Beijing

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Day 20-22 (April 1-3)

The overnight train journey to Beijing was comfortable in our 4 berth soft sleeper. We were split up a fair bit as the trip to Beijing is popular. We shared the cabin with two Chinese ladies who didn’t speak any English, however when our leader came to make sure we were up the following morning they had great fun repeating the phrase “wakey-wakey” to us.

Beijing is such a different city to all the others we had seen in China. There are great wide streets everywhere giving the city an expansive feel. It appears very clean (not dusty) and not chaotic. There were many more traffic lights and more people seemed to obey them (well some anyway).

We reached our hotel which was located ideally close to Ti’anAnmen Square and the Forbidden city. We headed out for breakfast at a local shopping arcade (very modern) and had some local fare for breakfast. In Beijing a speciality is some long twisted sticks somewhat like donuts in taste.

We then met our local guide who took us to see Ti’anAnmen square (going through a security check first). It is indeed a huge square and more so as it was less busy. There were queues to see Mao in the mausoleum. Our local guide explained that most of those in the queue were from outlying country areas that still held Mao in much respect. He has lost his god-like position now in China, she said, for most Chinese and that in school history lessons teach that he was 70% good and 30% bad.

More recent history about the student uprising was mentioned in passing by the guide indicating that the square was trying to be a more peoples area now, but it seemed to not be the place to ask too many details of her.

We had many curious eyes watching us as western people are still a curiosity to those from outside Beijing & Shanghai. I was asked to stand with a women for a photo which apparently they would take back to show the rest of their township - I’ll be famous somewhere now.

Right opposite the square is the first gate into the forbidden city. On the street side is the stands for all the government officials for the May Day and National Day marches. And a large portrait of Mao that is repainted by the same artist and replaced every year (not sure what will happen when the artist dies). It is one of those paintings that the eyes follow you.

The forbidden city has three huge gates with vast areas in between before entering the main buildings. It was a place only for the Emperor to conduct his business with the officials. Strictly a male only area. Everything has a meaning, from the colour of the roof tiles, the animals that adorn the roof edges, the lions and dragons found around the place, to the number of knobs on the gates.

Once through the three gates you were in the Emperor’s own living area. He was the only male with a wife (empress) and 3000 concubines. The only other males allowed were eunuchs. We heard stories of the 12 concubines who decided to kill one not so pleasant emperor. Only, one concubine had second thoughts and told the empress. They were tortured for 3 days by having pieces of skin removed until they died.

There were also stories of the burying alive of concubines when a emperor died. Life was not that great for the women in the Emperor’s court. Some never saw the Emperor their whole lives. We also heard that the only filming done in the Forbidden City was for the movie the Last Emperor, which by many accounts is a good representation of that period. I’m looking forward to getting out the DVD when I get back.

The forbidden palace also contains historic artefacts in some of the buildings. You really needed more than a half day to see it all, so I’m glad to be going back as part of my next tour.

We popped into a taxi to check out some “Houtons” which are narrow rows of rather grey houses which is the style that used to be throughout Beijing before the various eras of reconstruction (not just the recent period of the Olympics but throughout the last 60 years).

The following day we went by local bus to the Temple of Heaven. The bus for locals is 40 Fen (8 cents), and for anyone without a cashcard is 1 Yuan (about 20 cents) and free for over 65. The cheap price of public transport looks like it is keeping people off the roads. The famous Beijing pollution was not apparent while we were here - perhaps some of the measures that were taken for the Olympics were kept in place.

The temple of heaven is in a large garden area. It is free for over 65 year olds. As in Renmin park in Chengdu the parklands were used for everyone to do their thing. Tai Chi, ballroom dancing, balancing balls on tennis rackets while moving to music, kicking a feathered and weighted thing (somewhat like a shuttlecock), music lessons on traditional implements, Chinese opera singing, crochet and chatting, card games and my favourite the anthem type singing with brass band.

All ages participate, but in particular this is a great life for retired people, active and social and so much variety. We spent an hour soaking this all up before continuing on to view the Temple of Heaven itself.

In stark contrast to today, the Temple of Heaven area was used only twice a year in the time of the Emperor’s of China. Once to pray and make a sacrifice for good harvest etc and once to give thanks. Only the Emperor and his inner court came.

For tea we were going to venture into the snack street where you can get practically anything on a stick - silk worms, snake, starfish and seahorses to name a few. A couple of us decided to be brave. Who would have thought I’d be able to answer the question "which tastes better cricket or scorpion" (Answer: Scorpion. The cricket was a bit gooey, whereas the scorpion was crunchy all the way through).

Afterward we went to wash our snacks down at an Australian themed restaurant called Outback the walls were decorated with various Australian paintings and icons but the food was definitely American style - mainly hamburgers. It did make me feel a little nostalgic though!

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Photos

Back Area of City
On the Concubines side

Ti'anAnmen Square
Gives some sense of the length if not the width

Ti'anAnmen Square 2
Looking back at gate to Forbidden City

Doors on Gates
9 by 9 gold knobs decorate the doors (9 being the best number)

Cafe and Souvenir shop
This used to be Starbucks but was changed before the Olympics as it was not felt to be really appropriate