If there is a place in China you must see, it is the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City is a royal palace, the home of 24 emperors from the Ming and Qing Dynasties from 1420 to 1912. Simple words simply cannot describe how impress the Forbidden City is. What it is, it is still an inseparable part of Chinese culture and history. Visiting the Forbidden City should rank high on each passenger list.
A pure blog post can't treat the Forbidden City as fair, so I will modestly introduce the basics, write down a few photos I visited last time, and provide you with the basics to help you with your visit.
Background and history
Name - Allows only people to enter and leave the emperor's permission, so it is called "prohibited." "City" comes from the translation of an older Chinese name, cheng, meaning the city wall. Now the Chinese name of the Forbidden City is ancient, translated directly into an ancient palace.
History - After moving a few times, Emperor Zhidi of the Ming Dynasty decided to return to Beijing and needed a suitable residence, so the work in the Forbidden City began in 1406 and was completed in 1420. The Forbidden City was the home of the royal family until 1912, when Pu Yi returned the throne to Sun Yat-sen and the newly established Republic of China.
Fact - The world's largest palace complex [Buckingham Palace dedicated] covers an area of 74 hectares with more than 8,500 rooms [the number depends on who you talk to]. The surrounding walls are more than 8 meters wide, 6 meters wide at the top and 3,400 meters in circumference.
Description - Divided into two parts, the outer court and the inner court. The outer court is used for ceremonial purposes [to impress the guests], the inner court has an emperor and its extended family, and serves as the emperor's office.
Trivia - Except for the two roofs of the Forbidden City, all roofs are made of glazed yellow tiles, as yellow is the color of the emperor. The north-south central axis extends from the "door of dining" in the north to the "meridual gate" in the south, which is the actual central axis of Beijing. Starbucks opened a store there in 2000 and did not close until 2007 when reason finally got the upper hand. The chairman will never let this happen.
Go there - you want to see the Forbidden City correctly for at least half a day. It took me more than six hours to have to be dragged out by a less refined companion. Early in the morning at the Beijing Railway Station, this is the main tourist destination. Then head north along Beijing Railway Station until you reach Jianguomen Street, then head west until you see the entrance to the Forbidden City. You can't miss it. There is Tiananmen Square on your left and a huge portrait of Mao Zedong on the right. Walking itself is a great way to appreciate the heart of Beijing.
Accommodation Location - Any place in downtown Beijing is within walking distance of Tiananmen Square. My favorite is the Beijing City Center International Youth Hotel, which is located across the road from Beijing Railway Station. The price is reasonable, the staff is friendly and the location is ideal.
The opening hours are from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm in the off-season from November to March, and from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm in the peak season from April to October. Tickets are not sold for the past hour and are not allowed in the last 50 minutes. According to my most reliable source [disclaimer here], the entrance fee for the peak season is 60 yuan, 40 yuan in the off-season.
Mine - you have to go to the center of the Hall of Supreme Harmony and stand there. why? Because this place is the center of the Forbidden City, it makes the center the center of China. From the perspective of the Chinese, this is the center of the universe. So stand there, take a photo [like my one below] and experience the experience in the center of the universe. The Australian equivalent [from the Melbourne perspective] stands on the steps of Flinders Street Railway Station.
Then spend a few hours in China's rulers living, ruling, playing, planning and dying buildings, driveways and courtyards. Numerous Chinese TV dramas are based on the Forbidden City and the life of the Qing and Ming dynasties.
Orignal From: Forbidden City - the hometown of ancient Chinese emperors
No comments:
Post a Comment