BEIJING lies in the north of the North China Plain, at 39¡ã56¡äN and 116¡ã20¡äE. it neighbors the Tianjin Municipality in the east, and borders Hebei Province on three sides-the north, west and south. The terrain of the Beijing area slopes from the northwest to the southeast. Mountains snake round the city's north, west and northeast, while the southeast part of the city is a plain that slopes gently toward the coast of the Bohai Sea. The Yongding, Chaobai and Juma rivers and the north section of the Grand Cannel crisscross the area under Beijing's jurisdiction. Most of the rivers originate from mountainous areas in the northwest, cut through mountains and zigzag through the plain in the southeast before emptying into Bohai Sea.

Beijing belongs to the warm temperate zone with a semi-humid climate. It has four distinctive seasons, with short springs and autumns while summers and winters are always long. Annual temperatures average 12.8¡æ. January is the coldest month with an average temperature of -6.4¡æ,and July, the hottest with an average temperature of 29.6¡æ. The annual precipitation s measured at 371.1mm, and the frost-free period is 196 days.

Beijing is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It covers 16,807.8 square kilometers. Mountainous areas occupy 10,417.5 square kilometers, accounting for 62% of the city's landmass. The rest, 6390.3 square kilometers or 38% of the total, are flatland. The municipality governs 14 urban districts and 4 rural counties.

Situated at the heart of Beijing, the Palace Museum is approached through Tiananmen Gate. Immediately to the north of the Palace Museum is Prospect Hill (also called Coal Hill), while on the east and west are Wangfujing and Zhongnanhai neighborhoods. It is a location endowed with cosmic significance by ancient China's astronomers. Correlating the emperor's abode, which they considered the pivot of the terrestrial world, with the Pole Star (Ziweiyuan), which they believed to be at the center of the heavens, they called the palace The Purple Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was built from 1406 to 1420 by the third Ming emperor Yongle who, upon usurping the throne, determined to move his capital north from Nanjing to Beijing. In 1911 the Qing dynasty fell to the republican revolutionaries. The last emperor, Puyi, continued to live in the palace after his abdication until he was expelled in 1924. Twenty-four emperors lived and ruled from this palace during this 500-year span.

The Great Wall we see today mostly dates back to the Ming Dynasty. The best-preserved and most imposing section is at Badaling in Beijing. The section, located outside the Juyongguan Pass, is made of large blue bricks and has an average height of 7.8 meters. Five to six horses can be ridden abreast along it. At regular intervals there is an arched door leading to the top of the wall. The walls are covered with many lookout holes, window embrasures and castellated crenels. Beacon towers were also built at fixed intervals for passing on military information. All these indicate the important role of the Great Wall in military defense.

As one of the most magnificent ancient defense works, the Great Wall is known as one of the wonders of the world. All tourists now know the saying, "You are not a real person until you have climbed the Great Wall." ¡¡¡¡ The Great Wall was put on the world cultural heritage list in 1987.

The deliciousness of roasted duck is produced for a precious Peking Duck, one of the best meaty duck in the world. Accordingly, Peking Duck is raised in a traditional way for particular white Peking Duck. Force-fed, ducks are kept in cages which restrain them from moving about, so as to fatten them up and make the meat comparably tender.

Peking Duck is always served in well-cut slices. The whole duck must be sliced into 120 pieces and every piece has to be perfect with the complete layers of the meat. Normally there are many dishes served with the duck, including a dish of fine-cut shallot bars, a dish of cucumber bars and finally a dish of paste-like soy of fermented wheat flour.