 |
| Beijing in Brief |
|
Capital city |
Beijing |
|
National flag |
 Five-star red flag, length and width proportion: 3:2. |
|
National anthem |
March of the Volunteers (lines: Arise, those who do not want to be slaves! We will use our flesh and blood to build another Great Wall. China has reached the brink of national collapse. All the people have been making their last outcry. Arise! Arise! Arise! All our hearts become one. Let us face the angry guns. March on! Let us face the angry guns. March on! March on! March on! On!) |
|
National Day |
October 1, the country was founded in 1949. |
|
Top legislature |
National People's Congress (NPC). |
|
Location |
In East Asia, by the west Pacific Ocean. |
|
Territory area |
9.6 million square km, second to Russia and Canada. |
|
Largest city |
Shanghai. |
|
Currency |
Renminbi (RMB) Yuan. |
|
Exchange rate |
7.6 Yuan=US$1 . |
|
Topography |
High in its west and low in its east: mountain areas 33.3% plateaus 26%, basins 18.8%, plains 12% and hills 9.9%.  |
|
Islands |
Among the 5,400 islands, Taiwan Island (about 36,000 square km) is the largest, Hainan Island (about 34,000 square km) the second. |
|
Mountains |
 Among the 19 mountains over 7,000 meters high in the world, seven are in China. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, known as 'the roof of the world', has many high mountains. The Himalayas, with an average elevation of 6,000 meters, have the world's highest peak Mount Qomolangma, 8,848 meters above sea level. |
|
Rivers |
The Yangtze River, 6,300 km long, the third longest in the world after the Nile and the Amazon. The Yellow River, the second longest in China, stretching 5,464 km. |
|
Canyon |
The canyon on the Yalu Tsangpo River, the world's largest, 504.6 km in length and 6,009 meters in depth. |
|
Man-made river |
 The Grand Canal, 1,801 km long, the longest man-made river in the world. Its cutting began in the fifth century BC. |
|
Lakes |
 The Poyang Lake on the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River is China's largest freshwater lake; the Qinghai Lake on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, the country's largest salt lake. |
|
Climate |
Most of the country in the temperate zone, although geographically the country stretches from the tropical and subtropical zones in the south to the frigid zone in the north. |
|
Wild animals |
 China has a great variety of wildlife, over 4,400 vertebrates, more than 100 rare species of the world: the giant panda, the golden monkey, the white-lipped deer, the South China Tiger, Crossoplilon mantchuricum, the white-flag dolphin, the Chinese alligator, and the crowned crane. |
|
Plants |
China has a great variety of plants, 32,000 species of higher plants, including nearly all the major kinds of vegetation found in the frigid and temperate zones of the northern hemisphere. |
|
Popular flowers |
Peony, azalea, and primrose |
|
Population |
China carried out its fifth national population census on November 1, 2000. It has a population of 1,295.33 million. Of which: the total population of the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities (excluding Jinmen and Mazu islands of Fujian Province hereafter) and of servicemen on the mainland of China was 1,265.83 million; the population of Hong Kong SAR was 6.78 million; the population of Macao SAR was 440 thousand; the population of Taiwan Province and of Jinmen, Mazu and a few other islands of Fujian Province was 22.28 million. |
|
Ethnic groups |
China has 56 ethnic groups. Of the people enumerated in the 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities and servicemen of the mainland of China, 1,159.40 million persons or 91.59 percent were of Han nationality, and 106.43 million persons or 8.41 percent were of various national minorities. |
|
Languages |
Of the 56 ethnic groups in China, the Hui and Manchu use the same languages as Han people, while the rest of groups have their own spoken and written languages. |
|
Public holidays |
New Year's Day (January 1), the Spring Festival (the New Year's Day by Chinese lunar calendar), International Labor Day (May 1), and the National Day (October 1). | |
|
|
| Palace Museum (Forbidden City) |
This is the Palace Museum, also known as the Purple Forbidden City. It is the largest and most well preserved imperial residence in China today. Under Ming Emperor Yongle, construction began in 1406. It took 14 years to build the Forbidden City. The first ruler who actually lived here was Ming Emperor Zhudi. For five centuries thereafter, it continued to be the residence of 23 successive empero... |
|
|
|
| The Great Wall |
The Great Wall, symbolizing China's ancient civilization, is one of the world's most renowned projects. It is a distance of 75 kilometres northwest of Beijing. Its highest point at Badaling is some 800 metres above sea level.
Construction of the Wall first began during the period of the Warring States (476 - 221 BC). Formerly, walls were built at strategic points by different kingdoms t... |
|
|
|
| Beihai Park |
Beihai (North Sea) Park is one of the most popular parks in the city of Beijing. It covers a total area of over 68 hectares, more than half of it is taken up by the lake. Early in the 10th century, the Liao Dynasty built a secondary imperial residence here, called Yaoyu or Jade Islet. When the Jin took over, they renamed the capital Zhongdu, meaning Central Capital, and built an imperial palace... |
|
|
|
| The Summer Palace |
| The construction of the Summer Palace first started in 1750. At that time, the Qing Dynasty was in its heyday and China was a powerful Asian country with vast territories. The monarch in power then was Emperor Qianlong. With supreme power and large sums of money, he summoned skillful and ingenious artisans from all over the country to carry out this construction work in honor of his mother's birth... |
|
|
|
| Tian'anmen Square |
| The symbol of New China, this gate was built in 1417 and renovated in 1981. It was originally called the Gate of Heavenly Succession. The late Chairman Mao proclaimed the founding of the People's Republic of China on the rostrum on October 1st, 1949. The gate has five passages, which were closed and used only on ceremonial occasions in the old days. The emperor alone was entitled to pass through t... |
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Laoshe Teahouse
|
|
|
|
The Ruins of Yuanmingyuan
|
|
|
|
Silk Street
|
|
|
|
Beijing snacks
|
|
|
|
Longqing gorge
|
|
|
|
SiHeYuan
|
|
 |
|
¡¡ |
