Summer Palace & Yuanmingyuan in One Day | Beijing | 🇨🇳 with mabari

I started at the Summer Palace — Kunming Lake, Longevity Hill, and that climb up through the rockeries to the tower where the whole lake opens up below you. Packed, but worth every step. The painted beams up close are something photos flatten; the blue and gold detail under those eaves is hand-done, layer on layer. Then Yuanmingyuan, the Old Summer Palace, which was destroyed in 1860 and never rebuilt. Walking through ruins after a day of intact palaces hits differently. Inside it is the Yellow Flower Formation Maze (万花阵) — a European-style hedge maze the Qianlong Emperor had built, with a pavilion in the centre. I went in confident. I was not confident ten minutes later. Tips: both are huge, so wear real shoes. Book ahead with your passport. Give the Summer Palace half a day minimum. If you're planning a China trip from South Asia, subscribe — new videos weekly. #Beijing #SummerPalace #chinatravel