China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the world's second-most-populous country. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and borders fourteen countries by land. With an area of nearly 9.6 million square kilometers (3,700,000 sq mi), it is the third-largest country by total land area. The country is divided into 34 province-level divisions, inclusive of 23 provinces, five autonomous regions, four municipalities, and two semi-autonomous special administrative regions. Beijing is the national capital, while Shanghai is the most populous city and largest financial center.

Beijing is a global city and one of the world's leading centres for culture, diplomacy, politics, finance, business and economics, education, research, language, tourism, media, sport, science and technology and transportation.  It is home to the headquarters of most of China's largest state-owned companies and houses the largest number of Fortune Global 500 companies in the world, as well as the world's four biggest financial institutions by total assets.  It is also a major hub for the national highway, expressway, railway, and high-speed rail networks. 

Travel to Beijing

1. Air: Beijing Capital International Airport (www.bcia.com.cn); Beijing Daxing International Airport (https://www.bdia.com.cn)

2. Train: Beijing West Railway Station; Beijing South Railway Station; Beijing Railway Station (https://www.12306.cn/en/index.html)

Get around Beijing

1. Beijing Subway and ticketing information (https://www.bjsubway.com)

2. Beijing Public Transport and ticketing information (http://www.bjbus.com)

3. Beijing Taxi Service (https://cz.jtw.beijing.gov.cn)

Tourism attractions in Beijing

1. The Great Wall (http://www.badaling.cn)

2. The Forbidden City (https://www.dpm.org.cn/Home.html)

4. Tiananmen Square (https://yuyue.tamgw.beijing.gov.cn)

5. The Summer Palace (https://www.summerpalace-china.com)

6. Beihai Park (https://www.beihaipark.com.cn)

7. Jingshan Park (http://www.bjjspark.com/index.jhtml)

8. Temple of Heaven (http://www.tiantanpark.com/)

9. The Thirteen Tombs and the Divine Road (https://www.mingshisanling.com/)

10. Hutong

Catering in Beijing

1. Beijing Roast Duck: Beijing Roast Duck is one of the famous traditional dishes in China. It is beloved by food enthusiasts worldwide for its crispy golden skin and tender, juicy meat. The duck is usually served with thin pancakes, sliced scallions, and cucumber strips, offering a delightful aroma and a rich mouthfeel.

2. Tanghulu: Tanghulu, sugarcoated haws on a stick, is a traditional winter snack in Beijing. It consists of skewered fruits dipped in a sweet syrup. Every year, as the weather cools down, Tanghulu sales start heating up on almost every street corner in Beijing.

3. Peacake: Peacake is a kind of snack for summer refreshing. It's of pale-yellow color and cool taste. Once you have a bite, it immediately melts softly. The reason why it's called peacake ("Wandouhuang" in Chinese) is that its main ingredient is pea ('Wandou") and its color is yellow ("Huang").

4. Traditional Beijing Noodles: Traditional Beijing Noodles is of good taste and easy to make. Prepare well all the vegetables including cucumbers, toons, bean sprouts, green beans, soybeans as the auxiliary ingredients. Put the diced meat, ginger and other food into the pan, add yellow soybean paste or sweet soybean paste to cook and then have the paste done. You can pour the vegetables and paste into the noodles directly from the boiling water or first have the noodles dipped into the cool water and then pour the vegetables and paste into the bowl according to personal preferences.