北京旅游导游词英文

北京旅游导游词英文

　　Tian’anmen（ the Gate of Heavenly Peace）， is located in the center of Beijing.  It was first built in 1417 and named Chengtianmen（ the Gate of Heavenly  Succession）。 At the end of the Ming Dynasty， it was seriously damaged by war.  When it was rebuilt under the Qing in 1651， it was renamed Tian’anmen， and  served as the main entrance to the Imperial City， the administrative and  residential quarters for court officials and retainers. The southern sections of  the Imperial City wall still stand on both sides of the Gate. The tower at the  top of the gate is nine-room wide and five –room deep. According to the Book of  Changes， the two numbers nine and five， when combined， symbolize the supreme  status of a sovereign.During the Ming and Qing dynasties， Tian’anmen was the  place where state ceremonies took place. The most important one of them was the  issuing of imperial edicts， which followed these steps：

　　1） The Minister of Rites would receive the edict in Taihedian（ Hall of  Supreme Harmony）， where the Emperor was holding his court. The minister would  then carry the decree on a yunpan（ tray of cloud）， and withdraw from the hall  via Taihemen（ Gate of supreme Harmony）

　　2） The Minister would put the tray in a miniature longting（ dragon pavilion）。  Beneath a yellow umbrella and carry it via Wumen（ Meridian Gate）， to Tian’anmen  Gate tower.

　　3） A courtier would be invested to proclaim the edict. The civil and military  officials lining both sides of the gateway beneath the tower would prostrate  themselves   in the direction of the emperor in waiting for the decree to the  proclaimed.

　　4） The courtier would then put the edict in a phoenix-shaped wooden box and  lower it from the tower by means of a silk cord. The document would finally be  carried in a similar tray of cloud under a yellow umbrella to the Ministry of  Rites.

　　5） The edict， copied on yellow paper， would be made known to the whole  country.《BR》Such a process was historically recorded as “ Imperial Edict Issued  by Golden Phoenix”.During the Ming and Qing dynasties Tian’anmen was the most  important passage. It was this gate that the Emperor and his retinue would go  through on their way to the altars for ritual and religious activities.

　　On the Westside of Tian’anmen stands ZhongshanPark（ Dr. Sun Yat-sen’s Park），  and on the east side， the Working People’s Cultural Palave. The Park was  formerly called Shejitan（ Altar of Land and Grain）， built in 1420 for offering  sacrificial items to the God of Land. It was opened to the public as a park in  1914 and its name was changed in 1928 to the present one in memory of the great  pioneer of the Chinese Democratic Revolution.The Working People’s Cultural  Palace used to be Taimiao（ the Supreme Ancestral Temple）， where tablets of the  deceased dynastic rulers were kept.

　　The stream in front of Tian’anmen is called Waijinshuihe（ Outer Golden  River），with seven marble bridges spanning over it 。 Of these seven  bridges，historical records say the middle one was for the exclusive use of the  emperor and was accordingly called Yuluqiao（ Imperial Bridge）。 The bridges  flanking it on either side were meant for the members of the royal family and  were therefore called Wanggongqiao（ Royal’s Bridges）。 Farther away on each side  of the two were bridges for officials ranking above the third order and were  named Pinjiqiao（ ministerial Bridges）。 The remaining two bridges were for the  use by the retinue below the third order and wre called Gongshengqiao（ common  Bridges）。 They anr the one in front of the Supreme Ancestral Temple to the east  and the one in front of the Altar of land and Grain to the west.

　　The two stone lions by the Gate of Tian’anmen， one on each side were meant as  sentries. They gaze toward the middle axis， guarding the emperor’s walkway. In  front of the gate stands a pair of marble columns called Huabiao. They are  elaborately cut in bas-relief following the pattern of a legendary dragon.  Behind the gate stands another pair of similar columns. The story of Huabiao may  be traced to a couple of sources. One of the versions accredits its invention to  one of the Chinese sage kings named Yao， who was said to have set up a wooden  pillar in order to allow the ordinary people to expose evil-doers， hence it was  originally called a slander pillar. Later it ws reduced to a signpost， and now  it serves as an ornament.

　　The beast sitting on the top of the column is called” hou”， a legendary  animal， which is said to have been a watcher of an emperor’s behaviour. He was  doing such duties as warning the emperor against staying too long outside the  palace or indulging in pleasure and urging him to go to the people for their  complaints or return in due time. Therefore， the two pairs of beasts were given  the names” Wangjunhui”（ Expecting the emperor’s coming back） and “ wangjunchu”（  Expecting the emperor’s going out） respectinvely.

　　In the old days， Tian’anmen， as a part of the Imperial City， was meant for  important occasions. The two rows of chaofang（ antechamber）， on the sides behind  the main gate， wre reserved for civil and military members of the government  waiting for imperial audience and in front of the gate， were offices of imperial  administration.

　　On October 1， 1949， chairman Mao Zedong proclaimed on Tian’anmen Rostrum the  founding of the People’s Republic of China. Since then Tian’anmen has been the  symbol of New Chinea. Chairman Mao’s portrait is hung above the central  entrance， flanked by two slogans：” Long Live the Great Unity of the Peoples of  the World”。 Today ， the splendour of Tian’anmen attracts million of visitors  from all over the world. The Rostrum on its top was opened in 1988 to the public  for the first time in its history. It offers a panoramic view of the Square and  the city proper.

　　Tian’anmen Square

　　Situated due south of Tian’anmen， the Square has an area of 44 hectares（ 109  acres） that can accommodate as many as one million people for public gatherings.  It has witnessed may historical events in China’s modern history and is a place  for celebrations on such festive days as international Labour Day on May 1st and  national Day on October 1st.