DK Travel : Beijing

At the heart of Beijing is tradition, given physical form in the mighty Forbidden City, from where successive imperial dynasties have ruled since the 15th century. Neighboring Tian’an Men Square is the China of recent history, of red-flag socialism and Mao. But this is also a city on the move, as an all-pervading spirit of change makes Beijing the most 21st-century of capitals.

China National Museum

What the Met is to New York and the British Museum to London, the China National is to Beijing. Unlike the two foreign museums, which are filled with an international haul of spoils, this place contains only national treasures – and impressive they are too. However, only Communist Party groupies are likely to appreciate the propa-gandist Museum of the Revolution, which takes up the north wing of the building (see China National Museum).
China Railway Museum

The last passenger steam services in China came to an end in 2006, but a short taxi ride northeast of the 798 Art District is this new museum with a sizeable collection of old locomotives. Some of the cabs can be boarded. An exhibition on the history of China’s railways is promised and some of the machines will occasionally be in steam. In the meantime, the engines are a must for small boys of all ages.
China Railway Museum

The recently opened Railway Ministry Science and Tech-nology Center has a vast hall displaying 53 old locomotives, including some of the enormous black engines imported by the Japanese when they controlled Manchuria. The museum is some distance from the center of town, but for steam buffs the 30-minute taxi ride is possibly a small price to pay (see China Railway Museum).
China World Hotel

The most luxurious hotel in Beijing, and often the choice of visiting heads of state. It’s in the heart of the Central Business District (CBD), above a swish shopping mall and it has arguably the best restaurant in town in Aria.
China World Shopping Mall

Beijing’s ritziest mall is attached to the equally luxurious China World Hotel. The mall, which is also known as Guomao, is home to elite international brands such as Moschino, Prada, Cartier, and Louis Vuitton. Prices are at least as expensive as back home (see also China World Shopping Mall).
China World Shopping Mall

The Silk Market and Yaxiu Market sell the counterfeits, but this is where you come for the originals (see China World Shopping Mall).
Chinese Military History Museum

Visitors to the museum are greeted by paintings of Mao, Marx, Lenin, and Stalin, at least two of whom were fully conversant with the various methods of bringing death and destruction celebrated inside. The ground floor is filled with fighter planes, tanks, and missiles, while displays upstairs chronicle China’s military campaigns (see Chinese Military History Museum).
Chinese Military History Museum

Vast halls of Cold War-era hardware including lots of silvery fighter planes and tanks fill the ground floor. Upstairs has exhibitions on historic conflicts, including the Opium Wars and Boxer Rebellion. Unfortunately, there is little labeling in English. What is not mentioned is that the museum is close to the Muxidi intersection, scene of a massacre of civilians by the Chinese army during the 1989 democracy protests.
Chinese Military History Museum

Owes a striking debt to Moscow.
Chinese New Year

Also known as Spring Festival, Beijing’s favorite holiday is celebrated with a cacophony of fireworks, let off night and day across the city. There are also temple fairs with stilt-walkers, acrobats, and fortune-tellers. Everyone who can heads for their family home, where gifts are exchanged and children are kept quiet with red envelopes stuffed with cash so adults can watch the annual Spring Festival Gala on national television.

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