gansu Jiayuguan’s bright Great Wall span 6,350kilometers. The bright Great Wall has three characteristics, buildsthe construction completely, manages the consummation, the layout isstrict. But we saw today the Badaling Great Wall is a bright GreatWall’s part. But Great Wall in our country ancient times mostprimitive goal although is the defense, but at the same time it alsoplayed other roles. First is the military function, the second pieceis the economical function, it not only promoted the development andthe northern border economy development which opens up wasteland,moreover also is the area south of Yellow River common people enjoys agood and prosperous life, third promoted various nationalities’fusion.In addition, it has also protected the communication andpromoted the to foreign countries opening up. What is worthmentioning, in our country ancient times, not only only has thesethree time constructs the Great Wall the experience, according to thestatistics, in about in 2000, successively some more than 20 feudallords country and the feudal dynasty all has constructed the GreatWall, some people have made the sketchy computation, if the Great Wallwill rebuild together the height 5 meters, the depth 1 meter big wall,will many circle the Earth 10 many all to have the wealth. Famousfolklore: The beacon-fire play feudal lord and Meng Jiangnyu cry GreatWall also is occurs in the Great Wall. Now, the Great Wall afterpasses through several time repairs and maintains, basically restoredthe former appearance, is included in 1987 by the United NationsEducational, Scientific and Cultural Organization “World cultureInheritance Name list”, moreover it or now in world longest defensivecity wall! Proliferated the our country 16 areas, the span hasachieved 10. 80,000 miles.
Guan Gou is the Mt. yanshan sierra and Jundu sierra junction meetingplace, south Changping area Nankouzhen, northwest to Yanqing CountyBadaling Great Wall’s area just outside the city gate, span 40 miles.Is the area south of Yellow River area leads to northwest plateau thepharynx and larynx important highway. The Ming Dynasty has arrangedfour defense lines in here, respectively is the Nankou pass, occupiesthe commonplace pass, on closes, Badaling. Folds on the green jademountain in Guan Gouzhong, once had Jin Dynasty famous Yanjing one ofeight scenery: Occupies commonplace folds the green jade, what a pitynow the landscape already no longer existed.
The Badaling Great Wall is in the bright Great Wall’s outstandingrepresentative, because here extends in all directions, thereforebecomes Badaling. Possibly everybody can ask that, why has to speakthe Great Wall to construct in here? Actually this mainly is becauseof the Badaling area important geographical position. It not only isguarding the bright imperial tomb, moreover also is Beijing’snorthwest front door.
The Badaling Great Wall is in the history many significant eventstestimonies, for example the dreary queen mother Patrols Good fortune, Yuan Taizuenters the pass, west Empress Dowager Cixi runs away and so on,Badaling all is after all the road. Speaks of here, but also somestory must say for everybody: Is located closes the east end gateroadside, some megalith, the fable the Eight Power Expeditionary Forceattacked into Beijing in 1900, Cixi runs away in the west on the waypasses through here, once stood in this stone other day looks thenational capital, therefore this stone on is also called looks theBeijing stone. But present this stone already not that highlighted.
The Badaling Great Wall has three two walls compositions, what isthree two walls? Now lets me give everybody to explain, threerespectively are the tower on a city wall, the enemy tower, tower on acity wall structure is extremely simple, only is the officers andsoldiers which guards evades the cold the place. That enemy towerstructure relative wants complex somewhat, divides into two, the lowerlevel is by the field, the well, returns, and so on the glyphcomposes, the upper formation has the crenel and looks the hole isobserves the military situation and the archery uses, therefore herealso has defends enemy’s function.
Under arrived the beacon tower, also is called the beacon-fire, wolfYantai. Is disagrees the Great Wall connected independentconstruction. Once the enemy Attack, lights the beacon-firenotification military situation, the ancient rewards the smoke whichthe daytime lights to be called Beacon-fire, the evening is called the flint.Ming Dynasty time, but also has made the strict stipulation to thebeacon-fire and enemy’s relations that, Enemy hundred, burn a smokeartillery; Five Caucasians, burn two smoke two artillery; Abovethousand people, three smoke three artillery; Above 5,000 people, foursmoke four artillery; Above ten thousand people, five smoke fiveartillery. On through this way, in the border pass military situationcan the rapid transmission palace wall imperial palace.
