Eternal glory to the heroes of the people who laid down their lives in the people's war of liberation and the people's revolution in the past three years!
Eternal glory to the heroes of the people who laid down their lives in the people's war of liberation and the people's revolution in the past thirty years!
Eternal glory to the heroes of the people who from 1840 laid down their lives in the many struggles against domestic and foreign enemies and for national independence and the freedom and well-being of the people!

On the pedestal of the tablet are huge bas-reliefs depicting eight major revolutionary episodes, which can be read in chronological order in a clockwise direction from the east:

1. Destruction of opium at Humen (1839), in the run-up to the First Opium War
2. Jintian Uprising, the catalyst for the Taiping Revolution (1851)
3. Wuchang Uprising, the catalyst for the Xinhai Revolution (1911)
4. May 4th Movement (1919)
5. May 30 Movement (1925)
6. Nanchang Uprising (1927)
7. War of Resistance Against Japan (1931-1945)
8. Crossing the Yangtze River Campaign in the Chinese Civil War (1949)

The monument has also served as the centre of large-scale mourning activities that later developed into protest and unrest, such as the deaths of Premier Zhou Enlai (which developed into the Tiananmen Square protests of 1976) and Hu Yaobang (which developed into the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989).

The Monument to the People's Heroes (Chinese: 人民英雄纪念碑; pinyin: Rénmín Yīngxióng Jìniànbēi) is a ten-story obelisk that was erected as a national monument of the People's Republic of China to the martyrs of revolutionary struggle during the 19th and 20th centuries. It is located in the southern part of Tiananmen Square in Beijing, to the north of Mausoleum of Mao Zedong. 

It began in Southern China as a fertility rite performed to ensure bountiful crops. The day is also known as Poet’s Day, in honor of Qu Yuan. On the fifth day of the fifth lunar month in the year 278 BC, Qu Yuan threw himself into the Mi-Lo River because the king of Chu did not recognize his correct stand nor appreciate his suggestions for governing the country. Additionally, treacherous officials slandered him. The people of Chu pitied him and rushed in their boats to try to save him. Later, similar stories emerged and to this day, the story of Qu Yuan remains the strongest link to the festival's origins. Dragon-boat racing gradually developed into a professional competition with governmental influence from local folk to finally forming a dragon-boat sport culture.

Silver Fox Cave is about 70kms from Beijing city proper.It is one of the main scenic spot of the water-eroded caves found in west Beijing. Silver Fox Cave was discovered by chance in July 1991. It is on the site of a small village-run coal pit that is still operating today. Local miners used to put debris such as rocks and earth into a hole they had dug there. To their surprise, the hole never seemed to fill up. Therefore, a miner scooted down the hole and discovered the cave. Since there is a fox-shaped snow-white calcite crystal which is very rare and precious, therefore, the cave got the name Yinhu (Silver Fox).This multilayer karst cave is luxuriantly a wonderful spectacle. The winding cave is about 5,000 meters (5,470 yards) long, and nearly 3,000 meters (3,280 yards) is open to tourists.

More than 90 distinctive sights have a dazzling effect on your eyes. In the cave, there are uncommon various stalactites, white stalagmites, grand stone pillars, asbestos, shining stone waterfalls. In addition, rare crystal stone grapes, brilliant stone pearls and glittering calcites are seen here. A remarkable amount of various stone flowers are scattering in the cave. The meandering underground rivers penetrate as deep as more than 100 meters (328 feet). Tourists can boat on the clear and winding waters. It is asserted that the water is a natural mineral of high quality with many beneficial microelements.

The river is so clear that you can see to the bottom, identified as the high-quality natural mineral water through being national-level, because flow through the magnet mineral deposit and become natural magnetized drinking water, have obvious antiinfectious sterilization functions.

A simple tramcar inside the cave may be taken instead of walking, and the waterway adventure games make the trip more interesting. About 2,000 meters (2,190 yards) inside the cave lies Beijing's first underground music bar in karst caves, which offers a pleasant place for tourists to rest.

Address: Ying Shui Village, Fo Zi Zhuang, Fang Shan District.

