An elaborate celebration marks China's national day.
Thousands of people pack into Beijing's Tianamen Square to mark the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the communist People's Republic of China.
President Hu Jintao led a delegation of Communist Party leaders in a procession around a memorial to China's war dead.
People from across the country poured into the square, many feting China's rise as a global power.
(SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 45-YEAR-OLD VISITOR WANG XINGLU SAYING:
"Decades ago, we used coupons, for example food coupons, to exchange for goods. Now we can buy whatever we want. People have motorbikes and cars, which we can't imagine in the past."
But others remain deeply critical of the Communist Party, which has struggled recently to contain public anger over transport accidents and other calamities.
(SOUNDBITE) (Mandarin) 27-YEAR-OLD BEIJING-BASED STUDENT LIU YUN SAYING:
"A small group of members of Chinese Communist Party are corrupt. They don't value the general public as they have already separated from the people class. Also we have concerns over food safety, medical insurance, and public transportation."
Former ruler Mao Zedong declared the founding of modern China in 1949 after years of civil war.
Andrew Raven, Reuters