Purple Bamboo Park is one of the seven largest parks in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

, China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

. It is located in the Haidian District of northwestern Beijing.

The park consist of three connecting lakes covering over a total area of 48 hectare

Hectare

The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...

s. The lakes' eastern shores consist of several small hills, and they were formed with the earth dredged from the lakes, to balance the natural hills on the western shores of the lakes. There are five bridges connecting the lakes, islands and hills into a single integrated area. To the north of the lakes the Changhe River flows through.

Typical of classical Chinese garden

Chinese garden

The Chinese garden, also known as a Chinese classical garden, is a style of landscape garden which has evolved for more than three thousand years, and which is inspired by Chinese literature, Chinese painting and Chinese philosophy...

 style, and like many of Beijing's parks and gardens, it is a mountain-water landscaped garden. Constructed around canals and large lakes, the Bamboo Park is known for its liberal use of verdant bamboo groves. The garden has a variety of bamboos on display, with the variety ranging as much as up to 50 species. There is also an art museum located within the park.

During the 2008 Summer Olympics

2008 Summer Olympics

The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...

, it was selected as one of the three protest zones

Free speech zone

Free speech zones are areas set aside in public places for political activists to exercise their right of free speech in the United States. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution states that "Congress shall make no law... abridging.....

.

External links

• Purple Bamboo Park at Beijing Guide 2008