4. Yugong Yishan Club

Check out some local music at Yugong Yishan and see and hear for yourself why Beijing really rocks.

The club has been a platform for local and international bands in an area dominated by mega nightclubs.

In recent years the venue has featured some big-name foreign acts including AIR, Jos Gonzlez, Deine Lakaien and Dark Tranquility.

The expat community always votes this place as its "favorite bar and club" in the local street press.

The club began its life in a car parking lot and was demolished in 2007 but was rebuilt two months later in the western countyard of the former site of Duan Qirui government (1865-1936).

It now covers 850 square meters, has 500 to 700 capacity, a 5-meter wide and state-of-the-art sound system.

Yugong Yishan is a Chinese proverb and the name of a fable about an old man named Yugong who wants to remove two mountains in front of his house in the ancient time.

His determination and efforts touch the ruler of Heaven, who assigned two gods to move the mountains away.

The address is Zhang Zizhong Road 3-2, Dongcheng district.

5. National Museum of China

Renovations to this national icon of Chinese history have just been completed, making it the biggest museum in the world.

Not only has this place amassed 5,000 years of Chinese art and cultural heritage, the museum itself attests to the long road to revival and provides high-quality exhibitions reflective of the fruits of this world civilization.

National Museum of China (NMC) draws equally from both history and art and is dedicated to special collections, exhibitions, research, archeology, public education and cultural communication.

With more than 40 halls filled with treasures, it has two regular exhibitions namely Ancient China and The Road to Rejuvenation.

There are also more than a dozen categories of displays related to special national shows and international exchange exhibitions.