Summer Palace 颐和园

Welcome, everyone! Welcome to the Summer Palace in Beijing. Today we'll be following the official East Palace Gate classic route: East Palace Gate → Hall of Benevolence and Longevity → Garden of Virtue and Harmony → Hall of Jade Ripples and Hall of Joyful Longevity → Long Corridor → Hall of Dispelling Clouds, Tower of Buddhist Incense and Sea of Wisdom → Marble Boat → Kunming Lake → Seventeen-Arch Bridge and South Lake Island → Bronze Ox, and finally out through the New Palace Gate.

Let's start with the Summer Palace itself. Often called a "museum of royal gardens," it is a Qing-dynasty masterpiece covering 3.009 square kilometers — three-quarters of which is water. What makes it truly extraordinary is how it weaves together the delicate refinement of southern Chinese garden traditions and the bold grandeur of northern landscapes into a single park. It is the pinnacle of classical Chinese garden design and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

We're now standing at the main entrance to the Summer Palace — the East Palace Gate. Everyone, look up at the plaque above the gate. Those three gold characters reading "Summer Palace" were written by Emperor Guangxu himself. Notice the nine golden dragons encircling them — this is the highest-ranking plaque anywhere in the entire palace complex. On either side of the gate crouches a bronze lion. See if you can tell them apart: the one on the left is the male, playing with an embroidered ball in his right paw — a symbol of power. The one on the right is the female, her left paw resting on a cub — a symbol of the imperial line carrying on through the generations.

Once inside, head west — the first great hall you'll reach is the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity, the imperial court where Qing emperors conducted state affairs when staying at the Summer Palace. It was first built during the Qianlong era. Inside, you'll find a dragon-and-phoenix throne symbolizing imperial authority, with a plaque above reading "May longevity and benevolence accord." Take a look at the forecourt: it is arranged with bronze dragons, phoenixes and a qilin, alongside a Taihu stone called the "Longevity Star Rock" — an elaborately sculpted ensemble that forms the most striking display of imperial ritual ceremony in the whole palace. This hall also witnessed a pivotal moment in history: after the Hundred Days' Reform collapsed in 1898, the power struggle between Empress Dowager Cixi and Emperor Guangxu played out right here. After the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity, we head to the largest surviving ancient theatre in China — the Garden of Virtue and Harmony.

We've now arrived at the Garden of Virtue and Harmony, home to the largest surviving ancient theatre in China — the very place where Empress Dowager Cixi came to watch opera.

Cixi was passionate about theatre, which is why this magnificent stage was built for her. Just look at the scale of it: the stage stands about 16 meters tall, roughly 12 meters wide and 10 meters deep, with three full tiers of seating — 258 seats in total, able to hold more than 200 spectators at once. A stage this large, with its three-story structure, could stage spectacular productions with "immortals descending from the heavens and demons rising from below the earth" — the place was full of hidden mechanisms and trap doors. The complete stage machinery and performance equipment are preserved inside to this day, keeping alive the full splendor of Qing court theatrical culture. The Garden of Virtue and Harmony's architecture is a masterwork of carved and painted craftsmanship — a fine example of classical Chinese building art. After the theatre, we move on to see the two private residences of the emperor and the empress dowager.

We've arrived at the Hall of Jade Ripples — Emperor Guangxu's private residence. It also carries a heavy history: after the Hundred Days' Reform failed, this is where Cixi had Emperor Guangxu confined. The name "Jade Ripples" alludes to a line from the Analects — "Jade without cutting cannot become a vessel; a person without learning cannot know the way" — expressing the hope that an emperor must never stop learning if he is to govern well. The hall's original furnishings remain exactly as they were: writing desks, beds, wardrobes, all still in place. Look at the well and the old scholar tree in the courtyard out front. During his years of confinement, that well and that tree were just about everything the imprisoned emperor could see from day to day. The Hall of Jade Ripples is quietly elegant in its architecture, and faces directly onto Kunming Lake — a sharp and melancholy contrast between the view and the life lived within.

Right next door is the Hall of Joyful Longevity — Empress Dowager Cixi's residence. First built during the Qianlong era under the name Qingyan Hall, it was later renamed Hall of Joyful Longevity, a name drawn from the Analects: "Joy expressed without excess, sorrow expressed without injury" — evoking a spirit of calm and measured composure. In stark contrast to the quiet austerity next door, this interior is lavishly appointed: rosewood furniture, jade pieces and fine ceramics fill the rooms. There are two things in the courtyard you'll want to notice: one is an enormous Ming-dynasty rock called "Qingzhi Peak," weighing 150 tons, a treasure the Qianlong Emperor had transported all the way from Suzhou; the other is an ancient magnolia tree that bursts into bloom each spring, making it one of the most beautiful sights in the Summer Palace. After the two residences, we make our way onto the Summer Palace's most famous gallery — the Long Corridor.

The painted gallery we're now walking through is the longest in the world — certified by the Guinness World Records in 1990 as the world's longest gallery.

