Beijing

Beijing is China's second largest city in terms of population, after Shanghai. It is a major transportation hub, with dozens of railways, roads and expressways entering and leaving it in all directions. It is also the focal point of many international flights to China. Beijing is recognized as the political, educational, and cultural center of the People's Republic of China, while Shanghai and Hong Kong predominate in economic fields.

Beijing is one of the Four Great Ancient Capitals of China. It will also host the 2008 Summer Olympics.

Names

Peking is the name of the city romanized in Postal System Pinyin, and the traditional customary name for Beijing in English. The term originated with French missionaries four hundred years ago, corresponds to an older pronunciation predating a subsequent sound change in Mandarin from [kʲ] to [tɕ]. ([tɕ] is represented in pinyin as j, as in Beijing), and is still used in some languages (for example, the Portuguese name is Pequim).

In China, the city has had many names. Between 1928 [link] and 1949, it was known as Beiping (北平; Pinyin: Beiping; Wade-Giles: Pei-p'ing), literally "Northern Plains". The name was changed — with the removal of the element meaning "capital" (jing or king, 京) — to reflect the fact that, with the Kuomintang government having established its capital in Nanking (pinyin: Nanjing), Peking was no longer the capital of China, and that the warlord government based in Peking was not legitimate.

The Communist Party of China reverted the name to Beijing (Peking) in 1949 again in part to emphasize that Beijing had returned to its role as China's capital. The government of the Republic of China on Taiwan has never formally recognized the name change, and during the 1950s and 1960s it was common in Taiwan for Beijing to be called Peking to imply the illegitimacy of the PRC. Today, almost all of Taiwan, including the ROC government, uses Beijing, although some maps of China from Taiwan still use the old name along with pre-1949 political boundaries.

Yanjing (燕京; Pinyin: Yānjīng; Wade-Giles: Yen-ching) is and has been another popular informal name for Beijing, a reference to the ancient State of Yan that existed here during the Zhou Dynasty. This name is reflected in the locally-brewed Yanjing Beer as well as Yenching University, an institution of higher learning that was merged into Peking University. During the Yuan Dynasty, Beijing was known as Khanbaliq which is the Cambuluc described in Marco Polo's accounts.

(The history section below outlines other historical names of Beijing.)

History

Remnants of city walls around Beijing (August 2004 image).

During the Sui (581-618) and Tang (618-907) dynasties, only small towns existed in this area. Numerous ancient poets came here to mourn the lost city, as testified by their compositions.

In 936, the Later Jin Dynasty (936-947) of northern China ceded a large part of its northern frontier, including modern Beijing, to the Khitan Liao Dynasty in the 10th century. In 938, the Liao Dynasty set up a secondary capital in what is now Beijing, and called it Nanjing (the "Southern Capital"). In 1125, the Jurchen Jin Dynasty annexed Liao, and in 1153 moved its capital to Liao's Nanjing, calling it Zhongdu (中都), "the central capital." Zhongdu was situated in what is now the area centred around Tianningsi, slightly to the southwest of central Beijing.

Mongol forces burned Zhongdu to the ground in 1215 and rebuilt it to the north of the Jin capital in 1267. In preparation for the conquest of all of China, Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty founder Kublai Khan made this his capital as Khanbaliq (Mongolian for "great residence of the Khan") or Dadu (大都, Chinese for "grand capital"). This site is known as Cambuluc in Marco Polo's accounts. Apparently, Kublai Khan, who wanted to become a Chinese emperor, established his capital at this location instead of more traditional sites in central China because it was closer to his power base in Mongolia. The decision of the Khan greatly enhanced the status of a city that had been situated on the northern fringe of China proper and it was the true beginning of contemporary Beijing. Khanbaliq was situated north of modern central Beijing. It centred on what is now the northern stretch of the 2nd Ring Road, and stretched northwards to between the 3rd and 4th Ring Roads. There are remnants of Mongol-era wall still standing.

After the fall of the Yuan Dynasty in 1368, the city was later rebuilt by the Ming Dynasty and renamed Shuntian (順天). In 1403, the third Ming Emperor Yongle moved the Ming capital from Nanjing (Nanking) to the renamed Beijing (Peking) (北京), the "northern capital", situated in the north. He also gave it its modern name. Beijing during the Ming Dynasty took its current shape, and the Ming-era city wall served as the Beijing city wall until modern times, when it was pulled down and the 2nd Ring Road was built in its place.

It is believed that Beijing was the largest city in the world from 1425 to 1650 and from 1710 to 1825. [link]

The Forbidden City was constructed soon after that (1406-1420), followed by the Temple of Heaven (1420), and numerous other construction projects. Tian'anmen, which has become a state symbol of the People's Republic of China and is featured on its emblem, was burned down twice during the Ming Dynasty and the final reconstruction was carried out in 1651.

