There is a niche innovation park in Beijing's Second Ring Road, located on the former site of Beijing's Second Thermal Power Plant, which is next to the Tianning Temple, the tallest close-gabled brick pagoda in Beijing. The ancient and modern buildings reflect each other and become a unique mark of this land.

Address: No. 16, East Lotus Pond Road, Xicheng District

Ticket: Free admission

Hours: Monday to Sunday

"Tianning No.1" Cultural and Technological Innovation Park used to be the second thermal power plant in Beijing. After the plant was shut down on August 5, 2009, it was transformed into the "Tianning No.1" Cultural and Technological Innovation Park.

Tianning Temple is located across the wall from the Innovation Park. The temple was built in the years of Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei Dynasty and is one of the oldest temples in Beijing. The Tianning Temple Pagoda is one of the typical of China's surviving close-gabled brick pagodas. The architect Liang Sicheng once praised it as "a masterpiece of ancient Chinese architectural design with musical rhythm". Tianning Temple is not yet open, so the Innovation Park is the best place for viewing the pagoda.

01 Thousand-year old Temple

The original pagoda of Tianning Temple was a wooden pagoda, after which the pagoda was destroyed. In the Liao Dynasty, an octagonal 13-story relic brick pagoda was built inside the temple, which is the highest dense eave brick pagoda in Beijing. When the wind blows, you can hear the sound of wind bells.

The pagoda is octagonal in shape, and the statues and decorations of the pagoda are designed according to the sutra teachings of the Sutra of Universal Consciousness and the Sutra of Avatamsaka respectively.

Most of these reliefs have been badly damaged by the erosion over time, but it is still a classic piece of Chinese pagoda sculpture art. At present, Tianning Temple is not yet open, but you can also get a glimpse of the beauty and shock of this nearly 1,000-year-old temple when you look at it from the Innovation Park.

02 The former site of thermal power plant

The park is built on the site of the former Beijing No.2 Thermal Power Plant, restoring the industrial architecture of the 70s. The 180-meter large chimney that once was responsible for the winter heating of more than 100,000 residents has also become the symbol of the site. On one side is the nearly 1,000-year-old brick pagoda of the Liao Dynasty, and on the other side is the old factory building and the big chimney. They all have witnessed the changes of history and become the mark of this land.

At the center of the park, there is a revolving staircase that you can climb, which is perfect for taking pictures. When the weather is nice, you can take a picture with the temple pagoda not far away and feel the breeze on your face.

There is also a cafe in the Innovation Park, where you can take a break and have a drink at your leisure. Longmen Diaoxia is an event space where performances are sometimes held. There is also a Tianning Academy with a tea room and a pagoda viewing room where you can gather and take a break.

This is a quiet niche in the second ring road. Come and enjoy the autumn under the ancient pagoda of the Liao Dynasty and rest by the former site of the second thermal power plant in Beijing.

Recommended hours: 1-2 hours

Translated by LIU Yu

Edited by WANG Jingyan