Walk Beijing_ A stroll around the Summer Palace

This is the entrance of the Summer Palace, an imperial garden of the Qing dynasty in China. This is one of the world heritage sites and as UNESCO rightfully calls it, it's a masterpiece of Chinese landscape garden design. We are now inside the palace. The first place you will see is the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity. This is the administrative area of the Emperor's internal and political affairs were discussed here. So what's the story behind the Summer Palace? When Emperor Qinlong of the Qing dynasty took power, he built this garden for his mother in 1750. It was meant to be a resort for the imperial family to get away from Beijing's summer heat as well as away from the busy capital. There's even a theater at the Summer Palace. It's called the Grand Stage and it's at the Garden of Virtue and Harmony. Emperor Guangxu and his mother used to watch performances of the Peking Opera here. Three floors and 21 meters in height, it's known to be the best preserved and largest ancient theater in China. I'm walking along the Long Corridor, the most classic feature on the grounds of the palace. It's 728 meters long and that makes it the longest corridor in Chinese classic gardens and parallel to the Kunming Lake. So you can get a wide view of the lake and the hill from here. You can also see the marble boat which was built for the imperial family to have a spectacular view of the Kunming Lake. It is the only western style structure in the Summer Palace. The beauty about this corridor are the 14,000 Su-styled painted stories about Chinese culture. You can guess the story from the settings, the clothes and the movements. They have been painted with raw colors of minerals to allow the paintings to last longer. As you walk along the Long Corridor, you will come to the core part of the area of the palace. It's called the Hall of Dispelling Clouds. This building complex was built by Emperor Qianlong as a gift for his mother's 60th birthday. A very generous gift, splendid structure with red columns and a roof covered with golden yellow tiles. Above the Hall of Dispelling Clouds is another symbolic structure in the palace, a classic work of architecture. It's called the Tower of Buddhist Incense. I'm walking along Kunming Lake. It's about 20 past four in the afternoon local Beijing time. The entire place is packed because everyone is waiting to get a sunset view of the entire Kunming Lake. The Summer Palace is the largest and best preserved royal garden in China and also in the world. It's a beauty not to be missed.