BEIJING
OK, first of all – I KNOW that this blog is too long. The good news is – you don’t have to read it! You can just skim through it and look at the photos. I promise – there will not be a quiz!
You know by now that our annual trip is a birthday present from me to Roger, with the destination a surprise. Well, let me start by saying that Roger did NOT want to go to China -- ever. You can imagine how thrilled he ws when he saw that our flight went to Beijing...
THE FLIGHT TO BEIJING:
For this trip, we went to Beijing, then Xian (both on the map, below), then to Lijiang and Xhongdian (north of Kunming on the map below), then Guilin (Southeast of Kunming), then to Sanya (the tiny island at the far south of China), then to Shanghai.
A MAP OF CHINA:
We arrived in Beijing, slept for about 12 hours straight, then met our guide Jeffrey and our driver the next morning and headed out to explore Beijing.
Our first stop was TIANANMEN SQUARE – the largest public square in the world – 100 acres! Jeffrey pointed out the monuments and museums surrounding the square, including the Mausoleum of Mao Zedong on the south side of the square, with a line over 4 HOURS LONG – just for a quick glimpse of Mao’s body!
On our way to Tiananmen Square, Jeffrey asked us what we knew about the Tiananmen Square "riot". He encouraged us to talk openly, so we told him what we had heard: students had gathered in the square starting in April 1989 to honor the death of a pro-democracy Chinese political official; that the gathering grew and grew, with students pouring in from all over the country, until June 4, 1989, when the government told the students to disband and they refused. Troops were brought in, then tanks, and an unknown number of students were killed and /or injured. Casualty figures range from about 250 dead and 7,000 wounded to thousands dead. There is one very famous photo of a lone student blocking the progress of tanks. Our understanding is that the student was killed, in that he has never been interviewed or heard from again.
Jeffrey said that, in his experience, we only hear bad things about each other’s country, and it is too bad that we only heard half-truths. He said the gathering started out innocently but that the naive students were infiltrated and influenced by "bad people," that the police were only called in when the demonstration turned violent, and the police were "forced" to restore order. He said that just as many – or more – soldiers as students were injured and killed.
Roger and I held our tongues – we did not even try to point out to Jeffrey that he appears to be brainwashed.
TIANAMEN SQUARE, AS SEEN FROM THE TOP OF THE ENTRANCE TO THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
TIANANMEN SQUARE:
Anyhow, there were two surprising things about Tiananmen Square.
The first was the number of Chinese tourists. Jeffrey told us that lots of Chinese are traveling for the first time in their lives, and that, after the success of the Olympics, Chinese tourists are coming to Beijing in droves.
The second was the huge number of Chinese tourists who asked to have their photos taken with us. We must have been asked 5 times in 10 minutes to pose with Chinese people for photos. We asked why – Roger’s height? My blonde hair? Jeffrey explained that, since we were on a private tour (just the 2 of us with a guide), the Chinese tourists assumed that we must be important people. Since many Chinese have never traveled before, the tourists will return home and proudly show off the photos of the "important Americans" to their friends
Jeffrey also claimed that people wanted photos with us because we are "so good looking" – we did not believe him... he wanted a good tip, after all.
This happened (people asking to take photos with us) throughout the entire trip! Sometimes, when we stopped to take a photo, people would just jump into the photo with us! Other times, someone would grab my arm and gently drag me into a photo. Weird!
RANDOM PEOPLE IN TIANANMEN SQUARE WHO WANTED PHOTOS WITH US:
We walked through Tiananmen Square, under the main street / parade route of Chang'an Avenue, and then up to the Gate of Heavenly Peace – the entrance to the FORBIDDEN CITY, recognizable by the huge portrait of Mao Zedong on it.
THE FORBIDDEN CITY
THE ENTRANCE TO THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
KIND OF A COOL PHOTO OF THE ENTRANCE:
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace for 600 years – from the middle of the Ming Dynasty until the end of the Qing ("ching") Dynasty in 1912. It served as the home of 24 Emperors!