Feel free to count as you go: the corridor stretches 728 meters in total, with 273 sections. It connects the Hall of Joyful Longevity to the east with the Tower of Buddhist Incense to the west, making it the most important scenic promenade in the Summer Palace. But the real thing to look at is right above your head. The beams and rafters overhead are covered with more than 14,000 paintings in the Suzhou style — over fourteen thousand panels, and almost no two are alike — depicting Chinese mythology, folk tales, scenes from classic literature, and studies of flowers, birds, fish and insects. These paintings fall into three broad categories: narrative scenes with figures, landscape scenery, and birds with auspicious imagery. The most captivating category is the narrative paintings, with around 300 panels depicting scenes from classic works such as Dream of the Red Chamber and Journey to the West. Walking this corridor is like flipping through an open-air picture book. At the far end, rising high on Longevity Hill ahead, is the defining landmark of the Summer Palace — the Tower of Buddhist Incense. We'll begin at the Hall of Dispelling Clouds, at the foot of the hill.

We're now standing on the central axis of Longevity Hill's south face. Running from the foot to the summit, this axis takes you through three landmarks in sequence: the Hall of Dispelling Clouds, the Tower of Buddhist Incense, and the Sea of Wisdom. We'll start at the Hall of Dispelling Clouds, at the base of the hill.

The Hall of Dispelling Clouds is where Empress Dowager Cixi celebrated her birthdays. First built in 1750 — the 15th year of the Qianlong reign — it originally served as the Great Thanksgiving Longevity Temple. It was burned down by Anglo-French forces in 1860 and rebuilt by Cixi in 1886 under its current name. The name itself is wonderfully evocative: it comes from a line in the Jin-dynasty poet Guo Pu's poem "Song of an Immortal Journey" — "The immortals part the clouds and emerge, and all that is seen is of gold and silver" — suggesting this is a dwelling fit for celestial beings. The throne inside is a Nine-Dragon Throne, and every decorative element is centered on the character for longevity. The entire Hall of Dispelling Clouds complex covers roughly 8,000 square meters, making it the most architecturally imposing ensemble in the Summer Palace.

Climbing the steps from there brings you to the Summer Palace's defining landmark — the Tower of Buddhist Incense. It stands on a 21-meter-high square stone terrace at the center of Longevity Hill's south face: an eight-sided, three-story, four-eaved tower, 41 meters tall, supported inside by eight massive ironwood columns. The structure is extraordinarily complex — a masterpiece of classical building craft. The Tower of Buddhist Incense is the highest point on all of Longevity Hill: from the top, the entire Summer Palace spreads out below, and the distant Beijing cityscape stretches to the horizon. Inside, a statue of Amitabha Buddha is enshrined — the place where Empress Dowager Cixi came each month to burn incense and pray.

Continuing up from the Tower of Buddhist Incense to the very summit of Longevity Hill, you reach the Sea of Wisdom — the final point on the Summer Palace's central axis. It is also known as the Beamless Hall, because the entire structure is built entirely of brick and stone, without a single timber beam. The outer walls are sheathed in yellow and green glazed tiles, with touches of purple and blue glazing at the crown. Most remarkable of all are the 1,110 glazed Buddha figures embedded in the outer walls. "Sea of Wisdom" is a Buddhist phrase meaning "the wisdom of the Tathagata is as vast as the ocean — boundless in breadth and depth." Because it is built entirely of masonry, it was not destroyed in the Anglo-French raid, making it one of the most intact Qianlong-era buildings remaining in the Summer Palace. From the hilltop, we descend to the lakeside to see the famous stone boat.

We've arrived at the western end of the Long Corridor, at the water's edge. The great stone vessel moored here on the shore is the Marble Boat — also called the Qingyan Boat — one of the most-photographed spots in the Summer Palace.

What makes it so distinctive is that it is a stone ship modeled on a European vessel. The Marble Boat is 36 meters long and 8 meters wide, weighing roughly 2,000 tons, built of white marble and brick. Notice the bronze anchors and mooring lines at the bow, the windows and cabin doors along the hull, and the ship-cabin decor inside — at first glance it looks every bit like a real vessel, yet the hull is fixed permanently to the shore and will never sail anywhere. The symbolism is cleverly layered: "Qingyan" is drawn from the phrase "clear rivers, calm seas," evoking lasting peace and prosperity; and a boat made of stone can never sink — a quiet allusion to the Qing dynasty's enduring stability. In a Chinese imperial garden, a Western-styled stone ship like this is the most architecturally exotic structure anywhere in the Summer Palace. After the Marble Boat, we turn our gaze to the vast expanse of water spread before us — Kunming Lake.

The broad expanse of water stretching out before us is Kunming Lake — the main body of water in the Summer Palace, covering around 220 hectares and making up three-quarters of the entire park.

