Christmas comes to Beijing's Gubei water town

World
Europe

The water town is decking its halls for the holiday season, with Santa visits, decorated trees, choirs crooning carols – and much more.

Santa Claus is coming to town – Beijing's Gubei water town, that is. The attraction, also known as Beijing WTown, recently announced that it's celebrating the Christmas season until December 31 with traditional decorations and festive activities for visitors, especially families.

It's hosting parades, a daily Christmas market with snacks and homemade gifts, and outdoor Christmas-tree lighting ceremonies every Saturday.

A choir sings carols in a hilltop church. Kids can make cupcakes and decorate trees, and enjoy children's plays at night.

Santa is passing out gifts. Visitors can write him letters or send him postcards, and the lucky ones will get replies.

A view of Gubei water town in Beijing. /China Daily Photo

Gubei water town will host traditional temple-fair activities starting from the Western New Year to prepare for the upcoming Chinese Spring Festival, including paper-cutting, shadow-puppet shows and cross-talk comedy.

The 430,000-square-meter water town opened in 2014. Its buildings were constructed in the styles of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) Dynasties, and the period of the early 20th century.

It's located at the foot of the Simatai section of the Great Wall in suburban Miyun District's Gubeikou Town.

Simatai is known for its precipitous landscape. Its undulating terrain and geographic location made it an important military fortification in ancient times.

The 5.4-kilometer-long wall with 35 guard towers is one of the only stretches of unrestored Ming-era Great Wall. Some bricks are inscribed with characters that indicate who created them centuries ago. Tourists can also take a 15-minute ride in a helicopter to have a bird's-eye view of the winding Great Wall in the mountains.

The water town is 120 kilometers from Beijing's downtown and 80 kilometers from downtown Chengde, Hebei Province. Buses travel between Beijing's Dongzhimen and Gubei water town.

Visitors who stay overnight are advised to book hotels in advance, especially during weekends and holidays, since there are only 1,378 rooms. Some travelers stay in guesthouses run by farmers nearby.

The Christmas parade in Gubei water town. /China Daily Photo

The canal-laced water town resembles those south of the Yangtze River but incorporates some northern Chinese elements. Some components like wooden window frames and decorations are authentic and were brought from old buildings in other provinces.

The water town's scenery changes throughout the year. Visitors can enjoy flowers in spring, boat rides and starry nights in summer, red leaves in autumn and snow in winter.

Travelers visit such places as a traditional distillery and dye workshops to learn about old-time industries and to make their own liquor and colorful cloth. They can also buy traditional oilpaper umbrellas, kites and lanterns.

They also visit biaoju – establishments that offer armed security for the transport of valuables over long distances centuries ago.

A traditional academy shows how ancient Chinese were educated.

Guests also enjoy such street foods as roasted sweet potatoes, candied-haw skewers and barbecue. And they may encounter lion dancers or acrobats performing on the streets.

Restaurants serve Cantonese food, Peking duck and beefsteak. Some offer views of the Great Wall. Shutterbugs can enjoy snapping photos of sunrises and sunsets over the bulwark.

Juxian academy in Gubei water town. /China Daily Photo

Night tours by lantern light explore the town's streets and then head up the Great Wall, from which viewers can see a panorama of the town sparkling below.

The town's dancing fountain lights up with a nighttime show in which water jets and colored lights change with the music, and such 3D images as those of phoenixes are projected on the aerosol.

Visitors can also soak in the indoor and outdoor hot springs. Different pools are different colors to indicate their supposed health benefits.

Indeed, Christmas is just one of many reasons to visit the water town this season.

And those who make the journey will discover it's a jolly place year-round.

(Cover: Gubei water town in Beijing's Miyun District that features buildings of the Ming and Qing Dynasties' styles and a section of the Great Wall is celebrating the Christmas season until December 31 with traditional decorations and festive activities for visitors. /China Daily Photo)

Source(s): China Daily