Hainan island is famous as a semi-tropical beach resort.
2. These ruins are part of which Imperial building?
Summer Palace
Old Summer Palace
Chengde Resort
The style of the stone ornamentation of the Old Summer Palace shows that it was designed by European architects (mainly Jesuits) working for the Qing Emperors.
3. Which game are these men playing?
xiangqi
kerplunk
chequers
Chinese chess象棋 xiàng qí is played with discs on which characters are inscribed so can look like chequers from a distance.
4. Which ancient figure is represented by this massive stone statue?
Laozi
Mao Zedong
Qu Yuan
Laozi the founder of Daoism is typically depicted as an old man with a long flowing beard.
5. Where can you find this famous building?
Forbidden City, Beijing
Iron Pagoda, Kaifeng
Temple of Heaven, Beijing
The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests within the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan) complex, Beijing.
6. In the pastures of Xinjiang sheep are grazing. What is the name of the type of building used by the herdsmen?
yurt
igloo
yak
The yurt is made from layers of felt draped over a wooden framework. It can be very quickly moved to another location as the herdsmen follow their flocks.
7. This striking church can be seen in which Chinese city?
Harbin
Hohhot
Beijing
The Russian influence in the province of Heilongjiang is quite pronounced reflecting years of Russian domination in the early 20th century. The "onion" domes of the Cathedral of Saint-Sophia, Harbin is a striking example.
8. This demonstration of Kung Fu is primarily associated with which place?
Lhasa
Wudan monastery
Shaolin monastery
The world famous Shaolin monastery (literally ‘Small Forest Temple’) is close to Songshan in Henan; it was immortalized by the ‘Kung Fu’ series of the 1970s. It is a Zen Buddhist temple and dates back to the Wei dynasty.
9. Where might you find this European style building?
Macau
Hong Kong
Guangzhou
The old part of Macau has a number of buildings of colonial Portuguese design including the church of Sao Lourenco.
10. Where might you find this famous landmark?
Xi'an
Beihai Park in Beijing
Summer Palace in Beijing
The famous White Dagoba stands in Beihai Park and was built in the Mongol dynasty.
11. In which month might you expect to see this watery spectacle?
June
March
April
The Dragon boat festival falls on the 5th day of the 5th month of the Chinese calendar. This varies in date on the Gregorian calendar but normally falls in June but in some years it can be in late May.
The view is from “The Peak” on Hong Kong island looking over Victoria to Kowloon.
13. This is a memorial hall to which important figure in Chinese history?
Zhu De
Mao Zedong
Sun Yatsen
The Sun Yatsen memorial hall is in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province; the province where he was born.
14. This building is known by which name?
Great Hall of the People
Presidential Palace
Beijing Museum
Every province has its own internal hall within the ‘Great Hall of the People’. It lies on the west side of Tiananmen Square, Beijing.
15. Where is this famous pagoda?
Kaifeng
Hangzhou
Xi'an
It is the Great Wild Goose Pagoda in Xi’an that was built to house the Buddhist scriptures brought back to China by Xuanzang.
16. Which muscial instrument is this man playing?
erhu
yangqin
suona
Erhu is a two stringed violin with the bow string between the two strings. 二胡 èr hú means literally 'two' 'fiddle'. There is a less common instrument with four strings 'sihu'.
The Potala palace in Lhasa is the winter palace of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.
18. These objects are associated with which religion?
Daoism
Buddhism
Islam
This form of stupa which often contains sacred Buddhist relics is common in Tibet, Qinghai and Inner Mongolia.
19. Why are there nine mythical beasts behind the 'man on a hen' on this roof?
nine was the Imperial number
represent the Double Ninth Festival
nine is a lucky number
Yellow roof tiles can only be used for Imperial buildings as yellow was the dynastic color of the Qing dynasty. As three is a potent yang number the square of 3, nine, is an even more potent yang number. It was associated with the Emperor and many things in the Forbidden City are in nines.
Glazed animal sculptures on the palace roof of the Forbidden City, Beijing
20. Why is this creature so important in Chinese history?
provided staple food
producing silk
eats rice pests
It is the caterpillar of the silkworm moth that spins a silk cocoon. It is usually fed on white mulberry leaves.
Do you recongize these places in China?
