Beijing

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I finally managed to send a package back to the uk after something of an epic struggle. That called for a celebratory cup of tea at the bakery next door to PingAli metro station.

Beijing has many gardens and the only one I have had time to visit so far is the summer palace. It is the imperial garden, but was largelyreconstructed in the late nineteenth century after it was destroyed by the British and French. We climbed longevity hill twice for good measure. Perhaps it is called longevity hill because the excercise of climbing it is good for health. A highlight of the visit was the ride in adragon boat across the lake admiring the arches of the seventeen arch bridge. We later crossed the bridge and saw the detail of the lions across each side of the bridge. We also admired two bronzes, an ox looking out over the lake and the elegant thousand handed guanshinin buddha in the Buddhist fragrance pavilion.



In the evening I said goodbye to Tom, Kat and Claire. We had a girls night out at the Beijing opera. There was a lot of mime and dancing and not very much singing in the performance. The show is mainly for tourists. I did enjoy the interior of the theatre with its colourful painted wood.

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