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The Beijing Hutong (old lane) areas have a very special and important position in the rich history and
culture of Beijing. While visiting the Beijing Hutong, you can appreciate the dramatic changes that the rest
of Beijing has undergone. You can see evidence of the history of Beijing, experience the old way of life
and experience traditional Beijing culture.
The Beijing Hutong is made up of lanes or alleys formed by lines of pre-modern quadrangles (siheyuan), four-sided dwelling compounds or quadrangles consist of one-story courtyard houses, which make up old Beijing, and feature typical Chinese residential architecture.
Beijing road classification was once s follow: A 36-foot-wide road was called a standard, street, an
18-foot-wide one was a small street and a 9-foot-wide lane was named a hutong. In fact, the Beijing
Hutongs are unclassifiable by the traditional standard, ranging from 40 centimeters to 10 feet in width. The
longest hutong has more than 20 turns. It is easy to get lost in the maze of winding lanes hat is the hutong, with the gray-tiled houses and deep alleys crossing each other, all identical in appearance, with many blind hutongs or culdesacs.
Hutongs were first named as such in the Yuan Dynasty(1271-1368), with its Mongolian rulers having
an influence on the Chinese language. However, siheyuan or quadrangles have probably been around
much longer. The name of a hutong represents its origin, location or history. It is in the gray-tiled deep
lanes that families play, travel, buy goods, gossip and connect. In beijingers'eyes, hutong means a period
of history, a cordial lifestyle and even an "encyclopedia (百科全书) of Beijing".
When urban construction threatens the existence of these hutongs, Beijingers become worried. Beijing
still has about 400 000 residential quadrangles now, mainly distribute over the East, West, Xuanwu and
Chongwen districts. The municipal government has marked a number of these compounds for protection.
If you would like to have a glimpse into Beijing' Yesterday, you are highly recommended to have a
short adventure trip to the Hutongs. Beijing Hutong Tour (Rickshaw Hutong, Bike Hutong and Walk
Hutong) is organized by Beijing Xinhua International Tours.
1. The characteristics of Beijing Hutongs are the following except ______.
A. the name of Hutong dates back to the Yuan Dynasty
B. the width of all the hutongs is 9 feet
C. siheyuans are lined along the two sides of the Beijing Hutongs
D. it is difficult for people, especially a stronger not to be lost in Hutongs
2. From the 3rd and 4th paragraphs, we can infer ______.
A. several famous persons once lived in the Beijing siheyuan
B. "Four Generations under One Roof" is set in old Beijing Hutongs
C. Siheyuan has a longer history than Hutong
D. Beijing appreciate the lifestyle in Hutong
3. What will happen to Beijing hutongs?
A. All the hutongs will be protected.
B. All the hutongs will become places of interest.
C. Government has taken measures to tp protect some of the hutongs.
D. Some of the hutongs will be rebuilt.
4. Where can this passage be found?
A. In tourist handbooks.
B. In geographic magazines.
C. In history books.
D. In books about Chinese culture.