China Cultural Chronicles January 27, 2013

• Beijing: Beijing UNESCO World Heritage Temple of Heaven——The Imperial Vault of Heaven
  360° panorama by yunzen liu.
  Click the image to open the interactive version.
  
  The Temple of Heaven, literally the Altar of Heaven, is a complex of Taoist buildings situated in southeastern Beijing. The Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties visited the complex annually when they prayed to Heaven for good harvests. It is regarded as a Taoist temple, although Chinese Heaven worship, especially by the reigning monarch of the day, actually pre-dates Taoism.The temple complex was constructed from 1406 to 1420 during the reign of the Yongle Emperor, who was also responsible for the construction of the Forbidden City in Beijing. The complex was extended and renamed the Temple of Heaven during the reign of the Jiajing Emperor in the 16th century. The Jiajing Emperor also built three other prominent temples in Beijing, the Temple of the Sun in the east, the Temple of the Earth in the north, and the Temple of the Moon in the west. The Temple of Heaven was renovated in the 18th century under the Qianlong Emperor.The Temple of Heaven was registered on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1998.The Imperial Vault of Heaven: Built in 1530, the 9th year of Emperor jiajing's reign of the Ming dynasty, in a round shape with a double-eave roof, and named first the Hall for Appeasing Gods, it was the main hall of the Celestial Treasure House of the Circular Mound Altar, housing the Gods' tablets to be used at the ceremony of worshipping Heaven. It was renamed the Imperial Vault of Heaven in 1538 and rebuilt into the present shape in 1752.19.5 meters in height and 15.6 meters in diameter, the hall is a finely interlaced wooden structure with a blue tile roof crowned with a gilded sphere, looking elegant and majestic. It has a coffered ceiling with a bluish green design of a coiling gilded dragon playing with a pearl at the centre. It is indeed a masterpiece of ancient architecture of China.http://www.china.org.cn/travel/beijingguide/2008-05/15/content_15253614.htmhttp://en.tiantanpark.com/showdetail.aspx?IID=43&Sortid=15360-degree panorama photography by yunzeng liu 
• Clouds and Mountains

  etherflyer has added a photo to the pool:

  

  Stairway at the Temple of Heaven.
  
  Stitched from two hand-held photographs with PTGUI Pro and touched up in Aperture.

• Clouds and Mountains

  etherflyer has added a photo to the pool:

  

  Stairway at the Temple of Heaven.
  
  Stitched from two hand-held photographs with PTGUI Pro and touched up in Aperture.

• Shanghai Skyline at Night

  whistle.and.run has added a photo to the pool:

  

• Horse

  @xiaoping has added a photo to the pool:

  

  Canon EOS 5D Mark II / EF50mm F1.2L
  
  拍摄于广州奥体中心，真正的宝马，纯正丹麦进口，130W！

• Yak and sheep in a Nomad Landscape, Tibet 2012

  reurinkjan has added a photo to the pool:

  

  Like to see the pictures as LARGE as your screen? Just click on this Slideshow : www.flickr.com/photos/reurinkjan/sets/72157630983897338/s...
  
  For the Tibetan nomads, life is indeed a struggle in the harsh environment of the high plateau: A place where the ground and winds are in perpetual motion. It is a place where temperatures range from a low of -40 degrees Fahrenheit to around 60 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. The yak is the key to survival on the Tibetan plateau. A visit to a nomad's tent illustrates this point. The tent itself is made from yak hair. Upon entering, the center of the tent is warmed by the fire of yak dung. The tent is illuminated by yak butter candles, and their blankets are made from yak hair. The principle diet includes tsampa and yak butter, dried yak cheese and sometimes yak meat. A poor family may have 20 yaks or fewer; wealthy families up to 500.
  
  Settling nomads
  Government policy aims to settle more and more nomads. It says that this is aimed at improving the economic viability of animal husbandry and lessening the effects of natural disasters on the livelihood of Tibetan herdsmen.
  This allows the government to manage the nomadic population as it gives them fixed addresses.
  
  Culture shock
  
  For most nomads, the transition to a more urban lifestyle is difficult.
  They are often settled in featureless blocks of housing by the side of roads or in newly created urban areas, and face the problem of creating an entirely new and sustainable livelihood.
  
  Approximately 40% of the ethnic Tibetan population is nomadic or semi-nomadic.
  www.humanrightshouse.org/Articles/11820.html