Passing Through the World - ALWAYS ON THE WAY
Great joy and celebration! After 4 years of construction and a total investment of 4.4 billion RMB, the three major cultural buildings of Beijing's City Sub-Center (the "Cultural Granary" Beijing Arts Center, the "Forest Bookstore" Beijing City Library, and the "Canal Boat" Grand Canal Museum of Beijing) are officially open to the public starting today! New landmarks, new must-visits — here's your visitor's guide, plan your visit now! Absolutely stunning.
Beijing Arts Center
First, we visited the Beijing Arts Center. On December 23, the opening production at the Beijing Arts Center was the National Centre for the Performing Arts' original folk opera "Canal Ballad." Conductor Lu Jia led the NCPA Orchestra, with the NCPA Chorus and the Tianjin Conservatory of Music Youth Chorus performing jointly, telling a story set against the backdrop of the Beijing-Hangzhou Grand Canal, depicting the joys and sorrows of canal people. The performance was excellent — a family outing that was super valuable and very enjoyable.
Meanwhile, the opening art week also kicked off, running through January 1, 2024. The NCPA's original suspense drama "Suspect Holmes," 2024 New Year Concert, 2024 Chinese National Orchestra New Year Concert, and more can be booked via the NCPA WeChat official account. There are also art salons, public space performances, art film screenings, and other activities. If you're visiting soon, consider booking performance tickets in advance.
It's said that in 2024, the Beijing Arts Center plans to schedule 300 performances — very exciting.
Opening Information
The Beijing Arts Center has been officially open for visits since 13:00 on December 27, 2023. Visits are free but ticketed, open Tuesday through Sunday, 10:00-17:00.
Beijing City Library
I absolutely fell in love with this library. As the official introduction says, it's a wonderful place to stroll through mountains of books and read as you go. I'd say it's paradise for book lovers.
The entire library is spacious and bright. Winter sunlight streaming through the large glass windows makes it perfect for reading. I really wanted to stay here every day and never go home — and there's actually an unmanned "24-Hour Library" here, the ultimate refuge for devoted readers.
Forest Bookstore: Spanning floors one through three, the pathways named after the four seasons — "Spring Paper Path, Summer Ink Path, Autumn Brush Path, Winter Stone Path" — are full of poetry. This core main area provides books on world culture and tourism, law, natural sciences, social sciences, as well as reference books, Chinese periodicals, and foreign language literature for borrowing.
Three-Dimensional Book Storage: With a collection of 7.15 million volumes, it's the largest intelligent three-dimensional book storage in China. Books can be precisely located and retrieved within 15 minutes, delivered to your table by robots. Very smart and convenient.
In the Metaverse Experience Pavilion, you can find a cyberpunk vibe.
Opening Information
The Beijing City Library opened on December 27. After obtaining an electronic joint reader card via the WeChat "Capital Library Mini Program" or getting a physical reader card on-site with your ID card, you can borrow books directly — borrowing period is 42 days.
Grand Canal Museum of Beijing
At 14:30 on the 27th, the "Canal Boat" Grand Canal Museum of Beijing (East Wing of the Capital Museum) officially lit its "ancient charm sails" and opened to the public.
Four Types of Exhibitions
The exhibitions revolve around the relationship between the Grand Canal and Beijing, with people, water, and city as the main content threads.
- Basic exhibition: "Jinghua Tonghui, Canal Yongji — Historical and Cultural Exhibition of Beijing and the Grand Canal" - Special exhibitions: "Grand Canal of Beijing Panorama Scroll" and "More Than the Canal — Immersive Experience Exhibition" - Temporary exhibitions: "Beijing Fine Art Academy Collection Bird-and-Flower Painting Masterpieces" and "Beijing City Sub-Center Construction and Development Image Exhibition" - Open displays: "Stone Sculpture Garden Display Area," "Museum Earthquake Protection Science Exhibition," "Public Art Platform," and more
The museum is large, and with limited energy, we only visited the basic exhibition. There are also four major events: "Voice of the Canal" Quyi Show, "Star of the Canal" Creative Hub, and "Theater at the Canal" Performance Week.
Opening Information
The Grand Canal Museum of Beijing offers extended hours, open daily 10:00-20:00, closed Mondays.
1. Free, no reservation required. 2. Free scheduled guided tour service. 3. Lockers, water dispensers, nursing room, barrier-free elevators, etc. 4. Canal Scenery (cultural creative space), Canal Book House (reading space), Dockside Chat (cafe), Canal Food Boat (dining service), and Canal Shop (cultural creative experience). The five cultural creative spaces currently offer souvenirs, Chinese hot meals, Western cold meals, as well as a themed post office, cultural creative shop, reading space, sunken rest area, and visitor appreciation area.
Friendly Reminders
1. Visitors must present valid identification, verify on-site, and pass security check before entering. 2. Minors under 14 (including 14) must be accompanied by an adult.
Route Navigation
Public transportation: Search for destination "Shangmatou Road Station." Bus Route 317 reaches the area. For driving, navigate to City Green Heart Forest Park P12 Parking Lot and follow signs to the museum.
Save this guide, grab your stamp collection book, and let's go!
