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Beihai Park
Must Sees Great Wall Tian'anmen Square Forbidden City Summer Palace Temple of Heaven Ming Tombs Yonghegong Lamasery Old Hutongs in Beijing Optional Attractions Ancient Observatory Peking Man Site Jingshan Park Beihai Park Beijing Zoo The Beihai Park is situated to the west of Jingshan Park. The park can be traced back to the mid-eleventh century about 1,000 years ago when a temporary royal residence named "Yaoyu" was initially built here during the Liao Dynasty. Later on the rulers of the Jin Dynasty started to dig a lake here, forming the island in the middle of the lake. The garden was opened to the public as a park in 1922. The park covers an area of over 700,000 square meters, of which the water surface occupies more than half of it. It consists mainly of two sections: the Lake of Beihai and the Qionghuadao-the Jade Flowery Islet with the water to an average depth of 2 meters around it. The park used to be a "Forbidden Garden" to commoners in ancient times. In the past, the garden was built particularly for royal families. In the art of gardening the layout of the Beihai Park is centered round the Jade Flowery Islet. Facing water on three sides the white pagoda row upon row of stylish buildings and pavilions around, the islet suggests a poetic sense of beautiful paintings. The water in the lake comes from the Jade Fountain Stream in the western hills. The water first empties into the Kunming Lake and it then flows southward by way of "Jishuitan"-the Water Accumulation Pool and "Shishahai" before it finally pours into the "Three Seas", namely the South, Middle and North seas. There are a large series of scenic areas in the park. Among them the highlights consists of the White Pagoda, the Five-Dragon Pavilions and the Nine-Dragons Screen. The White Pagoda was built on top of the White Pagoda Hill, which was formerly known as the Jade Islet. However, the name was changed in the Qing Dynasty to be the White Pagoda Hill due to the fact that white pagoda was built upon it. The pagoda was built in 165 in the early days of the Qing Dynasty. From the ground level to the apex of the pagoda, it measures 67 meters, of which the pagoda itself towers 35.9 meters high. The pagoda is a Lamaist pagoda of the Tibetan style. The purpose of the building was intended to consolidate the rule of the Qing regime by advocating Buddhism in the country. The pagoda was destroyed by earthquake twice, and it was repaired later on. The last renovation work was finished in 1980s. Situated by the north shore of the lake, the Five-Dragon Pavilions were built in 1651 of the Qing Dynasty. Of the five pavilions, that in the middle, being called the Dragon Pool Pavilion, used to be the angling perch for the emperor and the other four on the east and west were for officials and officers to keep his company. The rulers not only used the Five-Dragon Pavilions for angling but also for enjoying the mid-autumn moon and the display of fireworks on festival days. Besides, every summer in the past the Grandmother of Emperor Kangxi would come to spend her summer days here in the garden. The Nine-Dragon Screen was built in the period of Emperor Wanli's reign (1573-1619) in the Ming Dynasty. The screen built of glazed bricks, stands 5 meters high with a length of 27 meters and a thickness of 1.2 meters. Decorated on the screen are highly glazed curling dragons of the nine on each side. Playing with a pearl and romping over the sea in the sky, each and every of them poses a very graceful posture and looks vivid and lifelike. Besides, there are also dragon patterns on the main ridge and the slanting ridges and eave-tiles, totaling 635 in number. There three large-sized nine dragon screens in the whole country: the one in Datong, Shanxi Province is the largest, that in the Beihai Park the best preserved and still another inside the Forbidden City, all having a history of over 200 years. There is also a restaurant named "Fangshan Restaurant"-Imitation Cuisine of Imperial Family, located at the north side of Qionghuadao. "Fangshan" means that the foods and vegetables provided in this restaurant imitate those that were cooked in the court kitchen. Here, you can taste authentic palace foods. This restaurant was opened in 1925 by a worker that worked in the palace storeroom. That worker invited some cooks that worked in the kitchen in the Qing court to work together with him. In 1959, this restaurant was moved to the place where it now stands. It has received, from both home and abroad, many accolades from guests. Besides the above places, there are also many other interesting places to go. Probably you will spend two hours in this park.

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