Mysterious China Blog

Beijing, the capital of China, is one of the world's largest cities with a population of over 14 million. Beijing first became an imperial capital during the Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368), and both the Ming and Qing emperors ruled from the Forbidden City at its heart. Today, an all-pervading spirit of ...

Mansion of Prince Gong Beijing's most complete example of a historic mansion is situated in a charming hutong district west of Qian Hai. It was supposedly the inspiration behind the residence portrayed by Cao Xueqin in his classic 18th century ...

At first glance, Beijing seems a thoroughly modern city, but a stroll through the city's alleyways (hutong) reveals the charm of old Beijing. These hutong - weaving across much of central Beijing - are where many Beijing residents (Beijingren) ...

Confucius Temple The Confucius Temple is the largest in China outside Qufu, the philosopher's birthplace in Shandong province. The alley leading to the temple has a fine pailou (decorative archway), few of which survive in Beijing. First built in 1302 ...

Jing Shan Park Situated on Beijing's north-south axis, Jing Shan Park has its origins in the Yuan dynasty (1279 - 1368). Its hill was created from earth that was excavated while building the palace moat during the reign of the ...

The Yuanming Yuan (Garden of Perfect Brightness, sometimes called the Old Summer Palace), now sits isolated from the main Summer Palace, but was a collection of princely gardens fused into the main mass by the Qing Qianlong emperor in ...

The remoteness of the Eastern Qing Tombs east of Beijing and over the border in Hebei province makes them far less popular than the Ming Tombs, despite the fact that the setting is even more splendid. In fact, ...

A symbol of China, the Great Wall of China snakes through the countryside over deserts, hills, and plains for several thousand miles. Originally a series of disparate earthen ramparts built by individual states, the Great Wall was created only ...

The resting place for 13 of the 16 Ming emperors, the Ming Tombs (Shisan Ling) are China's finest example of imperial tomb architecture. The site was originally selected because of its auspicious feng shui alignment; a ridge ...

The sprawling grounds of the Summer Palace (Yihe Yuan) served the Qing Dynasty as an imperial retreat from the stifling summer confines of the Forbidden City. Despite existing as an imperial park in earlier dynasties, it was not until the time of Emperor Qianlong, who reigned from 1736 to 1795, ...