The Forbidden City, home to the Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

After the Manchus overthrew the Ming Dynasty and established the Qing Dynasty in its place, Beijing remained China's capital throughout the Qing period. It was the scene of the siege of the foreign legations during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900.

The Xinhai Revolution of 1911, aimed at replacing Qing rule with a republic, originally intended to establish its capital at Nanjing. After high-ranking Qing official Yuan Shikai forced the abdication of the Qing emperor in Beijing and ensured the success of the revolution, the revolutionaries in Nanjing accepted that Yuan should be the president of the new Republic of China, and that the capital should remain at Beijing.

Yuan gradually consolidated power, culminating in his declaration of a Chinese Empire in late 1915 with himself as emperor. The move was highly unpopular, and Yuan himself died less than a year later, ending his brief reign. China then fell under the control of regional warlords, and the most powerful factions fought frequent wars (the Zhili-Anhui War, the First Zhili-Fengtian War, and the Second Zhili-Fengtian War) to take control of the capital at Beijing.

Following the success of the Kuomintang's Northern Expedition which pacified the warlords of the north, Nanjing was officially made the capital of the Republic of China in 1928, and Beijing was renamed Beiping (Peip'ing) (北平), "northern peace" or "north pacified", to emphasize that the warlord government in Beijing was not legitimate.

During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Beiping fell to Japan on 29 July 1937. During the occupation, the city was reverted to its former name, Beijing, and made the seat of the Provisional Government of the Republic of China, a puppet state that ruled the ethnic Chinese portions of Japanese-occupied North China. It was later merged into the larger Wang Jingwei Government based in Nanjing. With Japan's surrender in World War II, on 15 August 1945, however, Beijing's name was changed back to Beiping.

On January 31, 1949, during the Chinese Civil War, Communist forces entered Beijing without a fight. On October 1 of the same year, the Communist Party of China, under the leadership of Mao Zedong, announced in Tian'anmen the creation of the People's Republic of China in Beijing. Just a few days earlier, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference had decided that Beiping would be the capital of the new government, and that its name would be changed back to Beijing.

At the time of the founding of the People's Republic, Beijing Municipality consisted of just its urban area and immediate suburbs. The urban area was divided into many small districts inside what is now the 2nd Ring Road. Since then several surrounding counties have been incorporated into the Municipality, enlarging the limits of Beijing Municipality by many times and giving it its present shape. The Beijing city wall was torn down between 1965 and 1969 to make way for the construction of the 2nd Ring Road.

Following the economic reforms of Deng Xiaoping, the urban area of Beijing has expanded greatly. Formerly within the confines of the 2nd Ring Road and the 3rd Ring Road, the urban area of Beijing is now pushing at the limits of the recently-constructed 5th Ring Road and 6th Ring Road (currently under construction), with many areas that were formerly farmland now developed residential or commercial neighborhoods. A new commercial area has developed in the Guomao area, Wangfujing and Xidan have developed into flourishing shopping districts, while Zhongguancun has become a major center of electronics in China.

As the national capital, Beijing has also been the site of political turmoil in recent years. Tian'anmen Square, a well-known landmark in the city, was the site of the Tiananmen Square protests of 1976 and then the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, which ended in a military crackdown. Tian'anmen Square has also been the site of protests by Falun Gong.

In recent years, the expansion of Beijing has also brought to the forefront some problems of urbanization, such as heavy traffic, poor air quality, the loss of historic neighborhoods, and significant influx of migrants from poorer regions of the country, especially rural areas.

Early 2005 saw the approval by government of a plan to finally stop the sprawling development of Beijing in all directions. Development of the Chinese capital would now proceed in two semicircular bands just outside of the city centre (both west and east) instead of being in concentric rings.

Beijing has been chosen to host the 2008 Summer Olympics, an event that has sparked nationalistic pride across China.

Geography and climate

Main article: Geography of Beijing

A simulated-color image of Beijing, taken by NASA's Landsat 7.

Beijing is situated at the northern tip of the roughly triangular North China Plain which opens to the south and east of the city. Mountains to the north, northwest and west shield the city and northern China's agricultural heartland from the encroaching desert steppes. The northwestern part of the municipality, especially Yanqing County and Huairou District, are dominated by the Jundu Mountains, while the western part of the municipality is framed by the Xishan Mountains. The Great Wall of China, which stretches across the northern part of Beijing Municipality, made use of this rugged topography to defend against nomadic incursions from the steppes. Mount Dongling in the Xishan ranges and on the border with Hebei is the municipality's highest point, with an altitude of 2303 m. Major rivers flowing through the municipality include the Yongding River and the Chaobai River, which are part of the Hai River system, and flow in a southerly direction. Beijing is also the northern terminus of the Grand Canal of China which was built across the North China Plain to Hangzhou. Miyun Reservoir, built on the upper reaches of the Chaobai River, is Beijing's largest reservoir, and crucial to its water supply.

