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The main gate of South Lake is Xinhuamen (New China) Gate, which was originally known as the Precious Moon Tower. This was the famous Gazing Home Tower (Wangxianlou) built by Emperor Qianlong for his favorite Muslim Concubine Xiang (Fragrant Consort). To remind this homesick lady if her native Kashgaria (in present-day Xinjiang). Qianlong had a mosque and Islamic-style marketplace built within view of the tower. After the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912, the Xinhuamen (New China) Gate was refurbished and the signboard for Yuan Shikai' s presidential residence was hung here.

The gate is today the official entrance to the headquarters of the people' s government, but visitors to the scenic areas must enter by a gate at 81 Nanchang Street. A short distance to the north, one comes to a pavilion, the floor of which contains stone-lined channel which makes nine turns. The bubbling of the water in the channel gives this spot the name Flowing Water Music (Liushuiyin). To the west is the Hall of Diligent Government (Qinzhengdian) where Emperor Guangxu administered affairs of state. When Yuan Shikai took up residence in Nanhai, he rebuilt the hall in Western-style and used it to receive foreign guests.

To the south is a curving bridge to the Sea Terrace Island (Yingtai), which is actually a peninsula in the South Lake. The tall granite structure on the other side of the bridge is the Southern Terrace (Nantai), the principal viewing place in this section of the park. The buildings here date from the reigns of emperors Shunzhi (1644-1661) and Kangxi (1662-1722). Among the dozen or so poetically named pavilions, gates, halls and towers, we shall only mention the following: the Hall of the Fragrant Screen (Xiangyidian), where there is a room set aside for drinking tea; the Fairy Isles Pavilion (Penglaige), next to which stands a specimen of fossilized pine nearly three meters tall-an inscription nearby attributes the stone to the Six Dynasties period (220-589); on each side of this stone are several flower beds, and in front of it a stone bridge which leads to a pavilion on the water known as the Welcoming Fragrance Pavilion (Yingxunting), where there are numerous stone inscriptions praising the virtues and achievements of the emperors. Looking south across the water from there, one can see the north side of the screen wall, which stands directly inside New China Gate.

Among the other relics on the island are a group of imitation stalagmites inscribed with the calligraphy of Emperor Qianlong and another stone inscription in the same emperor' s hand commemorating a willow tree in the shape of the Chinese character for"man"(人) which once stood on this spot. A limb of this willow was bent by a strong wind, and some kind soul moored one of its branches to the ground to support the rest of the tree. This branch actually took root and the resulting grotesquely shaped tree so delighted Emperor Qianlong that he composed a prose poem about it.

The Sea Terrace Island was one of the favorite summer resort spots of Qing emperors. Kangxi and Qianlong both administered the empire from here, and after the failure of the Reform Movement of 1898, Emperor Guangxu was imprisoned here by Empress Dowager Cixi. He died in 1908 in the Hanyuan (Cherishing the Origin) Palace. In the early years of the Republican period, Yuan Shikai arranged for Li yuanhong, vice-president of the Republic, to make his residence here. After the establishment of the People' Republic of China in 1949, various departments of the State Council made use of its many halls to hold private small-scale industrial exhibitions. A major restoration project was completed in 1975.

Northwest from the Sea Terrace Island, one comes to the Garden of Plenty (Fengzeyuan), in which there is a small plot of land called the Trial Sowing Grounds (Yangengdi) where the Qing emperors rehearsed on a somewhat smaller scale the plowing ceremony held at the Altar of the God of Agriculture. One particular rehearsal which took place in 1888 is recorded in the diary of Weng Tonghe, Emperor Guangxu' s tutor: "Shortly after 9 a.m. the emperor arrived at the yellow tent by palanquin, rested for a short while, and removed his long gown. Officials presented him with a plow and a whip, and Weng Tonghe sowed the seeds. Two old peasants led the oxen, and with imperial guards supporting the plow, the emperor sowed four furrows. His Majesty then rested in the yellow tent and frank tea before returning to the palace." Having been touched by the "dragon hands" of the emperor, this ceremonial plow became a sacred object. It is now on display in the Palace Museum.

Mao Zedong's former residence, a traditional Beijing home built around a courtyard, is also here in the Garden of Plenty. Chairman Mao occupied the rooms on the northern side of the courtyard; the rooms to the west now display his personal effects; his office and bedroom to the east remain exactly as before, with the late Mao' s desk, bathrobe and slippers on display. In Qing times, these rooms were known as the "Library of Chrysanthemum Fragrance."

To the west of the Garden of Plenty is the Pavilion of Lotus Breeze and Orchid-Scented Dew (Hefenghuiluting), and immediately to the south, an elegant white marble gateway with the inscription "Peaceful Valley" (Jinggu) carved into its lintel.

In addition, a number of other buildings not yet open to the public are worthy of mention. The Hall of the Calm Sea (Haiyantang), a Western-style structure, was formerly used by Cixi for entertaining women guests. The hall is furnished with chairs and tables in Louis XY style imported from France. When Yuan Shikai came into power, he changed its name to the Hall of Benevolence (Jerentang) and continued to use it for entertaining visitors. In 1927, when the warlord Zhang Zuolin took over Beijing, he made the Hall of Benevolence his home. And in 1923, when the warlord Cao Kun was president of the Republic, he too made his offices here. When the Christian General Feng Yuxiang captured Cao, it became his prison.

In the South Lake district, there is an interesting set of 10 square stones, each inscribed with a poem written by different people. Though the nearby Swastika Corridor (Wanzilang) has been torn down, to the south of its former site stands the Stone Chamber (Shishi), built entirely of white marble. Inside the chamber is a "golden casket" --actually a gilded safe -- which played a critical role in the history of the early Republic. In 1914, Yuan Shikai reformed the "Laws for Electing the President" by having the names of three reselected candidates for his succession-including his own-placed inside the safe. When the time came, his specially appointed parliament had little choice but to choose Yuan as the new president.

The most impressive in the South Lake area are the groves of old trees, elms conspicuous for their absence. One day in 1883, Empress Dowager Cixi was out for a stroll when a caterpillar fell from an infested elm and stung her hand. Enraged she ordered all the elm trees in that area cut down.