Under Construction - very extensive series. Explore the Chongwen and Xuanwu Hutong starting near QianMen, just South of TiananMen Square. Catch the athmosphere of the Old Imperial City of Beijing walking the tight small lanes of the old city. Now fast disappearing with the development of Beijing for the 2008 Olympics and beyond, the Chongwen and Xuanwu-Hutong area's are partially protected. The China Report has been documenting past & present Hutong since November 2002. Coming Soon at China Report !
Tian An Men , or the Gate of Heavenly Peace at DongChangÁn Jie and TiananMen Squares Northern Flank. Behind the traffic at Beijing's busiest avenue , TiananMen and the Southern Buildings of the Forbidden City are clearly visible.
Located in the shadow of QianMen or the South Gate, the Old QianMen Train Station is almost like a bonus-monument to the TiananMen Square. Part of the Old Beijing-Fengtai Railway, and located near the Foreign Legation Quarter of Beijing this Station was an important facility. This elongated Virtual Tour gives an impression of the rich history of the Station, and takes a look at todays situation where not the Station but the whole QianMen Area is under renovations.
Tourist Bus to 13 Ming Dynasty Tombs and Badaling Great Wall of China - Take a Peek at the Qianmen Tour Bus Station ( across from the Old Qianmen Train Station ) for an easy and cheap unguided getaway to the Great Wall of China at its nearest spot outside Beijing and the unforgettable historic 13 Ming Dynasty Tombs, which are all on the UNESCO United Nations World Heritage List. Take a Tourbus from here or other points in the Inner City. Updates as we Discover More for You !
Tourist Bus Excursion
Welcome to the world famous and renowned TiananMen Square , the Square of Heavenly Peace at the political heart of China's People's Republic. Monuments include remnants of the Former Front Gate, The Great Hall of The People, The National Museum, The Monument to the Heroes of the Revolution, the China National Flag, TiananMen The Gate and ofcourse the Famed Mao Zedong Memorial Mausoleum. Walk around the largest square parading ground in the World and enjoy the sights, sounds & scenes.
A map of the wider TiananMen Square area plus Forbidden City Area and surroundings. A map of the wider Palace Museum / Forbidden City area , with the Palace Moat, Zhongshan Park and the Park of the Peoples Culture Included. Very Accurate Map of The Imperial Palace Museum Grounds, including names of all Pavillions and the area of Zhongshan Park and the Park of the Peoples' Culture
Housed in a magnificient and solemn western-styled building located in the famous Foreign Legation Quarter ( former ) of Beijing, directly East of Tian An Men Square , The Beijing Police Museum is the showcase of the Public Security Bureau and home to extensive exhibition on the history of the Beijing Police since the 1949 founding of the Peoples Repblic of China.
This 100% unique digital photographic report gives a full introduction to the museum.
Soundbonus: Chill Out Melody Song "Lost In Beijing", By Omar Chali.
Full Map of the Beijing Subway System of 2015 AD - Click Map for FULL Version !
The Square of Heavenly Peace is located at the very Center of the City of Beijing, just South of The Palace Museum.
The Square can be accessed from all directions, North-South and West through several pathways and is reachable by Bus, Metro/Subway, Car or Taxi, Rickshaw or Bicycle and on Foot. Some daring Tourist have even been spotted on Skates, but this is hardly advisable with current traffic levels.
The Only Thing to Remember is that no vehicles are alllowed to stop, drop off passengers or park immediately at TiananMen Square, TianAnMen Gate, or the two flanks formed by the Great Hall and the National Museum. There are no Bus Stops at the Square nor a Subway Station. In other words - you can get there, but you can't get off.
The Easiest Road to The Square of Heavenly Peace
therefor leads by Subway. Get off conveniently near the Square by traveling on the Cenral Red Line to TiananMen East- or West-Stations, or by the Circular Blue line to end up at QianMen Station, on the very southern Tip of TiananMen Square.
Please use the Below Satellite Image based Map of the Square of Heavenly Peace to navigate the Square, Monuments and various roads leading to and from the Square.
Finally, located at various spots around the South Side of the Huge Square of Heavenly Peace are a number of smaller but still interesting or useful places to visit.
