First Day Adventures

We here at China Discovery Tours would like our friends and readers to be able to get a better feel for China and all of the remarkable things that it has to offer. We would like to have the opportunity to get everyone better acquainted with the different historical sites, located within the various cities of China.

A great number of our tours start out with a flight from LAX, SFO, or JFK airports to Beijing (PEK). Upon arrival, right away you start out your day with experiencing different sites of Beijing that are pretty popularly known. Here is a little bit more in detail, what you might get to see firsthand on your first day in Beijing, China.

The Birds Nest and the Water Cube

Both of these buildings were sites of the 2008 Olympic Games.

The Birds Nest, also known as Beijing National Stadium was designed from the study of "Chinese Ceramics", and implemented steel beams in order to hide supports for the retractable roof; giving the stadium the appearance of a "Bird's nest." This facility was used to host the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2008 Olympics, Athletic Competitions, and the Football Final. The facility can hold up to 91,000 people at a time.

The Water Cube, more commonly known as Beijing National Aquatic Center. This building was used in the 2008 Olymic games to feature such events as Swimming, Diving, and Synchronized Swimming. The facility can hold up to 17,000 people at a time.


The Summer Palace

The Summer Palace, a masterpiece of Chinese landscape design, is situated 9.3 miles from central Beijing. Built during the Jin Dynasty, it is the archetypal Chinese garden, and is ranked among the most noted and classical gardens in the world. In 1998, it was listed a a World Heritage Sit by UNESCO. Composed mainly of Longevity Hill and Kunming Lake, The Summer Palace occupies an area of 726.5 acres, three quarters of which is water.

It consists of over 3,000 structures including pavilions, towers, bridges, and corridors. During the war of 1860 the palace was largely destroyed by fires started by Anglo-French allied forces, and was rebuilt for Empress Dowager Cixi in 1888. It was opened to the public in 1911.

Now you have a little idea of what you'd see on the first day of one of our tours. In the next entry, we'll continue detailing the historical sites included in many of our trips. We hope that you'll return to see what we have to say next.