The urban area of Beijing, located at [39°54′20″N, 116°23′29″E] (39.9056, 116.3914), is situated in the south-central part of the municipality and occupies a small but expanding part of the municipality's area. It spreads out in bands of concentric ring roads, of which the fifth and outermost (the Sixth Ring Road; the numbering starts at 2) passes through several satellite towns. Tian'anmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) and Tian'anmen Square are at the centre of Beijing, and are directly to the south of the Forbidden City, former residence of the emperors of China. To the west of Tian'anmen is Zhongnanhai, current residence of the paramount leaders of the People's Republic of China. Running through central Beijing from east to west is Chang'an Avenue, one of Beijing's main thoroughfares.

The city's climate is harsh, characterized by hot, humid summers due to the East Asian monsoon, and cold, windy, dry winters that reflect the influence of the vast Siberian anticyclone. Average temperatures in January are at around -7 to -4 °C, while average temperatures in July are at 25 to 26 °C. Annual precipitation is over 600 mm, with 75% of that in summer. [link]

Beijing also suffers from heavy pollution and poor air quality from industry and traffic. Dust from erosion of deserts in northern and northwestern China result in seasonal dust storms that plague the city. In the first four months of 2006 alone, there were no fewer than eight such storms. [link] Efforts have been made of late to clean up Beijing in preparation for the 2008 Summer Olympics.

City layout

Neighbourhoods

Southern end of Wangfujing Road (July 2004 image). Beijing by night Beijing Bookstore at Xidan

• Andingmen 安定门
• Beiyuan 北苑
• Chaoyangmen 朝阳门
• Dongzhimen 东直门
• Fangzhuang 方庄
• Fuchengmen 阜成门
• Fuxingmen 复兴门
• Guomao 国贸
• Hepingli 和平里
• Wangjing 望京
• Wangfujing 王府井
• Wudaokou 五道口
• Xidan 西单
• Yayuncun 亚运村
• Zhongguancun 中关村

Towns

• Changping 昌平
• Huairou 怀柔
• Miyun 密云
• Liangxiang 良乡
• Liulimiao 琉璃庙
• Tongzhou 通州
• Yizhuang 亦庄

Administrative divisions

The urban and suburban areas of the city are divided into eight districts:

District	Population (2000 census)	Area (km²)	Density (per km²)
Dongcheng District (东城区: Dōngchéng Qū)	536,000	24.7	21,700
Xicheng District (西城区: Xīchéng Qū)	707,000	30.0	23,567
Chongwen District (崇文区: Chóngwén Qū)	346,000	15.9	21,761
Xuanwu District (宣武区: Xuānwǔ Qū)	526,000	16.5	31,879
Chaoyang District (朝阳区: Cháoyáng Qū)	2,290,000	470.8	4,864
Haidian District (海淀区: Hǎidiàn Qū)	2,240,000	426.0	5,258
Fengtai District (丰台区: Fēngtái Qū)	1,369,000	304.2	4,500
Shijingshan District (石景山区: Shíjǐngshān Qū)	489,000	89.8	5,445
City proper + inner suburbs	8.50 million	1377.9	6,171

The following six districts encompass the more distant suburbs and satellite towns, constituting part of the metropolitan area:

District	Population (2000 census)	Area (km²)	Density (per km²)
Mentougou District (门头沟区: Méntóugōu Qū)	267,000	1,331.3	201
Fangshan District (房山区: Fángshān Qū) Fangshan County until 1986	814,000	1,866.7	436
Tongzhou District (通州区: Tōngzhōu Qū) Tong County until 1997	674,000	870.0	775
Shunyi District (顺义区: Shùnyì Qū) Shunyi County until 1998	637,000	980.0	650
Changping District (昌平区: Chāngpíng Qū) Changping County until 1999	615,000	1,430.0	430
Daxing District (大兴区: Dàxīng Qū) Daxing County until 2001	672,000	1,012.0	664
Outer suburbs	3.68 million	7,490	491

The other two districts and the two counties located further out govern semirural and rural areas:

District	Population (2000 census)	Area (km²)	Density (per km²)
Pinggu District (平谷区: Pínggǔ Qū) Pinggu County until 2001	397,000	1,075.0	369
Huairou District (怀柔区: Huáiróu Qū) Huairou County until 2001	296,000	2,557.3	116
Miyun County (密云县: Mìyún Xiàn)	420,000	2,335.6	180
Yanqing County (延庆县: Yánqìng Xiàn)	275,000	1,980.0	139
Peripheral areas	1.39 million	7,947.9	175

Source: [Geohive]

Beijing's 18 districts and counties are further subdivided into 273 lower (third)-level administrative units at the township level: 119 towns, 24 townships, 5 ethnic townships and 125 subdistricts.

