Travel Notes | The Beijing I photographed in those years: Dashilan, Imperial College and Ditan Temple Fair

Beijing is a city that I have visited many times as China ’s political, economic, cultural center , its influence is unmatched by other cities in China. This city has a very rich historical and cultural heritage. As the capital of the Ming and Qing dynasties, Old Beijing has left many interesting alleys and various architectural sites; as the capital of New China, Beijing is the world's capital. One of the busiest cities in the world.

Ancient and fashionable, alleys and high-rises, alleys and streets, every street and every building brings a strong visual enjoyment to people.

If you want to experience old Beijing, many people in Beijing will recommend Dashilan. This is a commercial street where you can feel the flavor of old Beijing.

In the late Qing Dynasty, there was a saying in old Beijing: "Go to the overpass to see things, and go to Dashilan to buy things." Dashilan Street was originally called Langfang Si Tiao and has a history of nearly 500 years.

The earliest large-scale fences in history were set up in the Ming Dynasty. In the first year of Hongzhi in the Ming Dynasty, wooden fences were set up at the entrances of various streets and alleys in Beijing in order to control social security in the capital. Among them, the fences on the four corridors were funded by merchants, which was particularly special. Because of its large size, it was called Dashilan. Over time, Dashilan replaced Langfang Si Tiao as the official name of this street.

As an old commercial street with hundreds of years of history, Dashilar has many well-known time-honored brands at home and abroad.

Dashilan is only 275 meters long and less than 5 meters wide. But this small alley is one of the most prosperous commercial streets in Beijing. There are many shops gathered here, and it is really "a dense collection of painting buildings, resplendent and auspicious" (from "Miscellaneous Ode to the Capital").

The Imperial College is the highest institution of learning (Tai Xue) and an administrative institution for managing education established by the state in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. It is the only fully preserved site of the highest institution of higher education in ancient times in China. The overall building faces south and is a three-in courtyard, occupying an area of The land area exceeds 27,000 square meters. On the central axis, there are Jixian Gate, Taixue Gate, Glazed Archway, Piyong Hall, Yilun Hall and Jingyi Pavilion.

The Imperial College was the highest institution of learning in China in the past. It is now a museum that records some imprints of the imperial examination system of China's feudal dynasty. But the exhibits here, except for the things that existed here a hundred years ago, are all made up, mostly "picture exhibitions". But if you like architecture, calligraphy, and stone carvings, this is definitely a good place to go.

The Imperial College and the Confucius Temple are actually together. We entered the Dacheng Hall, which is the main hall inside the Imperial College, where we can see the memorial tablets dedicated to Confucius and his disciples. As the founder of Confucian education in China's feudal society, there is no doubt that Confucius has a lofty status in the Chinese cultural circle.

There are many strange and strange big trees in the Imperial College. These trees should all have a long history, because each one is extremely strong, and the surface has formed various patterns of vicissitudes with age. . There are many burrs growing on some tree trunks, forming various weird shapes, which are quite beautiful when photographed.

here The traditional ancient buildings with red walls and blue tiles are very suitable for taking photos. If you go to Beijing and want to find a place with few people to take photos, you can visit the Imperial College.

To experience the old Beijing style and Chinese New Year flavor, you can also visit the temple fairs in Beijing. Visiting the Temple of Earth and Temple Fair during the Spring Festival has been a custom that has been followed for many years by the people in the capital. As the earliest temple fair restored in Beijing, the Ditan Spring Festival Cultural Temple Fair is famous in Beijing for its authentic folk customs and traditional folk characteristics.

The above are photos I took in 2013. These days, I have reorganized the photos I took in the past. Although they are all random photos taken over the past few years, it is still interesting to look at them when I have nothing to do.