We then went to the Summer Palace, which was rebuilt by the Dragon Lady Empress Dowager Cixi to celebrate her 60th birthday, and was the summer retreat for the imperial family during the late Qing Dynasty, and is now China's largest and best preserved royal garden. For the rebuilding, she used funds that had been designated to rebuild the Chinese navy. As a result, the Japanese found it easy to invade and defeat the Chinese navy in the 1890s.

The Summer Palace has an 800-year history, beginning with the creation here of the Golden Hill Palace during the Jin dynasty. Much later, in 1750, the Garden of Clear Ripples was built on this site. The garden has been restored twice since then, after being damaged by foreign military forces. This twelve-square-mile complex includes many pavilions, temples, palaces, and halls in a landscape of hills amidst open water. The Long Gallery measures over 2,300 feet long and offers paintings depicting Chinese legend, history, and natural settings.

The Summer Palace is one of the biggest and most famous existing royal gardens in the world. Well preserved, and permeating with the richest culture content, it is perhaps the best example of Chinese traditional art in garden building. This grand structure was first built in 1750, and was used by the emperor's temptresses of the Qing Dynasty as a summer villa, or a garden for relaxation, and a summer palace where they could hold court and handle matters of state in summer. In 1860, the British-French Allied Army burned it. It was restored in 1888. There are scattered well-known scenic spots such as the tower to Buddhist, the Long Corridor, the Marble Boat, and Suzhou Street.

The Summer Palace occupies a large area, 3/4 of which is water. There are imitations of royal boats for rent in summer, spring and autumn in Kun Ming Lake.

In the part stand the traditional structures of various forms and sizes, covering a total floor space of 70,000 square yards, which are faithfully restored to their original state,

Such as Leshoutang-the Hall of Joy and Longevity where Empress Dowager used to live, Yuiantang-the Hall of the Ripples where Emperor Guangxu lived. Renshudian-the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity, where the emperor held court, the Tower of Buddhist Incense where Buddha were worshipped and Paiyundian, the Cloud Dispelling Hall, where the emperor and empress celebrated their birthdays. The Grand Theater in the garden is the grandest and best-preserved traditional theater in Chinese architecture, and has the reputation of being the "Cradle of Beijing Opera". The Garden of Virtue and Peace is the place where the emperor and empress used to watch theatrical performances.

The Palace is also a museum, with a rich collection of about 40,000 kinds of precious historic relics of various dynasties and priceless treasure.

The Hall of Treasures in Qinghua Water Pavilion displays treasures from the Summer Palace, 200 pieces at a time on the rotation basis. The Longevity House where the influential eunuch Li Lianuing of the Qing Dynasty used to live has been turned into an Exhibition of Chinese Eunuch life.

The Empress Dowager Ci Xi

Ci Xi was born in 1835, as the daughter of a minor Mandarin. Her name at birth was Lan-Kuei (little orchid). At the time of her birth, China was known as "Chung Kuo" the Middle Kingdom. The ruler was the Son of Heaven, the Emperor of the Ching or Manchu dynasty.

Women rarely received any education at all. Therefore whatever learning Ci Xi had acquired by the age of 16 was the fruit of her own resourcefulness and curiosity. She had mastered the rudiments of reading and writing Ci Xi's family belonged to the "ruling class" although at an inferior level. It didn't, however, give her access to the imperial court.

She entered the palace at the Forbidden City in 1852 as "Honorable Person Lan," concubine of the 5th rank. In 1854, she was promoted to "Royal Concubine Yi" and after giving birth to a son; she became "Imperial Concubine."

In 1961, the Emperor died and his only son, a five year old, succeeded him to the throne. His mother, Ci Xi, is now called, "Holy Mother Empress Dowager," became Regent. She staged a coup d'etat and seized political power.

Ci Xi's ignorance of the world beyond China was profound and she resisted all attempts of modernization. Her rule, which lasted for almost fifty yeas, was rooted in Confucian teachings. She was the effective ruler of China during the reign of two emperors, one her own son and the other her nephew who both ascended the throne as young boys.

It is believed that she had her own son killed when he began to question some of her policies, and named her young nephew as the successor the day before she herself died..

For the occasion of her 60th birthday in 1895, The Empress Dowager Ci Xi renovated the Summer Palace, which was originally built in the 12th century. To finance this massive renovation project, Ci Xi "borrowed" funds that had been set-aside for the Imperial Navy.

Ci Xi died in 1908, at the age of 74. Aisin-Gioro-Pu Yi ruled as last Emperor of China until 1911, when China became a republic. It was the end of the last dynasty and the end of "old China."

We had a wonderful lunch at the Summer Palace, served to us by girls dressed as royal concubines.

That evening we went to the Peking Opera. Before the performance we were allowed backstage to see the sets, costumes, and the performers preparing to go on. We sat at tables and were given a full Chinese dinner. The Beijing Chinese opera is an ancient theatrical art, and the opera troupes in Beijing set the national standard for this highest expression of Chinese culture. This is not like Western opera, full of arias and centered around singing. It's a beautiful and delicate blend of grand opera, ballet, song, drama, and comedy that spans the entire history of China, its folklore, mythology, literature, and culture.

As we know it today, Peking Opera started around the beginning of the 19th century. It is an entertainment form that combines songs, dialogue, mime, dance, and acrobatics. The costumes are inspired by the clothing that was really worn during the time of imperial courts. Face-painting is of equal beauty and the colors are clues to the audience of the character they are watching perform.

• Women have white painted face with shades of red and pink around the eyes
• Red means a loyal and brave character
• Black means a kind but forceful character, sometimes rough in nature
• Blue and yellow show wildness, intrepidity and arrogance
• Green is used for unsteady characters
• Orange and Gray symbolize old age
• Gods and goddesses wear golden masks.
• The area around the jester's eyes and nose is always painted white.

For westerners, the sound of Chinese opera takes some getting used to as the musical scale is based on 5ths. The actors half sing and half speak, in a very high pitched voice. The instruments in the orchestra include an Erhu and Huqin (two-stringed instruments). There is also a lute, called a Pipa, and drums and a wooden percussion instrument.

Performances are usually quite long (perhaps three hours) but those directed toward the tourists are usually only about 1 1/4 hours in length. It is something visitors should definitely attend at least once… a rich cultural experience.