Economy

The Beijing CBD area around Dawangqiao and Dabeiyao, as seen from the Jingtong Expressway.

In 2005, Beijing's nominal GDP was 681.45 billion RMB (about 84 billion USD), a year-on-year growth of 11.1% from the previous year. Its per capita GDP was 44,969 RMB, an increase of 8.1% from the previous year and nearly twice as much as in 2000. Beijing's primary, secondary, and tertiary industries were worth 9.77 billion RMB, 210.05 billion RMB, and 461.63 billion RMB. Urban disposable income per capita was 17,653 yuan, a real increase of 12.9% from the previous year. Per capita pure income of rural residents was 7,860 RMB, a real increase of 9.6%. Per capita disposable income of the 20% low-income residents increased 16.7%, 11.4 percentage points higher than the growth rate of the 20% high-income residents. The Engel's coefficient of Beijing's urban residents reached 31.8% in 2005 and that of the rural residents was 32.8%, declining 4.5 percentage points and 3.9 percentage points, respectively, compared with 2000. [link]

Beijing's real estate and automobile sectors continue to bloom in recent years. In 2005, a total of 28.032 million square metres of housing real estate was sold, for a total of 175.88 billion RMB. The total number of automobiles registered in Beijing in 2004 was 2,146,000, of which 1,540,000 were privately-owned (a year-on-year increase of 18.7%). [link]

A corner of the emerging Beijing CBD.

The Beijing CBD, centered at the Guomao area, has been identified as the city's new central business district, and is home to a variety of corporate regional headquarters, shopping malls, and high-end housing. The Beijing Financial Street, in the Fuxingmen and Fuchengmen area, is a traditional financial center. The Wangfujing and Xidan areas are major shopping districts. Zhongguancun, dubbed "China's Silicon Valley", continues to be a major center in electronics- and computer-related industries, as well as pharmaceuticals-related research. Meanwhile, Yizhuang, located to the southeast of the urban area, is becoming a new center in pharmaceuticals, IT, and materials engineering. [link] Urban Beijing is also known for being a center of pirated goods and anything from the latest designer clothing to the latest DVDs can be found in markets all over the city, often marketed to expatriates and international visitors.

Major industrial areas include Shijingshan, located on the western outskirts of the city. Agriculture is carried out outside the urban area of Beijing, with wheat and maize (corn) being the main crops. Vegetables are also grown in the regions closer to the urban area in order to supply the city.

The development of Beijing continues to proceed at a rapid pace, and the vast expansion of Beijing has created a multitude of problems for the city. Beijing is known for its smog as well as the frequent "power-saving" programs instituted by the government. Citizens of Beijing as well as tourists frequently complain about the quality of the water supply and the cost of the basic services such as electricity and natural gas. The major industrial areas outside of Beijing were ordered to clean their operations or leave the Beijing area in an effort to alleviate the smog that covers the city. Most factories, unable to update, have moved and relocated to other cities such as Xi'an, China.

Architecture

Image:Ancient Beijing Skyline.jpg|The ancient Beijing skyline. Image:70s_Architecture_Beijing.jpg|The boxy look of buildings made in the 1970s. Image:Architecture_Beijing_Modern.jpg|The very modern contrast. Image:Old_Roof_Architecture_Beijing.jpg|Details of traditional architecture. Image:BeijingArchitectureCombo70s90s.jpg|A mix of 70s and 90s styles. Image:Blend Architecture Beijing.jpg|Mix and match of the old and the new. Image:TianGuard.jpg|The Tian'anmen Image:Wangfujing.jpg|Wangfujing, a major commercial street.

A bizarre and striking mixture of both old and new styles of architecture can be seen at the Dashanzi Art District, which mixes 1950s-design with a blend of the new. The influence of American urban form and social values in manifest in the creation of Orange County, China, a suburban development about one hour north of the city.

Demographics

The Wangjing neighbourhood, in Chaoyang District, Beijing, is known for its high concentration of South Korean expatriates.

Wangfujing Cathedral

The population of Beijing Municipality, defined as the total number of people who reside in Beijing for 6 months or more per year, was 15.38 million in 2005. 11.870 million people in Beijing Municipality had Beijing hukou (permanent residence) and the remainder were on temporary residence permits. [link] In addition, there is a large but unknown number of migrant workers (min gong) who live illegally in Beijing without any official residence permit (also termed hei ren which means "black people" or unregistered people). The population of Beijing's urban core (city proper) is around 7.5 million.

Over 95% of Beijing's residents belong to the Han Chinese majority. Smaller populations consisting of members of the Manchu, Hui, and Mongol ethnic groups also call the city home. In recent years there has been an influx of South Korean expatriates, who live in Beijing predominantly for business and study, and are concentrated in the Wangjing and Wudaokou areas. A Tibetan high school exists for youth of Tibetan ancestry, nearly all of whom have come to Beijing from Tibet expressly for their studies.

