Beijing - One of the World’s Great Cities

Today our tour visited Tiananmen Square and The Forbidden City’s Imperial Palace. We had a special tour of the living quarters and some of the inner areas of the Imperial Palace. After lunch we will be meeting with silk, jewelry and the museum business leaders to discuss the role of the open market system in the Chinese economy.

The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. For almost five centuries, it served as the home of the Emperor and his household, as well as the ceremonial and political centre of Chinese government. Built from 1406 to 1420, the complex consists of 980 surviving buildings with 8,707 bays of rooms and covers 720,000 square metres. Construction lasted 15 years, and required more than a million workers.

The Imperial Palace

The design of the Forbidden City, from its overall layout to the smallest detail, was meticulously planned to reflect philosophical and religious principles, and above all to symbolise the majesty of Imperial power. Some noted examples of symbolic designs include:

• Yellow is the colour of the Emperor. Thus almost all roofs in the Forbidden City bear yellow glazed tiles
• The main halls of the Outer and Inner courts are all arranged in groups of three — the shape of the Qian triagram, representing Heaven. The residences of the Inner Court on the other hand are arranged in groups of six — the shape of the Kun triagram, representing the Earth
• The sloping ridges of building roofs are decorated with a line of statuettes lead by a man riding a phoenix and followed by an imperial dragon. The number of statuettes represents the status of the building — a minor building might have 3 or 5.
• The layout of buildings follows ancient customs laid down in the Classic of Rites. Thus, ancestral temples are in front of the palace. Storage areas are placed in the front part of the palace complex, and residences in the back

Tiananmen Square

Tiananmen Square has great cultural significance as a symbol because it was the site of several key events in Chinese history. The Tiananmen Gate was first built in the 1420s in the Ming Dynasty.

Tiananmen Square has been the site of a number of political events and student protests. These include the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China by Mao Zedong on October 1, 1949; annual mass military displays, and of course the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.

Don’t forget, you can follow me on Twitter for up to the minute update of the
China Stock Market and the 2008 China Investors Field Trip.

Coming to you live from Beijing on the 2008 China Investors Field Trip.

Committed To Your Profits In China,

Jim Trippon, CPA
Editor-In-Chief
China Stock Digest

P.S. Don’t forget about the special offer going on while I am in China. Order between now and October 24th, and receive $100 off the regular subscription price.

1 Year - $297 - includes $100 Off

2 Year - $497 - includes $100 Off