Prominent Places

Beijing has numerous historic and cultural attractions. The most prominent is the Forbidden City. It includes numerous palaces, audience halls, pavilions, courtyards, and gardens. Much of the Forbidden City is enclosed by a moat. Other notable attractions in or near Beijing include the Summer Palace, the Drum and Bell towers, the exquisite Temple of Heaven, and other temples and shrines scattered throughout the city. The Great Wall of China and the Ming Tombs, burial site of 13 Ming emperors, are about 30 miles (48 km) northwest of the city.

Major cultural institutions in Beijing include the National Library of China, with collections of rare books and manuscripts, the Museum of Chinese History, the Military Museum of the Chinese People's Revolution, the Beijing Museum of Natural History, and the China Opera and Ballet Theater.

As China's leading educational center, the city has many colleges and universities. Among the chief ones are Beijing and Qinghua universities. Also in Beijing are the headquarters and numerous institutes of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.