Said three, under on said next two walls. The Great Wall flank tallwall is called 牒 the wall, has the crenel is uses for to defend theenemy. But the inside insufficient meter high is called the daughterwall, also is called the space wall. In most starts the Great Wallinside is does not have the daughter wall, but frequently some peoplecan fall down the cliff, therefore has constructed this wall. Each notfar has a small drainage in the Great Wall lower part of wall place,rainy day time by spits the tap to outside to drain water, in order toavoid the water washes out the city wall. But inside Great Wall’s walluses the stone block to cast, outside builds the brick, again spreadsout the flagstone in above, thus causes the building to be extremelyreliable!
The great wall,Starting out in the east on the banks of the Yale River in Leaning Province, the Wall stretches westwards for 12,700 kilometers to Jiayuguan in the Gobi desert, thus known as the Ten Thousand Li Wall in China. The Wall climbs up and down, twists and turns along the ridges of the Yanshan and Yinshan Mountain Chains through five provinces——Liaoning, Hebei, Shanxi, Shaanxi, and Gansu and two autonomous regions——Ningxia and Inner Mongolia, binding the northern China together.
Historical records trace the construction of the origin of the Wall to defensive fortification back to the year 656 B.C. during the reign of King Cheng of the States of Chu. Its construction continued throughout the Warring States period in the fifth Century B.C. Walls, then, was built separately by these ducal states to ward off such harassments. Later in 221 B.C. The most extensive reinforcements and renovations were carried out in the Ming Dynasty (1368——1644) when altogether 18 lengthy stretches were reinforced with bricks and rocks. it is mostly the Ming Dynasty Wall that visitors see today.
The Great Wall is divided into two sections, the east and west, with Shanxi Province as the dividing line. The west part is a rammed earth construction, about 5.3 meters high on average. In the eastern part, the core of the Wall is rammed earth as well, but the outer shell is reinforced with bricks and rocks. The most imposing and best preserved sections of the Great Wall are at Badaling and Mutianyu, not far from Beijing and both are open to visitors.
The Wall of those sections is 7.8 meters high and 6.5 meters wide at its base, narrowing to 5.8 meters on the ramparts, wide enough for five horses to gallop abreast. Two-storied watch-towers are built at approximately 400-meters internals. The top stories of the watch-tower were designed for observing enemy movements, while the first was used for storing grain, fodder, military equipment and gunpowder as well as for quartering garrison soldiers. The highest watch-tower at Badaling standing on a hill-top, is reached only after a steep climb, like “climbing a ladder to heaven”.
There stand 14 major passes (Guan, in Chinese) at places of strategic importance along the Great Wall, the most important being Shanghaiguan and Jiayuguan. Yet the most impressive one is Juyongguan, about 50 kilometers northwest of Beijing.
Known as “Tian Xia Di YI Guan” (The First Pass Under Heaven), Shanghaiguan Pass is situated between two sheer cliffs forming a neck connecting north China with the northeast. It had been, therefore, a key junction contested by all strategists and many famous battles were fought here. It was the gate of Shanghaiguan that the Ming general Wu Sangui opened to the Manchu army to suppress the peasant rebellion led by Li Zicheng and so surrendered the whole Ming empire to the Manchus, leading to the foundation of the Qing Dynasty. (1644-1911)
As a cultural heritage, the Wall belongs not only to China but to the world. The Venice charter says: “Historical and cultural architecture not only includes the individual architectural works, but also the urban or rural environment that witnessed certain civilizations, significant social developments or historical events.” The Great Wall is the largest of such historical and cultural architecture, and that is why it continues to be so attractive to people all over the world. In 1987, the Wall was listed by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage site.
