Ever since Marco Polo published his wide-eyed report on Khanbaligh, or Cambaluc, the city of the Mongol khans, Peking—as Beijing has been known for most of the past 300 years—has captured the Western imagination as few other ancient cities have.

Beijing Walks presents six detailed walking tours of the most important historic quarters of the Chinese capitalthe Forbidden City, the former Legation Quarter, Beihai Park, the Temple of Heaven, the Confucius Temple, the Summer Palace, Tiananmen Square, and the Olympic Village. All tours are placed in their imperial contexts and enlivened with drawings and photographs. Cohn offers vital information on everything from feng shui, Pekingese dogs, and Peking duck to Peking Opera and the emperors' private lives, evoking the sights, sounds, and smells of old Peking, its pleasures and its grandeur. 115 full-color photos and 17 maps