The name Forbidden City is accurate – only the Emperor and his family, concubines, and servants lived there. Anyone found within the Forbidden City without permission was killed on the spot – no trial, no due process, no appeal – just execution.
The Forbidden City is HUGE! It is divided into two parts – the Outer (or Front) Court, which was used for ceremonial purposes, and the Inner Court (or Back Palace) which was the residence of the Emperor and his family and concubines.
I have to confess that we could not absorb everything we were told about the history, architecture and symbolism of the Forbidden City. We DO remember this: the design of the Forbidden City – down to the smallest detail – was meticulously planned to reflect philosophical and religious principles, and to symbolize the majesty of Imperial power.
The main other thing we remember is that, when asked by your guide "why did they do this? (i.e., why are there 3 halls? why are there 9 statuettes? why are the buildings positioned this way?), the answer is ALWAYS "feng shui".
But I digress. The point is that we spent a few hours wandering thru the Forbidden City, learning about feng shui and learning that everything in China has a deep, symbolic meaning. Kinda made us feel like a bunch of heathens...
THE SECOND COURTYARD IN THE FORBIDDEN CITY -- NOTICE THE HIGH WALL PROTECTING THE CITY:
ONE OF THE MANY BUILDINGS IN THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
BEAUTIFUL ROOFTOPS:
THIS IS ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT BUILDINGS IN THE FORBIDDEN CITY -- THE EMPEROR'S THRONE IS HERE:
THIS IS PART OF THE STAIRWAY LEADING UP TO THE BUILDING WHERE THE EMPEROR WAS CROWNED. THIS IS A SINGLE, ENORMOUS PIECE OF MARBLE, INTRICATELY CARVED:
PEOPLE ARE LINED UP TO PEEK INSIDE THE BUILDING AND SEE THE EMPEROR'S THRONE -- KEEP MOVING OR GET TRAMPLED!
THIS LION STATUE IS A FEMALE -- THAT IS A CUB UNDER HER PAW:
THE CUB:
THE MALE LION STATUE -- THAT IS THE EARTH/WORLD UNDER HIS PAW:
According to feng shui, odd numbers are the good numbers. In the Forbidden City, the roofs are decorated with a line of statuettes. The number of statuettes shows the status of the building – a minor building has 3 or 5 statuettes (but never 2, 4 or 6). A very important building has 9 statuettes -- 9 is the most powerful number – the Emperor’s number.
STATUETTES ON THE ROOF -- THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT BUILDING (9 STATUETTES):
A LONELY HALLWAY IN THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
THIS GIVES YOU A SENSE OF THE SIZE OF THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
THE BACK AREA OF THE FORBIDDEN CITY -- LIVING AREA AND GARDENS:
A COOL DOORWAY IN THE GARDEN AREA:
WHAT A COOL STATUE!
THE VIEW LEAVING THE REAR OF THE FORBIDDEN CITY -- THAT IS A MAN-MADE, DEFENSIVE HILL:
THE REAR ENTRANCE (OR EXIT) OF THE FORBIDDEN CITY:
POLICE / GUARDS:
We left the Forbidden City, and lunch at a "western" restaurant (i.e., good Chinese food, tacky decor) ...
THE "WESTERN" RESTAURANT:
NICE RESTROOM!
Next, we headed to the TEMPLE OF HEAVEN, which was built at the same time as the Forbidden City (1406-1420). Our guide explained that the Temple of Heaven is "a masterpiece of architecture and landscape design which simply and graphically illustrates a cosmogony of great importance for the evolution of one of the world’s great civilizations..." (or something like that).
What Roger noticed is that it is a 600 year old wooden structure that was built without a single nail and still stands today – very impressive!
THE TEMPLE OF HEAVEN:
Jeffrey told us that, in ancient China, the Emperor was regarded as the Son of Heaven. He showed respect to Heaven through ceremonies, prayer and sacrifices. The temple was built for this purpose. Twice a year, the Emperor and his posse (or whatever they called them) would move to the Temple of Heaven, where the Emperor would pray for good harvests and sacrifices were performed. It was all extremely ritualistic – the slightest mistake or deviation from the prescribed routine was a bad omen for the entire country.
