No building better symbolizes China’s 21st century rise to economic super-power status than Beijing’s National Stadium. Built to host the 2008 Olympics, the ‘Bird’s Nest’ owes its nickname to the tangle of steel supports originally put in place to hide its retractable roof. Around 150,000 awe-struck visitors now stream beneath them each day to admire the iconic structure, although the building is at its most eye-catching after dark, when its trademark interlocking beams are floodlit to spectacular effect.