A sizable international or expatriate community exists in Beijing, mostly attracted by the highly growing foreign business and trade sector, and many members live in the Beijing urban area's densely populated northern, northeastern and eastern sections. The southwest and southern parts of the Beijing urban area are less densely populated.

Ethnic groups in Beijing, 2000 census
Nationality	Population	Percentage
Han Chinese	12,983,696	95.69%
Manchu	250,286	1.84%
Hui	235,837	1.74%
Mongol	37,464	0.28%
Korean	20,369	0.15%
Tujia	8372	0.062%
Zhuang	7322	0.054%
Miao	5291	0.039%
Uyghur	3129	0.023%
Tibetan	2920	0.022%

Excludes members of the People's Liberation Army in active service.
Source: Department of Population, Social, Science and Technology Statistics of the National Bureau of Statistics of China (国家统计局人口和社会科技统计司) and Department of Economic Development of the State Ethnic Affairs Commission of China (国家民族事务委员会经济发展司), eds. Tabulation on Nationalities of 2000 Population Census of China (《2000年人口普查中国民族人口资料》). 2 vols. Beijing: Nationalities Publishing House (民族出版社), 2003. (ISBN 7105054255)

Culture

Beijing Opera, or Peking Opera (Jingju), is well-known throughout the national capital. Commonly lauded as one of the highest achievements of Chinese culture, Beijing Opera is performed through a combination of song, spoken dialogue, and codified action sequences, such as gestures, movement, fighting and acrobatics. Much of Beijing Opera is carried out in an archaic stage dialect quite different from modern Standard Mandarin and from the Beijing dialect; this makes the dialogue somewhat hard to understand, and the problem is compounded if one is not familiar with Chinese. As a result, modern theaters often have electronic titles in Chinese and English.

A Beijing performance of the classic opera Farewell my Concubine (September 2002).

A hutong （胡同） in eastern urban Beijing near Dongsishitiao. When photographed in March 2003, the left side was still standing; it has since given way to a new construction project.

The Siheyuan (四合院) is a traditional architectural style of Beijing. A siheyuan consists of a square housing compound, with rooms enclosing a central courtyard. This courtyard often contains a pomegranate or other type of tree, as well as potted flowers or a fish tank. Siheyuans line Hutongs (胡同), or alleys, which connect the interior of Beijing's old city. They are usually straight and run east-to-west so that doorways can face north and south for Feng Shui reasons. They vary in width — some are very narrow, enough for only a few pedestrians to pass through at a time.

Once ubiquitous in Beijing, siheyuans and hutongs are now rapidly disappearing, as entire city blocks of hutongs are leveled and replaced with high-rise buildings. Residents of the hutongs are entitled to apartments in the new buildings of at least the same size as their former residences. Many complain, however, that the traditional sense of community and street life of the hutongs cannot be replaced. Some particularly historic or picturesque hutongs are being preserved and restored by the government, with the objective that by the 2008 Olympics, only these few will remain. One such example can be seen at Nanchizi.

Mandarin cuisine is the local style of cooking in Beijing. Peking Roast Duck is perhaps the most well-known dish. The Manhan Quanxi ("Manchu-Han Chinese full banquet") is a traditional banquet originally intended for the ethnic-Manchu emperors of the Qing Dynasty; it remains very prestigious and expensive.

Teahouses are also common in Beijing. Chinese tea comes in many varieties and some rather expensive types of Chinese tea are said to cure an ailing body extraordinarily well.

The Jingtailan is a cloisonné metalworking technique and tradition originating from Beijing, and one of the most revered traditional crafts in China. Beijing lacquerware is well known for the patterns and images carved into its surface.

The Fuling Jiabing is a traditional Beijing snack food, a pancake (bing) resembling a flat disk with filling, made from fu ling (Poria cocos (Schw.) Wolf, or "tuckahoe"), an ingredient common in traditional Chinese medicine.

Stereotypes

Transportation

Main article: Transportation in Beijing

Rail

Beijing is a railway hub. There are railway lines from Beijing to Guangzhou, Shanghai, Harbin, Baotou, Taiyuan, Chengde and Qinhuangdao.

International trains, including lines to cities in Russia and Pyongyang, North Korea (DPRK), all run through Beijing. Direct trains to Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR also depart from Beijing.

Construction on a Beijing-Tianjin high-speed rail began on July 4, 2005, and is scheduled to be completed in 2007.

Roads and expressways

See: Ring Roads of Beijing, Expressways of Beijing and China National Highways of Beijing for more related information.

The Badaling Expressway near the intersection with the Northern 6th Ring Road (November 2002 image)

Beijing is connected via road links from all parts of China. Nine expressways of China (with six wholly new expressways under projection or construction) connect with Beijing, as do eleven China National Highways. Within Beijing itself, an elaborate network of five ring roads has developed, but they appear more rectangular than ring-shaped. Roads in Beijing often are in one of the four compass directions (unlike, for example, Tianjin).

