The Summer Palace | In a century of years, enter a dream in Qianlong's paintings

The Summer Palace, like a frozen poem Narrates the glory and desolation of the Qing Dynasty In the vast expanse of this royal garden It seems one can hear the babbling brook of history Feel the vicissitudes of time as the sea changes into mulberry fields Ascending the stone steps of the Tower of Buddhist Incense Under the azure sky Glazed tiles sparkle with specks of light The entire Kunming Lake comes into view The lake surface is mostly calm Like an old sage who has seen the world, quiet and composed Sitting quietly on the bench by the lake The distant mountains are lush, the cold smoke of dusk One can't help but be intoxicated by the lake and mountain scenery Every corner of the garden has been meticulously carved Perfectly adorning the romantic charm of the garden Inside the Summer Palace, is the pinnacle of architectural art from hundreds of years ago Outside the Summer Palace, is a bustling hubbub The interweaving of two eras evokes endless emotions At the Summer Palace, I only do 2 things! 1. Wander in the painted scenes 🖼️ 2. Watch the sunset by Kunming Lake 🌇 Bring the family to tour the Summer Palace in Beijing (covering important attractions, not tiring like special forces, and not a cursory visit!! Play for over 2 hours, totaling 15,000 steps! The Summer Palace is 4.5 times the size of the Forbidden City, so it might be very tiring to visit it all, hence we didn't cover all the attractions. We arrived at the North Palace Gate at 16.00 (it's advised not to arrive later than 17.30) 🚇 Entrance method: Exit D of Beigongmen Subway Station, turn left and walk 300 meters to reach the Summer Palace (North Palace Gate) 👟 Route: Suzhou Street — Four Great Continents — Wander in the Painted Scenes — Long Corridor — Tower of Buddhist Incense — Hall of Joyful Longevity — Yulang Hall — Summer Palace Museum — Zhichun Pavilion — Seventeen-Arch Bridge — Exit from the New Palace Gate ▪️ Suzhou Street: Built during Qianlong's reign to imitate the water towns of the south (dreamy linkage with the Story of Yanxi Palace) If you don't buy a combined ticket, you need to purchase a separate ticket for Suzhou Street. (You can overlook it from above, no need to buy a ticket to go down) ▪️ Four Great Continents: A group of Tibetan-style religious buildings built during the Qianlong period ▪️ Wander in the Painted Scenes: Especially beautiful❗ I think it's the most beautiful part of the Summer Palace, just walk up the hill from the bridge above Suzhou Street, and you'll get there soon ▪️ Colored Painting Long Corridor: The longest gallery in Chinese classical gardens ▪️ Tower of Buddhist Incense: Requires a ticket 🎫 (except with a combined ticket) It is the compositional center of the entire Summer Palace. Inside the tower is a bronze statue of the Thousand-Handed Guanyin ▪️ Hall of Joyful Longevity: The residence of Empress Dowager Cixi within the garden ▪️ Yulang Hall: After the failure of the Hundred Days' Reform, it became the place where Empress Dowager Cixi imprisoned Emperor Guangxu ▪️ Summer Palace Museum: Stops admitting visitors after 18.00, we didn't go in ▪️ Zhichun Pavilion: The best viewing spot for Wanshou Mountain and Kunming Lake ▪️ Wenchang Pavilion: The largest of the six city gates within the Summer Palace ▪️ Seventeen-Arch Bridge: The longest existing bridge in our country's royal gardens, with more than five hundred unique stone lions on the bridge That's it, I wish everyone a happy visit!