Located in downtown Beijing and flanking the western side of Tian'anmen Square, the landmark Great Hall of the People was dubbed the "luxurious parlor of the people" by late chairman Mao Zedong.

Built in 1959, the hall has a total building area of 170,000 square meters, which is larger than that of its neighbor the Forbidden City. The whole construction of the building only took 10 months to complete.

The name of the hall, the Great Hall of the People, came about after construction was completed, following advice given by renowned Chinese bridge architect Mao Yisheng.

The largest meeting room in the hall offers 10,000 seats, and its largest banquet hall can serve 5,000 guests at any one time. In addition, more than 300 other rooms are available for meetings, leisure or office purposes.

Statistics show that the hall has already hosted more than 3,000 meetings and various important activities, including the annual plenary sessions of the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC).

The hall is also a place where Chinese leaders meet foreign dignitaries.

(Source: CRIENGLISH.com)