| China |
| 2006 |
| Beijing |
| The Forbidden City & The Palace Museum |
| The Imperial Palace remained the residence of the emperors for nearly 500 years (15th-early 20th century), and was the actual and symbolic seat of imperial power. It was built in the Ming Dynasty (1406 - 1420 AD). This magnificent, palatial architectural complex covers an area of over 2,350,000 sq.ft and contains 9,999 rooms. The largest complex of its kind in the world, it is surrounded by ten-foot-high walls that are crowned by four observation towers and flanked by a deep moat. |
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| The Great Wall |
| The Great Wall of China was built over 2,000 years ago,by the 1st emperor of China (221 B.C - 206 B.C.). After subjugating and uniting China from 7 Warring States, the emperor connected and extended 4 old fortification walls along the north of China that originated about 700 B.C. (over 2500 years ago). The Great Wall is one of the largest building construction projects ever completed. It stretches across the mountains of northern China, winding north and northwest of Beijing. It is constructed of masonry, rocks and packed-earth. It was over 5,000 km long. Its thickness ranged from about 4.5 to 9 mtrs and was up to 7.5 mtrs tall. During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), it was enlarged to 6,400 km and renovated over a 200 year period, with watch-towers and cannons added |
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| Going-up to the wall with the cable car. |
| Enjoying the breath-taking sites of theGreat Wall. |
| An exciting slide ride down from the wall. We love it so much! |
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| Other Sites in Beijing |
| Mao Tsedong's maosoleum at the Tianmen Square |
| Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall: Showcasing the miniature of Beijing city |
| Peking Roast Duck lunch at the famous Qianmen Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant |
| It is very interesting that the restaurant is monitoring the number of ducks they have served everyday. A huge digital counter is visible to all the guests in the restaurant. We were given a certificate of the duck they served to us,stating 171,549th. |
| Schindler's Tankstelle Restaurant: It is famous for serving very good German food and beer. |
| Greatwall Restaurant: Chinese lunch with my friends Alice & Karin at Sheraton Hotel |
| Phrik Thai Restaurant: our favorite place The food is really yummy!!!!! |
| Dinner with Herbert's Colleagues in Holiday Inn |