Although the capital city of China has a lot to be proud of, here are some of the Beijing fun facts that may surprise you.
In this article, I will present several areas in which the city holds some sort of record. Okay, so not always, but sometimes.
And please remember these things change. So, if you’re reading from the future, hi and sorry.
Beijing Is the Oldest Metropolis in the World
Beijing beats New York, London, and even Mumbai as the world’s oldest mega city. The Zhou dynasty found Beijing in 1045 BC, making it one of the oldest cities in the world in general.
In the city’s innermost circle, there is a square where the old and the new meet. Tiananmen Square is where a piece of the Forbidden City meets the new Beijing.
With six capital city status under its belt, Beijing doesn’t seem to be slowing down and will probably have thousands of years in its future.
Forbidden City Is Very Important
Back in the day, the Forbidden City was the most important spot in all of China. It was that way for over 500 years. However, this royal palace is still important today.
Today, the palace is a museum. It’s open to all, including tourists––both from China and abroad. In 2019, the palace had nearly 20 million visitors.
Because of its place in history, it’s the most visited site in Beijing. In fact, it’s also connected to other popular sites.
In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the palace was the royal residency of the emperor. Many historical figures like Qianlong were born here.
Beijing Ring Roads Are Most in the World
When the city was changing hands from the dynasty and into the modern world, there was only one ring road.
Today, Beijing has a total of 7 ring roads that encircle the city. This makes it the city with the most ring roads in the world.
The ring roads are important for Beijing because they help to reduce traffic congestion and improve transportation efficiency.
They also improve air quality by providing a buffer between vehicles and residential areas.
Beijing Has the Most Popular App in the World
Zhang Yiming isn’t someone a lot of people outside of the financial industry are familiar with. However, almost everyone in the world has heard of TikTok.
Yiming is the owner of ByteDance, which owns that popular app.
Over the past two years, Yiming has risen to the wealthiest spot in Beijing. Although the city has the most billionaires in the world outside of New York, Yiming has made Beijing the talk of profits.
Beijing Is the Only Host of Both Summer and Winter Olympics
In 2022, the city made history yet again when it became the only one in the world to host both the Summer and Winter Olympic Games.
Although it took 14 years to make it happen, Beijingers were very excited about this fact.
Beijing Fun Facts Final Thoughts
Beijing fun facts are cool travel trivia to have around, right? Maybe next time you’re at a party, you can pull some and show it to your friends!
Li Xiu Ying is a travel writer and is the author of Beijing Travel. She writes about China for Caravanzers.
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