Kunming Lake is not natural — it was dug by human hands. Originally called West Lake, the Qianlong Emperor had the former Wengshan Reservoir dredged and expanded as part of his efforts to improve the capital's water management, and that work gave us the shimmering lake we see today. Look out across it: the lake stretches wide and open, shimmering in every direction — mountains ripple across the horizon to the west, and Longevity Hill's layered pavilions rise to the north, mountains and water and architecture blending into a single panorama. Three islands sit in the lake's waters — South Lake Island, Zaojian Hall Island and Zhijing Pavilion Island. These are arranged to mirror the legendary three immortal mountains in the Eastern Sea of Taoist tradition — an evocation of paradise. The lake also conceals a grand design running through the entire palace: Kunming Lake's outline is shaped like a giant peach, and together with Longevity Hill to the north, the whole Summer Palace quietly encodes the imagery of good fortune, longevity and prosperity into its very landscape. We'll follow the lake southeast now to see the longest bridge on the water.

We've reached the long bridge that lies across the southeast corner of Kunming Lake — the Seventeen-Arch Bridge, the longest bridge in China's surviving imperial gardens.

The bridge runs 150 meters in length and 8 meters wide, and is made up of 17 arches, connecting the eastern shore with South Lake Island in the middle of the lake. Pay attention to the balustrades on either side: they are lined with 544 stone lions, each one in a different pose — vividly carved, and as celebrated as the stone lions of Beihai Park and Marco Polo Bridge. The bridge also has a phenomenon that appears just once a year: each year around the Winter Solstice, as the sun goes down in the late afternoon, the golden light falls at exactly the right angle to pass through every single arch at once, flooding each opening with a warm glow — the famous spectacle known as "golden light threading the arches." The bridge's length, width and height are precisely calibrated to match the scale of Kunming Lake and South Lake Island: it neither overpowers the scene nor shrinks from it, as if it had simply grown there naturally.

Cross the Seventeen-Arch Bridge and you arrive on South Lake Island — the island at the heart of Kunming Lake. It covers just over a hectare and is roughly circular in plan. The buildings on the island were all reconstructed after their destruction; the main structures today are Hanxu Hall and the Dragon King Temple. Hanxu Hall sits atop a rockery on the island's north side and is the largest building here — it was from this spot that Empress Dowager Cixi once watched the naval academy drills during the Guangxu reign. The island faces Longevity Hill across the water to the north, and was a favored spot for the imperial family to view the moon and watch water pageants. The scenery is lovely, making it one of the finest vantage points in the entire Summer Palace. Back on the shore, we head to see the bronze ox that guards the eastern bank.

We've arrived on the eastern shore of Kunming Lake, where this gilded bronze ox reclining on its stone base stands watch — the mythical guardian of the lake.

The Bronze Ox was cast in 1755, the 20th year of the Qianlong reign. It stands 1.14 meters tall, 1.75 meters long and 0.84 meters wide. Gilded all over and cast in bronze using the lost-wax method, it reclines on a white marble base carved with wave patterns. Why place an ox beside a lake? This continues an ancient tradition dating back to the mythic flood-tamer Yu the Great, who was said to have cast iron oxen to suppress floods — the old belief being that an ox could hold back water. Placing the Bronze Ox on the lakeshore was a prayer for Kunming Lake never to overflow and for the surrounding land to stay safe. Look at the ox's back: cast into it is the "Ode to the Golden Ox" in Emperor Qianlong's own hand, including the line "Cast in gold this divine ox, to calm and protect these waters forever." There's also a more romantic detail: the ox faces northwest, directly toward the site of the former Silkworm Temple on the lake's western shore — later known as the Weaver Girl Pavilion. Later generations came to see the ox on the east bank and the Weaver Girl across the lake as a nod to the legend of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, separated by the silver river between them — here, Kunming Lake. With the Bronze Ox, our journey through the Summer Palace is drawing to a close.

Friends, heading south from the Bronze Ox along the eastern shore of Kunming Lake, we arrive at today's exit — the New Palace Gate.

Standing here by the water and looking back, this is the perfect moment to close out our visit to the Summer Palace. We entered through the East Palace Gate, took in the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity where the emperor held court, the Garden of Virtue and Harmony where Cixi watched opera, walked past the Hall of Jade Ripples where Emperor Guangxu was confined and the Hall of Joyful Longevity where Cixi lived in splendor, admired more than fourteen thousand painted panels along the Long Corridor, climbed the central axis of Longevity Hill through the Hall of Dispelling Clouds, the Tower of Buddhist Incense and the Sea of Wisdom, and then visited the Marble Boat, Kunming Lake, the Seventeen-Arch Bridge, South Lake Island and the Bronze Ox that guards the waters. By the end of this route, you should be able to feel what makes the Summer Palace so remarkable — how one Longevity Hill and one Kunming Lake, together with all the shapes of land and water around them, were arranged to carry the auspicious meanings of good fortune, longevity and prosperity, while weaving together the delicate refinement of the south and the sweeping grandeur of the north.

From the Qianlong era's Qingyi Garden to the Summer Palace as rebuilt by Cixi, this park witnessed the final flowering and the eventual twilight of the Qing dynasty. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the supreme achievement of Chinese imperial garden art. Thank you all for spending today with us. We hope this "museum of royal gardens" leaves you with a wonderful memory. Safe travels, and until we meet again.