DK Travel : Beijing : Places of interest

Page
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

National Art Museum of China

The largest art gallery in China was one of ten key buildings erected in 1959 to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic. It has no permanent collection, rather its 14 halls, which are spread over three floors, are employed to host a constant rotation of temporary exhibitions of Chinese and international art.
National Art Museum of China

The largest art gallery in China.
National Grand Theater

Completed in 2006, Beijing’s new opera house is already a major city landmark. Designed by French architect Paul Andreu, it is built of glass and titanium and takes the form of a giant parabolic dome – earning it the nickname the “Giant Egg.” The high-tech lighting that illuminates the exterior is reflected in a moat, while the entrance is through an underwater tunnel.
Natural History Museum

Neo-Classical Socialist Chinese – but nice inside.
Natural History Museum

As long as you steer them clear of the horror show that is the exhibit of partially dissected human bodies, children will love the giant animatronic dinosaurs and prehistoric skeletons, as well as the plethora of stuffed animals of all species and sizes (see Natural History Museum).
Natural History Museum

An overbearing piece of 1950s architecture houses a great collection of dinosaur skeletons, as well as stuffed pandas and other animals. There are also fish, both dead (preserved in formaldehyde) and alive (in the aquarium). Visitors of a nervous disposition may want to skip the partially dissected human cadavers, also pickled in formaldehyde, which are displayed up on the third floor.
New China Children’s Store

A monster children’s store on Beijing’s main shopping street, with four floors of everything from carry cots and strollers to masses of local and imported toys. There’s even an in-store play area.
North Cathedral

Not far west of Bei Hai Park, this cathedral is a twin-towered piece of Gothic confectionery, painted in blue with white trim, like a Wedgwood dish. But the bright façade masks a bloody past: not long after the Jesuits finished the church in 1889 it came under siege from the Boxers during the 1900 rebellion. Many of the congregation sheltering inside were killed.
Nuren Jie

“Women’s Street” is a relatively undeveloped area just north of the Lufthansa Center and Kempinski Hotel, between the Third and Fourth Ring Roads. It’s where to shop for flowers and tropical fish at the Lai Tai Market and for cheap mobiles at the Grand World Electrical Market. There’s also a lively nightlife street here, home to the New Get Lucky music bar among others.
Peking Man Site

In the 1920s, archeologists removed from a cave at Zhoukoudian some 40-odd fossilized bones and primitive implements, which they identified as the prehistoric remains of Peking Man. It was thought that this exciting discovery provided the much sought-after link between Neanderthals and modern humans. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage site, the area is geared toward specialists, although the small museum has an interesting collection of tools, and bone fragments. Peking Man himself is not here – his remains mysteriously disappeared during World War II.