How to get there: Bus 917 from Tianqiao

      The sole tank museum in Asia is situated between the beautiful Summer Palace and Badaling Section of the Great Wall. In front of the museum, there is a tank with Chinese characters bayi (August 1, the foundation date of the PLA), which makes the tank look majestic. Entering the spacious and bright exhibition rooms, you will find nearly 1,400 materials, photos, pictures which tell you the development of China's armor cause and the efforts world military powers have made to build strong tank  forts.                                                                                                                                                                                                                     11 exhibitions rooms inside the museum respectively display the development history of China's armors, tank armored cars, tank training simulators, and weapon imitated models.                                                                                                                            Address: The 88372 troops, nanyang road, yangfang town, changping district, Beijing

Get there:

By Subway: take line 1 from wangfujing station going to sihui east direction, get off at dongdan station, transfer to line 5 going to tiantongyuan north direction, get off at lishuiqiao station, transfer line 13 going to xizhimen direction and get off at huilongguan station, then exit through entrance A and walk (140 meters), take bus NO:887 going to nankou northstation, get off at Tanks museum and walk (26 meters) 

By taxi(150RMB): Distance: 47.3 kilometers, Approximate Travelling time: 70 minutes

• Ancient Chinese coinage includes some of the earliest known coins. These coins, used as early as the Spring and Autumn period (770-476 BC), took the form of imitations of the cowrie shells that were used in ceremonial exchanges. The Spring and Autumn period also saw the introduction of the first metal coins; however, they were not initially round, instead being either knife shaped or spade shaped. Round metal coins with a round, and then later square hole in the center were first introduced around 350 BC. The beginning of the Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC), the first dynasty to unify China, saw the introduction of a standardised coinage for the whole Empire. Subsequent dynasties produced variations on these round coins throughout the imperial period. At first, distribution of the coinage was limited to use around the capital city district but by the beginning of the Han Dynasty, coins were widely used for such as when paying tax, salaries and fines.

  Ancient Chinese coins are markedly different from coins produced in the west. Chinese coins were manufactured by being cast in molds, whereas western coins were typically cut and hammered or, in later times, milled. Chinese coins were usually made from mixtures of metals such copper, tin and lead, from bronze, brass or iron: precious metals like gold and silver were uncommonly used. The ratios and purity of the coin metals varied considerably. Most Chinese coins were produced with a square hole in the middle. This was used to allow collections of coins to be threaded on a square rod so that the rough edges could be filed smooth, and then threaded on strings for ease of handling.

  Official coin production was not always centralised, but could be spread over many mint locations throughout the country. Aside from officially produced coins, private coining was common during many stages of history. Various steps were taken over time to try to combat the private coining and limit its effects and making it illegal. At other times private coining was tolerated. The coins varied in value throughout the history.

  Some coins were produced in very large numbers—during the Western Han an average of 220 million coins a year were produced. Other coins were of limited circulation and are today extremely rare—only six examples of Da Quan Wu Qian from the Eastern Wu Dynasty (222–280) are known to exist. Occasionally, large hoards of coins have been uncovered. For example, a hoard was discovered in Jiangsu containing 4,000 Tai Qing Feng Le coins and at Zhangpu in Shaanxi, a sealed jar containing 1,000 Ban Liang coins of various weights and sizes, was discovered.

                                  Chinese New Year in China
Chinese New Year celebrations, also known as the Spring Festival, in China start on the 23rd day of the
12th lunar month of the Chinese calendar. The festival lasts for about 23 days, ending on the 15th day
of the first lunar month in the following year in the Chinese calendar.
What do people do?
Many people clean their homes to welcome the Spring Festival. They put up the red posters with poetic verses on it to their doors,
Chinese New Year pictures on their walls, and decorate their homes with red lanterns. It is also a time to reunite with relatives so many people
visit their families at this time of the year.
In the evening of the Spring Festival Eve, many people set off fireworks and firecrackers, hoping to cast away any bad luck and bring forth good luck.
Children often receive  “luck” money. Many people wear new clothes and send Chinese New Year greetings to each other.
Various activities such as beating drums and striking gongs, as well as dragon and lion dances, are all part of the Spring Festival festivities.
Public life
The Spring Festival is a national holiday in China. Government offices, schools, universities and many companies are closed during the period
from the Spring Festival Eve to the seventh day of the first lunar month in the Chinese calendar. However, some enterprises such as banks
often arrange for workers to be on shift duty. Public transport is available during the Chinese New Year period.
Symbols
The red posters with poetic verses on it were initially a type of amulet, but now it simply means good fortune and joy.
Various Chinese New Year symbols express different meanings. For example, an image of a fish symbolizes “having more than one needs every year”.
A firecracker symbolizes “good luck in the coming year”. The festival lanterns symbolize “pursuing the bright and the beautiful”.
Chinese New Year Holiday Date: 30th Jan-7/9/15th Fen 2014 .