Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
INTRODUCTION TOBEIJING
Crisscrossed by freeways, spiked with high-rises and soaked in neon, Beijing (
北京
,
běijīng) represents China at its most dynamic. This vivid metropolis leaves an indelible
impression on every traveller who passes through - by turns brash, gaudy, elegant,
charming,filthyandhistoric,Beijingisnever,
ever
dull.Yetdespiteitsrelentlessmodern-
ity, the city remains rooted in the past: much of the drama of China's imperial history
was played out here, the emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties enthroned at the
centre of the Chinese universe in the Forbidden City, now one of Asia's most famous
draws.ThoughBeijingisaverydifferentcitytoday,itremainsspirituallyandgeograph-
ically the buzzing heart of the nation, an irresistible lure to the many Chinese who come
to fulfil their dreams.
According to some accounts, this was the first city in the world to hit a population of one mil-
lion, and it should come as little surprise to see the remote control of urban development stuck
on permanent fast-forward here. The Chinese character for “demolish” (
拆
, chāi), painted in
white on old buildings - and the cranes that skewer the skyline - attest to the speed of
change
,
though this affects more than just the city's architecture: as China embraces capitalism, social
structures are also being revolutionized. The government is as determined as ever to repress
dissent, but outside the political arena just about anything goes these days. Students in the
latest fashions while away their time in internet cafés, dropouts mosh in punk clubs, bohemi-
ans dream up boutiques over frappuccinos. New
prosperity
is evident everywhere - witness
all the Mercedes-driving businessmen - but not everyone has benefited: migrant day-labourers
wait for work outside the stations, and homeless beggars, not long ago a rare sight, are now as
common as in Western cities.
The first impression of Beijing, for both foreigners and visiting Chinese, is often of a bewil-
dering vastness, not least in the sprawl of uniform apartment buildings in which most of the
city's 22 million-strong population are housed, and the eight-lane freeways that slice it up. It's
a perception reinforced on closer acquaintance by the concrete desert of
Tian'anmenSquare
,
and the gargantuan buildings of the modern executive around it. The main
touristsights
- the
Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and the Great Wall - also impress with their scale, though
more manageable grandeur is offered by the city's attractive
temples
, including the Tibetan-