One of the biggest concerns with traffic in Beijing deals with its apparently ubiquitous traffic jams. Traffic in the city centre is often gridlocked, especially around rush hour. Even outside of rush hour, several roads still remain clogged up with traffic. Urban area ring roads and major through routes, especially near the Chang'an Avenue area, are often clogged up during rush hour.

Recently expressways have been extended (in some cases reconstructed as express routes) into the territories within the 3rd Ring Road. As they are either expressways or express routes, drivers do not need to pass through intersections with traffic lights. This may finally solve the difficulties in "hopping between one ring and another".

Another problem is that public transportation is underdeveloped (the subway system is presently minimal) and that even buses are jam-packed with people around rush hour. Beijing was poorly designed in terms of zoning and in terms of transportation system [link], [link]. Compounding the problem is patchy enforcement of traffic regulations, and road rage. Beijing authorities claim that traffic jams may be a thing of a past come the 2008 Olympics. The authorities have introduced several bus lanes where, during rush hour, all vehicles except for public buses must keep clear.

Chang'an Avenue runs east-west through the centre of Beijing, past Tian'anmen. It is a major through route and is often called the "First Street in China" by authorities.

	Roads and Expressways of Beijing
Main Roads: Chang'an Avenue (East, West) | Ping'an Avenue | Zhongzhou Road (North, South) Ring Roads: Open: 2nd Ring Road | 3rd Ring Road | 4th Ring Road | 5th Ring Road | 6th Ring Road Projected: 7th Ring Road | Expressways: Open: Badaling Expressway (Jingda Expressway) | Jingcheng Expressway | Airport Expressway | Jingtong Expressway | Jingha Expressway | Jingshen Expressway | Jingjintang Expressway (Jinghu Expressway) | Jingkai Expressway | Jingshi Expressway (Jingzhu Expressway) Partially under construction: Jingcheng Expressway | Jingkai Expressway | Northern Airport Line | Jingping Expressway | Jingbao Expressway | Litian Expressway Projected: 2nd Airport Expressway | Jingjin Expressway (North, South) 7 National Expressways: Jingtai Expressway (projected) | Jinghu Expressway | Jinggang'ao Expressway (partially complete) | Jingkun Expressway | Jingla Expressway (projected) | Jingwu Expressway (projected) | Jingha Expressway (alternate route) National Highways G101 | G102 | G103 | G104 | G105 | G106 | G107 | G108 | G109 | G110 | G111

Air

Other airports in the city include Liangxiang Airport, Nanyuan Airport, Xijiao Airport, Shahe Airport and Badaling Airport. However, these are primary for military use and less well-known to the public.

Inside a Beijing Subway station

Public transit

Bus fares cost 2 Renminbi for Air Conditioned Buses under 10km, and another 2 RMB per 10km. Non-air conditioned buses are 1 RMB per 10km. Subway tickets cost 3 Renminbi for the 1, 2, 13, and 8T lines; 5 RMB for tickets allowing a transfer to Line 13, and 4 RMB for tickets allowing a transfer to Line 8T.

Taxis are nearly ubiquitous, including a large number of unregistered taxis. As of June 30, 2006 all fares on legal taxies start at 10 Renminbi for the first 3km (idling time is also a factor), and are 2.00 Renminbi per extra kilometer. Most taxis are a mixed fleet of new Hyundai Elantra and Volkswagen Jetta (Borla) cars. After 15km, the base fare is increased by 50% (but only applied to the portion of the distance over 15km, so that the passenger is not retroactively charged extra for the first 15km). Between 11pm and 6am, the fee is increased by 20%, starting at 11 RMB and increasing at a rate of 2.4 RMB per km. Rides over 15km and between 11pm and 6am apply both charges, for a total increase of 80% (120%*150%=180%).

Tourism

Wansong Pagoda

Main article: Tourist attractions of Beijing

Although more known for its political significance in the West, the Tian'anmen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) has long been one of the most important tourist sites of Beijing, both by itself and as the main entrance to the Forbidden City. Other world-renowned sites include the Badaling section of the Great Wall of China, the Summer Palace, and the Temple of Heaven.

