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Formerly one of the most notable centers of Buddhism outside Tibet until it was shut down during the Cultural Revolution. It was reputedly saved from destruction by the intervention of the president, Zhou Enlai. With Buddhism enjoying a resurgence in popularity the precincts are once again home to around 70 monks (see Lama Temple).

When the Conventions of Peking ended the Second Opium War in 1860, foreign delegations were permitted to take up residence in a quarter southeast of the Forbidden City. On main Dong Jiao Min Xiang and surrounding streets, the first modern foreign buildings in Beijing took root. The embassies and Western institutions have long since left and new, mainly governmental occupants moved in, but the architecture left behind is visibly foreign. Two buildings worth visiting are the former City Bank of New York, now the very welcoming Beijing Police Museum, and St. Michael’s Church.

Straddling the Yongding River near Wanping town, the 876-ft (267-m) marble bridge was first built during the Jin dynasty in 1189 but was destroyed by a flood. The current structure dates to 1698. The bridge acquired its name when legendary voyager Marco Polo described it in his famous treatise The Travels. The balustrades along the length of the bridge are decorated by more than 400 stone lions, each one slightly different from all the others. On July 7, 1937, the Japanese Imperial Army and Nationalist Chinese soldiers exchanged fire at the bridge, an incident that led to the Japanese occupation of Beijing and war.

Celebrated for its Tibetan-styled, 167-ft (51-m) white dagoba (stupa), said to have been designed by a Nepalese architect, the temple dates to 1271, when Beijing was under Mongol rule. The temple is also noted for its fascinating collection of thousands of Tibetan Buddhist statues.

Built to welcome the year 2000, Beijing’s millennial structure is a curious bit of concrete constructivism that looks like something that might have adorned Moscow back in the 1920s. It is fashioned to resemble a giant tilted sundial. Inside is a plaza with the “Holy Fire of China” (a flame fed on natural gas), plus several exhibition halls.

The Ming Tombs are the resting place for 13 of the 16 Ming emperors. These are Confucian shrines and follow a standard layout of a main gate leading to a series of courtyards and a main hall, with a “soul tower” and burial mound beyond. The tombs are not as colorful and elaborate as Buddhist and Daoist structures, and only three have been restored and are open to the public, however the necropolis is definitely a worthwhile stop-off as part of an excursion to the Great Wall (see Ming Tombs).

Spirit Way at the Ming Tombs

Spirit Tower, Ming Tombs