Nowadays, the Temple of Heaven is located at the top of a hill in a very popular park, filled with people singing, dancing, exercising, and practicing taiji bailong ball (a paddleball variation of tai chi – go figure!). We certainly did not see any sacrifices that day.
THE TEMPLE OF HEAVEN:
ANOTHER RANDOM PERSON ASKING TO TAKE PHOTOS WITH ME:
AND ANOTHER...
The funniest thing about our visit to the Temple of Heaven was when Jeffrey – who has lived in Beijing all of his life – said (seriously) "ah, smell that fresh air!" We thought he was kidding! We were choking on the smog and Jeffrey thought it was beautiful!
A quick word about the pollution: it was HORRIBLE!!! Far worse that LA on its worst day. The scariest thing is that the government has kept in place some of the Olympics-era pollution-control policies, so the smog index was only about half what it was before the Olympics – and it was TERRIBLE!
After the Temple of Heaven, and some forced shopping (pearls), we headed to the SUMMER PALACE.
"Forced shopping?" you ask. Well, the guides are apparently "encouraged" by the government to take you to certain stores, where you are basically held captive for 15-20 minutes, while the workers follow you around and try to get you to buy stuff. I did not mind at all – it’s shopping after all! – but Roger hated it.
OK – the Summer Palace: The Summer Palace is exactly what it sounds like – it’s where the Emperor went in the summer, when Beijing was too hot. It’s about 45 minutes outside of Beijing, on Kunming Lake. It is apparently renowned for its gorgeous gardens. I say "apparently" because there were so many people, we could not see the gardens – the place was packed!
THE SUMMER PALACE -- WITH LOTS OF PEOPLE:
One of the famous things at the Summer Palace is the Long Hall – a hand-painted outdoor walkway that is nearly 2500 feet long, running along Kunming Lake. It was a beautiful setting, even with throngs of people.
ROGER AND JEFFREY IN THE LONG HALL:
A PHOTO OP IN THE LONG HALL:
MORE PHOTOS WITH RANDOM PEOPLE:
AND ONE MORE!
MORE OF THE SUMMER PALACE:
THE MARBLE BOAT -- THE DOWAGER EMPRESS XIXI ("she-she") SPENT ALL OF THE MONEY FOR THE NAVY ON THIS BOAT, SO SHE COULD HAVE TEA PARTIES ON THE LAKE... THE ONLY PROBLEM IS THE NAVY NEEDED THE MONEY AND CHINA STARTED LOSING WARS AT SEA:
THE SUMMER PALACE GARDENS:
We ended the evening with a Peking Duck dinner. Very yummy, and great service...
ROGER -- USING CHOPSTICKS:
ME!
Roger and I were exhausted, so we headed back to the hotel and called it a night.
The next day, we asked if we could see the Bird’s Nest and the Water Cube on our way out of town (heading to the Great Wall!). We were sad to learn that the Olympic Village is closed/fenced – you have to buy a ticket to get close to the buildings, it takes many months to get a ticket, and the Chinese are given priority over foreigners for the tickets. Jeffrey had our driver get as close as he could (probably a 1/4 mile) and we strained to make out the buildings through the smog...
THE SMOG
OUR "CLOSE UP" OF THE BIRDS NEST:
After our Olympic drive-by and a little more forced shopping (jade this time), we headed to the MING TOMBS, about 50 kilometers north of Beijing. The site was chosen by the third Ming Dynasty emperor and 13 Ming Dynasty emperors and empresses are buried there.
We learned that Emperors meticulously planned their burial sites. A proper location, based on feng shui principles, might take years to select, then planning and construction would begin. A huge mound would be created, with the burial tomb under the mound. The tomb itself held not just the bodies of the Emperors and empresses, but also treasure and necessities for the next life.