Buildings, monuments, and landmarks

• Sections of the Great Wall (World Heritage Site) at:
• * Badaling
• * Juyongguan
• * Mutianyu
• * Simatai
• * Jinshanling
• * Jiankou
• Forbidden City (World Heritage Site)
• Tiananmen Square, site of the Tiananmen Square protests of May 4, 1919, 1976, and 1989
• *Tiananmen (The Gate of Heavenly Peace)
• *Great Hall of the People (National Legislature)
• *National Museum of China
• *Monument to the People's Heroes
• *Mausoleum of Mao Zedong
• The Summer Palace (World Heritage Site)
• Ruins of the Old Summer Palace
• Peking Man Site at Zhoukoudian (World Heritage Site)
• The Ming Dynasty Tombs (World Heritage Site)
• Bell Tower and Drum Tower
• Historic Hutongs and Siheyuans in many older neighborhoods
• Lugou Bridge (Marco Polo Bridge)
• Prince Gong Mansion (Gong Wang Fu)
• Zheng Yici Peking Opera Theatre
• Liulichang Culture Street
• Beijing Ancient Observatory

Temples, cathedrals, and mosques

• Temple of Heaven (World Heritage Site), situated in the southern area of urban Beijing
• Temple of Earth, located in northern Beijing
• Temple of Sun, situated in the eastern area of urban Beijing
• Temple of Moon, located in western Beijing
• Tanzhe Temple
• Jietai Temple
• Yunju Temple
• Yonghegong (Lama Temple)
• Guangji Temple
• Confucius Temple
• Great Bell Temple
• Five Pagoda Temple
• Temple of Azure Clouds
• Temple of Recumbent Buddha
• White Dagoba Temple in Beihai Park
• Badachu
• Immaculate Conception Cathedral
• Holy Saviour Church
• Niujie Mosque

Parks and gardens

• Beihai Park
• Shichahai
• Jingshan Park
• Beijing World Park
• The Fragrant Hills (Xiangshan)
• The Grandview Garden (Daguanyuan)
• Beijing Botanical Garden
• Taoranting Park

Shopping and commercial districts

• Wangfujing: Beijing's most upscale, globalized shopping district
• Xidan
• Beijing CBD
• Beijing Financial Street
• Zhongguancun
• Yizhuang

Hotels and lodging

In the late 1970s, Beijing, alongside much of China during the period of reform and economic opening under Deng Xiaoping, saw greater attempts at attracting and catering to international business. A large number of hotels and other facilities to accommodate business, tourist, and other visitors began to be constructed. Today, given Beijing's size and status as one of the most frequently visited and economically, politically, and culturally important cities in Asia, a great number of hotels exist, many rivalling the highest international standards.

The most well-known hotel is the Beijing Hotel, which is state-owned. Other notable hotels are the Great Wall Sheraton Hotel, the Jianguo Hotel, the China World Hotel, the St. Regis, Grand Hyatt at Oriental Plaza and the Peninsula Palace Hotel, operated by the Hong Kong-based Peninsula Group.

Youth hostels do exist but are few in number. There is one near the centre of Beijing, where accommodations are located four floors below ground level.

Nightlife

Wudaokou, in northwestern Beijing, is also a bustling center of nightlife. There are more Koreans and other foreigners, mostly students, in the area.

Bar-wise, the following areas of Beijing are known as hubs for bars which open until late:

• Sanlitun
• Houhai
• Yuandadu

Education

Main article: Colleges and Universities of Beijing

Owing to Beijing's status as the political and cultural capital of China, a larger proportion of tertiary-level institutions are concreated here than probably any other city in China, reaching at least 59 in number. Many international students from Japan, Korea, North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, and elsewhere come to Beijing to study every year, a growing trend, especially among Western students. The institutions listed here are administered by China's Ministry of Education.

• Peking University (北京大学) (founded 1898), typically considered one of the two best academic institutions in China along with Tsinghua University, The Times World University Rankings in 2005 rated Peking University as the best university in China, the best university in Asia, and 15th in the world.
• Tsinghua University (清华大学) (founded 1911), typically considered one of the two best academic institutions in China along with Peking University
• Renmin University of China (中国人民大学)
• Beijing Normal University (北京师范大学) (founded 1902)
• Beijing Foreign Studies University (北京外国语大学)
• Beijing Language and Culture University (北京语言大学)
• Beijing Forestry University (北京林业大学)
• Beijing Institute of Technology (北京理工大学)
• Beijing Jiaotong University (北京交通大学)
• Beijing University of Chemical Technology (北京化工大学)
• Beijing University of Chinese Medicine (北京中医药大学)
• Beijing University of Petroleum (石油大学)
• Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications (北京邮电大学)
• Capital Normal University (首都师范大学)
• Central University of Finance and Economics (中央财经大学)
• China Agricultural University (中国农业大学)
• China University of Political Science and Law (中国政法大学)
• Communication University of China (中国传媒大学)
• University of International Business and Economics (对外经济贸易大学)
• University of International Relations (国际关系学院)
• University of Science and Technology Beijing (北京科技大学)
• Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (北京航空航天大学)
• Beijing University of Technology (北京工业大学)
• Central Academy of Drama (中央戏剧学院)
• Central Conservatory of Music (中央音乐学院)
• Central Institute of Fine Arts (中央美术学院)
• Beijing Film Academy (北京电影学院)

Media

Xinhua News Agency

Television and radio

Three radio stations feature programmes in English: Hit FM on FM 88.7, Easy FM by China Radio International (CRI) on FM 91.5, and the newly launched Radio 774 on AM 774.

