Trainspotting 2: Beijing Railway Station

Beijing Railway Station is an underrated architectural gem.  Situated just inside the city's second ring road, Beijing Railway Station stands out from the city's other railway stations because of its Soviet and Chinese influences.  It's hard to miss this majestic building, but few tourists get the chance to see it.  The station building resembles a hypothetical child of the Forbidden City and Grand Central Station.  Built to commemorate 10 years of communist rule in China, the station has welcomed countless visitors to the city during its nearly 60 years.          

Crowds congregate in front of the station 
Photo from China Daily 

                            

In a nation known for gigantic structures, this station still manages to impress.  It has the grand size of Union Station in Chicago, but with way more people.  The sea of humans in the square directly in front of the station never dissipates.  It doesn't even have a discernible ebb and flow.  Despite the sea of people coming in and out of the station everyday, the station doesn't feel nearly as cramp as some of Asia's other famous train stations.  Unlike other large stations in Asia, Beijing Railway Station doesn't have short ceilings or a utilitarian vibe.  Instead, the communists built a station that ironically evokes grandeur and distinctiveness.       

The station lit up at night 
Photo from Beijing-Travels

Like Amsterdam Central Station, Beijing Railway Station features twin clock towers.  The clock towers are certainly my favorite part of the building.  Another distinctively Chinese thing about the station is its relatively isolated position.  Large public buildings in China are often set-apart from nearby buildings to emphasize their size and importance.  Exiting the station and going to the KFC across the street takes a five minute hike.  You must walk across the enormous public square directly in front of the station and then travel up and down an elevated walkway over a busy city street.  This is one hell of a hike for one of the world's most densely populated cities.  

An original clock face
in China's Railway Museum 

The station's platforms 

Some large stations in Asia literally have shopping malls or skyscrapers built on top of them.  To the untrained eye, these stations simply look like other nondescript buildings in their respective cities.  Efficiency and convenience were the driving motivators behind their design.  In contrast, the designers of Beijing Railway Station didn't take these factors into account when building this monument to communist rule.  Beijing Railway station wants you to know it's a train station, it wants you to know its important, and it wants you to know its here to stay.