To date, only one of the 13 Ming Tombs has been excavated. The story of the excavation is tragic: excavation started in the late 1950's. The excavation revealed an intact tomb, with thousands of items of silk, textiles, wood, and porcelain, as well as the Wanli Emperor and his two empresses. However, there was neither the technology nor the resources to adequately preserve the excavated artifacts. After several disastrous experiments, the silk and other textiles were simply piled into a storage room which leaked water and wind. As a result, most of the surviving artifacts were destroyed. If that was not bad enough, archaeological work was stopped thanks to the CULTURAL REVOLUTION. Red Guards stormed the site and dragged the remains of the Emperor and empresses outside, where they were posthumously "denounced" and burned, along with most of the artifacts.
Given this history, it is not surprising that the government has been hesitant to excavate the other tombs!
THE ENTRY TO THE MING TOMBS:
THE GROUNDS OF THE MING TOMBS -- THE DRAGON IS A DOWNSPOUT!
ROGER'S ARTISTIC PHOTO -- MOPS!
We left the Ming Tombs, had lunch, toured a Cloisonne factory (more forced shopping), and then headed for the GREAT WALL. I could barely contain my excitement – the Great Wall!!! We drove through the countryside and up into the hills, straining to look at the hilltops for the first glimpse of the Great Wall.
Jeffrey told us that the Great Wall started as a number of separate walls enclosing separate kingdoms. When Emperor Qin ("chin") united China in 220 BC, he connected the separate walls to fend of the Huns (those darned Huns!), thereby forming the Great Wall (more about Emperor Qin later – he is perhaps best known for creating the Terra Cotta Warriors). The Wall stretches over 4,000 miles, across deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus, roughly dividing China proper from Inner Mongolia.
Nowadays, there are 5 sections of the Great Wall open to tourists. We went to the MUTIANYU (moo-tee-ahn-yoo) Section, which is particularly scenic. Our driver dropped us off and we hiked through a tourist-trap maze of shops, to the cable car, then took the cable car up, up, up to the Wall. Roger and I walked for about 1-1/2 hours, taking photos and admiring the view – and what a beautiful view it is! We walked until we hit a particularly steep section, and then quickly decided to head back!
I have to confess – I was in AWE! I just could not believe that I was standing on the GREAT WALL OF CHINA! You have probably experienced that before – at some iconic place – you just cannot believe that you are actually THERE. That’s how I was at the Great Wall. Standing there on the all, thinking about 2,000 years of history, thinking about the incredible effort it took to build it (we were out of breath just walking on it!), and thinking what it would be like to be a Mongol invader and to plan an attack on the Wall. Sure makes me glad I live in modern times!
THE GREAT WALL!!!
WHAT A VIEW!
WE WALKED ALL OF THE WAY TO THE REALLY STEEP PART IN THE BACKGROUND:
ONE OF THE GUARD TOWERS:
THIS IS WHERE WE STOPPED WALKING -- AT THE REALLY STEEP PART:
After a few hours, we returned to Jeffrey, who warned us that the path down was a narrow gauntlet of tourist trap shops – don’t stop, don’t look at the wares, don’t touch anything unless we wanted to be accosted by the sellers. He was not kidding. The path down was lined with shacks, filled to the brim with postcards, t-shirts, souvenier books, trinkets, knick-knacks, chachkis, and assorted other crap. It took all my willpower to NOT stop when the first seller held up a t-shirt and said "two for a dollar!"
TWO FOR A DOLLAR??? I don’t care how poorly made they are, it took all my willpower not to buy when I heard two for a dollar.
You can probably tell – I LOVED the Great Wall. It was amazing!
THE TOURIST TRAP GAUNTLET -- THIS IS THE WIDE PART!
After the Great Wall, we returned to the hotel and planned to visit "food street" that night (a street full of vendors selling deep fried scorpion, worms, seahorses, snake, etc., etc.), but we fell asleep and did not awake until late the next morning, so we missed out on food street.
We had also planned to take a hutong tour (a tour of a neighborhood with traditional courtyard homes, typically done in a "cab" pulled by a bicycle) the next morning, but we slept through that as well! We really must have been sick, or exhausted – or both. We slept in late, lounged around, and then headed to the airport for our next destination, Xian...
