Summer Palace
Visitors of the Summer Palace resting at a gazebo. The palace was originally a retreat for emperors to escape the scorching summer heat of Beijing. The last to use the palace was the notorious Empress Dowager Cixi. Cixi, though reputed for her shrewdness, had a great presence, and charm, resulting in "an unusually attractive personality". Anecdotal evidence of her guile is her diversion of Chinese Navy funds to renovation of the Summer Palace. The only "naval" item she constructed there was the large marble boat north of the Lake.