Press

Nationally-circulated Chinese newspapers are also available in Beijing.

Publications primarily aimed at international visitors and the expatriate community include the English-language periodicals City Weekend, Beijing This Month, Beijing Talk, that's Beijing and MetroZine.

Rolling Stone Magazine will base its China version's editorial staff in Beijing.

The international press, including English- and Japanese-language newspapers and magazines, are available in major international hotels and Friendship Stores, and content often appears complete.

Sports

Professional sports teams based in Beijing include:

• Chinese Football Association Super League
• * Beijing Xiandai
• Chinese Basketball Association
• * Beijing Ducks
• * Beijing Olympians

City and regional partnerships

City	Country	Sister City since:
Tokyo	Japan	March 14, 1979
New York City	USA	February 25, 1980
Belgrade	Serbia	October 14, 1980
Lima	Peru	November 21, 1983
Washington, D.C.	USA	May 15, 1984
Madrid	Spain	September 16, 1985
Rio de Janeiro	Brazil	November 24, 1986
Île-de-FranceFrench region hosting the largest part of Paris metropolitan area	France	July 2, 1987
Cologne	Germany	September 14, 1987
Ankara	Turkey	June 20, 1990
Cairo	Egypt	October 28, 1990
Islamabad	Pakistan	October 8, 1992
Jakarta	Indonesia	October 8, 1992
Bangkok	Thailand	May 26, 1993
Tel Aviv	Israel	May 29, 1993
Buenos Aires	Argentina	July 13, 1993
Seoul	South Korea	October 23, 1993
Kiev	Ukraine	December 13, 1993
Berlin	Germany	April 5, 1994
Brussels	Belgium	September 22, 1994
Hanoi	Vietnam	October 6, 1994
Amsterdam	Netherlands	October 29, 1994
Moscow	Russia	May 16, 1995
Paris	France	October 23, 1997
Rome	Italy	May 28, 1998
GautengA province of South Africa	South Africa	December 6, 1998
Ottawa	Canada	October 18, 1999
Canberra	Australia	September 14, 2000
Manila	Philippines	November 14, 2005
London	United Kingdom	April 10,2006
Tehran	Iran	Planned

Source: [www.ebeijing.gov.cn]

See also

• List of mayors of Beijing
• List of hospitals in Beijing
• 2045 Peking - the name of an asteroid

Books

• [The Diaries of Sir Ernest Satow, British Envoy in Peking (1900-06)] edited by Ian Ruxton in two volumes, Lulu Press Inc., April 2006 ISBN 141168804X (Volume One); ISBN 1411688058 (Volume Two)

• [Insider's Guide to Beijing], guide book about present day Beijing with Beijing-citizen editors and in-scene insiders reporting about Beijing's numerous faces (e.g. Jon Campbell about rock scene in China). Publisher: Shantou University Press; 1st Edition edition (September 15, 2004), ISBN 7810368788

External links

• [WikiSatellite view of Beijing at WikiMapia]
• [Official site (English version)]
• [BeijingChinaWorld.com] Includes 1,500 high quality photographs
• [Official 2008 Summer Olympics Website] (English)
• [The Beijing Page - #1 Google Search for "Beijing"] (English)
• [Beijing Map - full size, 1560 x 1547 pixels, 645kb]
• [Large map of Beijing region]
• [Beijing The Virtual City (under construction)]
• [Useful collection of Beijing links] (English)
• [Beijing Weather Forecast]
• [gou-rou.com Beijing satire]
• [ChangPu River Park] The small, beautiful park between Wangfujing and Tian'AnMen; photo guide

Culture & Lifestyle

• [Rock music scene report of Beijing]

Travel and tourism

• [Top tips for visitors to Beijing]
• [Photos of Beijing]
• [Beijing Travel Informations]
• [My Beijing travel Guide]
• [Chinese Central, Provincial and City governments]
• [Peking.org - Peking Tourist Attractions, Photos and History]
• [The Beijing Guide]
• [Bruce Ma's Beijing Tour] [link], pictures
• [Beijing tours]
• [Beijing Expatriates Resources]
• [Beijing Travel Service]
• [Beijing Travel]
• [Beijinglives.com Information about tourism in Beijing]
• [Beijing Hotel Guide]
• [Beijing Tourist Attractions and Photo Gallery]

Images of Beijing

• [Pictures of Beijing]
• [Satellite image of Beijing] at NASA Earth Observatory
• [Pictures of Beijing Attractions]
• [Flickr: Photos tagged with beijing], photos likely of Beijing
• [Pictures from a backpacker's trip around Beijing]

Wiki project links

• #redirect [[Template:Wikitravel]]

[[zh-yue:北京]]

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