The Arcs of Past Miracle

#beijingtrip Yuanmingyuan Park, built in 1709, also known as the Old Summer Palace, is located in Beijing's Haidian District, 20 kilometers northwest of Tiananmen Square and 5 kilometers northeast of the new Summer Palace.In the period from 1709 to 1860, the 350-hectare complex, which is 5 times the size of the Forbidden City, was a summer resort for the emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), and was destroyed in 1860. Despite the extensive damage, the ruins of the old Summer Palace remain open to the public and are an important tourist attraction in Beijing, where visitors can experience the former greatness of this place. There is also an exhibition hall (圆明时时时全), where the complete layout of Yuanmingyuan Park in its heyday is presented. The complex consists of three gardens: Yuanming Garden, Qichun Garden and Changchun Garden. Yuanming is the largest garden of the entire complex, and Qichun is the smallest, where the emperor's concubines used to live. In the Changchun Garden, there is the Xianglou Zone, where the best preserved ruins of Western-style structures are located. The central element of this part of the park were several hydraulic structures (fountains and pools) designed by the French scientist Michel Benoit (1715-1774), who was in the service of the Qing Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799), around which there were buildings in the Italian Baroque style, designed by the Italian courtier Giuseppe Castiglione. Like the rest of the old Summer Palace, the Siyanlou area was destroyed in a fire set by Anglo-French allied forces in 1860. However, the remaining parts of many structures can still be seen here, since the masonry was not destroyed by fire, and additional restoration work was also carried out in 1977-1992. The most convenient way to get to the park is by metro or taxi. 50 meters from the south gate No. 2 is the subway station YUANMINGYUAN Park Station (圆明)) of line No. 4 (exit B). Those who take a taxi need to show the driver the inscription "请带我到圆明明公公", which means "please take me to Yuanmingyuan Park. It will take about 40 minutes to drive from the center of Beijing.