Lots of beautiful legends and stories about the Great Wall took place following along the construction, and since that time these stories have spread around the country. Those that happened during construction are abundant, such as Meng Jiangnu’s story and the legend of the Jiayuguan Pass. Meng Jiangnu’s story is the most famous and widely spread of all the legends about the Great Wall. The story happened during the Qin Dynasty (221BC-206BC). It tells of how Meng Jiangnu’s bitter weeping made a section of the Great Wall collapse. Meng Jiangnu’s husband Fan Qiliang was caught by federal officials and sent to build the Great Wall. Meng Jiangnu heard nothing from him after his departure, so she set out to look for him. Unfortunately, by the time she reached the great wall, she discovered that her husband had already died. Hearing the bad news, she cried her heart out. Her howl caused the collapse of a part of the Great Wall. This story indicates that the Great Wall is the production of tens of thousands of Chinese commoners.
Another legend about the Jiayuguan Pass tells of a workman named Yi Kaizhan in the Ming Dynasty (1368BC-1644BC) who was proficient in arithmetic. He calculated that it would need 99,999 bricks to build the Jiayuguan Pass. The supervisor did not believe him and said if they miscalculated by even one brick, then all the workmen would be punished to do hard work for three years. After the completion of the project, one brick was left behind the Xiwong city gate. The supervisor was happy at the sight of the brick and ready to punish them. However Yi Kaizhan said with deliberation that the brick was put there by a supernatural being to fix the wall. A tiny move would cause the collapse of the wall. Therefore the brick was kept there and never moved. It can still be found there today on the tower of the Jiayuguan Pass.
In addition to the above-mentioned stories about the construction of the Great Wall, there are also plenty of stories about current scenic spots. A famous one is the legend of the Beacon Tower. This story happened during the Western Zhou Dynasty (11th century BC-711 BC). King You had a queen named Bao Si, who was very pretty. King You liked her very much, however Bao Si never smiled. An official gave a suggestion that setting the beacon tower on fire would frighten the King’s subjects, and might make the queen smile. King You liked the idea. The subjects were fooled and Bao Si smiled at the sight of the chaos. Later enemies invaded Western Zhou, King You set the beacon tower on fire to ask for help. No subjects came to help because they had been fooled once before. Thus, King Zhou was killed by the enemy and Western Zhou came to an end.
Beautiful stories and legends about the Great Wall help to keep alive Chinese history and culture. In each dynasty after the building of the Great Wall, many more stories were created and spread.
The Great Wall is one of the great wonders of the world.Are you ready to visit this spectacle?
Beijing Roast Duck
Beijing Duck or Beijing Roast Duck
Beijing Roast duck is thought to be one of the most delicious dishes all over the world; most visitors coming to Beijing will never forget to have a try. Eating Peking duck is seen to be one of the two things you are absolutely supposed to do while in Beijing.
How roast duck was made?
You might want to know more about how Peking Roasted Duck is made. The ducks are raised for the sole purpose of making the food. Force-fed, they are kept in cages which restrain them from moving about, so as to fatten them up and make the meat comparably tender.
Special farms supply plump Beijing ducks weighing an average of 2.5 kilograms each. The two famous Beijing condiment shops, Liubiju and Tianyuan, supply the dark tangy bean sauce spread on the pancakes. The fragrant sesame oil and refined sugar are also specially selected. Finally, only the wood of fruit trees such as date, peach and pear are used in the roasting process to give the meat its unique fragrance.
Select a duck with whole skin. First the ducks are rubbed with spices, salt and sugar, and then kept hung in the air for some time. Cuts open the belly and draw, and then insert a 2 inch long piece of wood to support the chest bone and to stretch the skin. Hook the duck by the neck, spread diluted maltose over it. Hang the duck in an airy place to dry.
The stuffed duck is hung in the roaster and kettles of hot water are placed in front to fill out the duck. Proper timing and temperature are important and the duck is turned often enough to roast them completely and evenly. (Try 350°F turn every 15 minutes, total roasting time about 40 minutes). Roast until golden brown with rich grease perspiring outside and have a nice odor.
What is Beijing Duck Recipe?
Normally there are many dishes served with the duck, including a dish of fine-cut shallot bars, a dish of cucumber bars and finally a dish of paste-like soy of fermented wheat flour. It is not necessary to order extra soup, for the duck-bone soup is always included in you order. It will be served as the rear dish for the dinner.
History of Roast Duck
The art of roasting ducks evolved from techniques used to prepare sucking pigs.