Off from TiananMen Square, just about Due East from Chairman Mao Mausoleum, the small Entrance to (West) Legation Street leads up some stairs and then away from the the Square of Heavenly Peace. Passing underneath a European Styled Building decorated with a Giant Red Star, here one enters into the Former Legation Quarter of Beijing. The Legations Quarter used to be the Home of the Foreign (mainly European) Embassies in Beijing, forced upon the Chinese People in several Colonial Wars during the 19Th Century and is currently the Home of the Beijing Municipal Government and the Security Ministry. At some distance from TianAnMen Square down the Road
located inside what was once the First National City Bank of New York (Huaqi Yinhang), a white stone marbled building along the Southern Side of the road near it's intersection with Zheng Yi Lu, or former Canal Street There is more to be seen here. Not only are there several former Embassy Buildings on the Street and some other relics of the Colonial Era legations nearby, halfway down the Road sits the Petition Office to the Beijing or even National Government. Here, hidden from view behind the New Ministry of Public Security and near the backdoor of the Supreme Peoples
Court, long lines of the down-trodden line up daily with their sheets of official papers in the vague hope of turning abouts the misfortunes in their life that they see as caused and/or aggravated by the State. It is a rare and not necessarily a pleasant sight but certainly among the noteworthy informations about this place. The Truth is that in the year 2008, no less then 3 persons found their Death through the participation in the Petition Line. At least one of them was beaten to death by the Guards, so if you are passing the Petitions Office, have a look but don't fiddle around with Camera's too much, or otherwise do anything that may deemed provocative or as unwanted attention.
Still further to the South from Tian'AnMen Square, some
parked along QianMen DongDajie' - QianMen East Street, but at this non-descript spot Busses are available to take you to The Ming Tombs (ShiSanLing) & Badaling Great Wall of China. Extend your visit to Beijing by getting on and touring North and Outside of the Busy City. Return trips are easy.
On the Corner of the Final Part of The Square of Heavenly Peace here
stands the Old QianMen Station, in the early 20Th Century a busy Railway Station servicing the City of Beijing, and the point where Last Emperor Pu Yi boarded a Train, to be headed for his Manchukuo Adventure with the Japanese. When their were no airports yet, the QianMen Station was one of the main traffic hubs for travelers to and from the City. It was often described in books and writings by Foreign Journalists and an equally popular subject as the Beijing Hotel.
The Area immediatly South and beyond the Old QianMen Station, has recently been under reconstruction.
Beyond the Metal Walls here lay the extends of the QianMen Hutong of Beijing, which had been the meager homes of the common Beijing Citizens since their creation, as far back as the Yuan Dynasty and the early Ming Dynasty when huge numbers flocked to the New Capital.The new arrivals swelled the numbers of Citizens, and all needed homes in various Hutong, where their home districts and area for living were assigned
depending on Status, Influence and Wealth. Untill very recently, these small lanes between modest homes, filled with the daily lives of the many, Mao's Masses, composed the true caracter of the Capital of Beijing. Busstling Alleys interspaced with narrow hidden passages and the courtyard's of thousands of families had a unique caracter and athmosphere. There were miles and miles of these, filled with the smell of coal fitted stoves and only seperated by the major boulevards, and everywhere was a different scene to come across. In a cultural sense, the Hutong were the warm and vibrant heart of the City and The People.
The QianMen Hutong Area begins in the North-West at QianMen, South of the Old QianMen Station. From where it runned as far East as ChongwenMen, the next City Gate - now demolished- and the Home of the Uyghur Ethnic Minority Groups in the ancient Feudal Imperial Capital. Around
Unfortunately however, the Hutong of QianMen suffered a large trauma as it payed the final Price for the unavoidable Modernization needs of the City. After some 800 years of continuous existence a large number of the Hutong Alleys of QianMen had to be destroyed to make way for modern developments such as better infra-structure and modern energy efficient apartments with proper sanitation and less fire hazards.
(Read more about the Hutong, the Destruction and Today's Situation in the Report on theQianMen Hutong Alley's, which were ranked high among the most scenic in the City).
This Ends the Tour of The Square of Heavenly Peace in Beijing. More Updates will Follow along in the Future.
Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall
Although housed in a large building just adjacent the Old QianMen Station, and spread along QianMen Dongdajie' the Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall might well be overlooked by interested visitors. Just around the South-West Corner of the Square of Heavenly Peace stands the Exhibition on the Future Design of Beijing, already partially completed for the 2008 Olympic Games and set to be full filled in 2010 AD.
Just a 150 meters down the south side of QianMen East Street stands the interesting Beijing Planning Exhibition Hall with it's Great Exhibit on the Developments of the Modern City of Beijing to be completed in 2010 AD. The Spectacular Exhibits include a satellite Image based maquette of the Central City and new Monuments such as the New CCTV Headquarters in Chaoyang District ! It is well worth a visit, especially for those interested in modern architecture. The new City of Beijing has plenty of modern buildings to please with. Apart from the Birds Nest and other state-of-the-art modern sports buildings constructed for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, there are several new Buildings just completed in the now very Modern Chaoyang District. These range from the smaller Twins Mall and nearby
"The Place", to gargantuan highrises in Eastern most ChaoYang such as the New CCTV building. Apart from all this modernity there is also attention for the preservation's of the Old City and Monuments included in the Plan. Among the preserved area's described by the plan are the nearby area's of the QianMen Hutong, as well as the Dashilan Area and Hutong. Go inside for a visit to the Hall if you would like to have all the interesting details.
Scenes from the Beijing QianMen Hutong.
As said, beyond the Old QianMen Station lay the north border of the QianMen Hutong and wider Hutong Alley's of the Chongwen District of Beijing.To the South from QianMen running along the Eastern Flank of QianMen Dajie' stood mainly rows and rows of Hutong homes, in between of which at regular intervals there were various markets abundant which such fresh foods as fish & Chickens -killed on the Spot or to take-away live- , Chinese Cole, various herbs and spices including of course many red peppers, fruits in summer and always wares for househeold use, in need by someone no doubt.
the ChongwenMen, the Uyghurs had their own Hutong stretch due South and Outside of the Gate, bordering with the QianMen Section at ChongwenMen Wai Dajie' (ChongwenMen South Street). This ChongwenMen section of the famous Beijing Hutong has also recently been levelled making way for such modern wonders as the Glory City Appartments and other less glorious blocks of mass modern housing. Only a few remnants remain, the two most important of which
ways around from the South-East Corner past the entrance to the pedestrian tunnel underneath QianMen Dong Dajie' is the location of the useful QianMen Tour Bus Station. One might have missed it through the abundance of Guided Tours & Groups that merge from Busses
If you prefer to Tour within the City, try taking the Bus Line to The Summer Palace Park & Museum located in North-Western Haidian District, The correct Bus Station for which lies just across the road underneath the South Wall of QianMen Tower. Another option is to continue southward on your browse around The Square of Heavenly Peace, pass through the Tunnel underneath QianMen East Street and make choice where to go next.
A View at the Square of Heavenly Peace, from the 1st Floor of Ming Tien Coffee Language, a now closed establishment with a certain grandeur.
First and Foremost, the busy and Kozy Feeling shops built in a concrete structured arch around the Old QianMen Tower were stripped empty at the end of the Summer of 2005 AD.Gone were suddenly the loud but still comforting shouts of the salesmen and women. No longer were the stalls with snacks, nor the beggars, among whom an especially aggaravated case of frostbite followed by a lenghty footrot that had exposed all the bones below the ankle. The grandiose view, enjoyed by the better off, from Ming Tien Coffee Language & Restaurant down onto the Lights of the Towers and The Square of Heavenly Peace was no longer to be had.
Not much after which the Entire Area, including the North End of QianMen Dajie' where sectioned off and hidden from view with high metal walls.
To Great Hall of the Peoples West Street (Renmin Dahui Tang Xi Lu) and the National Theatre.
East
Easily navigate the various sections of the Square of Heavenly Peace using below Satellite Image and Pages with Fully detailed Descriptions of the 4 Section of North, South, Flanks and the Area around the South of the Giant Square, starting in the North and Ending Up in the very South around the Former Front Gate of the Imperial Capital of Emperors !