The history of the roast duck can be traced back to as early as the Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368) when it was listed among the imperial dishes in the Complete Recipes for Dishes and Beverages, written in 1330 by Hu Sihui, an inspector of the imperial kitchen. Details regarding the cooking process were also described in this early cookbook.
In the early 15th century, when the Ming Dynasty capital was shifted from Nanjing to Beijing, roast duck remained one of the famous dishes on imperial court menus. According to the local history, the earliest roast duck restaurant in Beijing was the old Bianyifang Restaurant, which opened during the Jiajing reign (1522-1566). Distinct from the method in which the duck is hung from a hook in the ceiling of the oven and roasted over and roasted over burning wood, the Old Bianyifang Restaurant roasted its ducks with radiant heat. The walls of the oven were first heated with sorghum stalks whereupon the duck was placed inside and cooked by the heat given off by the walls. A duck roasted in this manner is crisp to the touch and golden brown in appearance; its flesh is both tender and tasty.
During the Qianlong period (1736-1796), roast duck was a favorite delicacy of the upper classes. According to Recipes from the Suiyuan Garden, the famous cookbook written by the poet and gourmet Yuan Mei, “Roast duck is prepared by revolving a young duckling on a spit in an oven. The chefs of Inspector Feng’s family excel in preparing this dish.” Other scholars, after dining on roast duck, were inspired to poetry. In one collection of old Beijing rhymes (Duan Zhuzhici) one of the poems reads: “Fill your plates with roast duck and suckling pig.” Another contemporary annotation reads: “When an official gives a banquet he will choose dishes to please each of his guests. For example, Bianyifang’s roast duck…”
To satisfy the growing demand for roast duck, and with an eye on the profits to be made from a good name, many restaurants opened from a good name, many restaurants opened under the Bianyifang name. In fact, in 1926, nine roast duck restaurants in Beijing carried this name. In the late 1960s the Bianyifang Restaurant’s name was changed to the Chongwenmen Roast Duck Restaurant, but in 1979 it resumed its former title. Its menu includes more than 20 traditional duck dishes, including the Four Delicacies: wing and web, liver, heart and pancreas.
Which restaurant is famous one?
The two famous restaurants that serve Beijing Roast Duck are Bianyifang Roast Duck Restaurant and Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant, both of which have a history of over one hundred years. They represent two different schools of roasting duck. Bianyifang, founded in 1855, makes use of a close oven and straw as the fuel, which won’t make flames go directly onto the duck. Before being put into the oven, a duck is filled with specially-made soup to make it possible to roast the duck outside and boil it inside at the same time.
Quanjude, a better known one, founded in 1864, uses an oven without a door. After a kind of dressing being spread all over a duck, it will be hooked up in the oven over the flame coming directly from the burning of the fruit-tree wood and it will be done in forty minutes. When roasted and dried, the duck will look brilliantly dark red, shining with oil and with crisp skin and tender meat. Because of its appearance, few people could resist the temptation of it.
The first restaurant to bear the name Quanjude opened in 1864 during the reign of the Qing Emperor Tongzhi. Due to its high standards, the restaurant’s fame spread rapidly and for many years the supply of roast ducks could hardly satisfy the demand. For this reason, the restaurant was rebuilt and expanded in 1948. In 1954 a branch (known as Hongbinlou) was opened in West Chang’ an Boulevard and another in Wangfujing Street in 1959. These additions, however, still did not solve the problem, and with the opening of the Quanjude at hepingmen in 1979, it was no longer necessary to make a reservation a week in advance to taste Beijing’s most famous culinary delight.
How to eat it?
First, the chef will show you the whole duck. Then, he will slice it into about one hundred and twenty pieces with both skin and meat for each. Usually the duck is served together with special pancakes, hollowed sesame bun, green onions and sweet sauce.
There is a proper way to eat it. First, pick up a slice of duck with the help of a pair of chopsticks and dip it into the soy paste. Next, lay it on the top of a thin cake and add some bars of cucumber and shallot. Finally, wrap the stuff into a bundle with the sheet cake (a thin pancake). The real secret of Peking duck’s flavor lies in your carefully nibbling away at the mixture. You will find all the different ingredients very compatible. People say: “it’s a pity to leave Beijing without trying the roast duck The taste of the roast duck is in the eating.
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