Forbidden

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Forbidden City today. The scale of this place is hard to absorb. 9999.5 rooms (only heaven can have 10000), 1km long and 700m wide. Can't wait to get home and watch "The Last Emperor" again. Sir Reginald Johnston taught the last emperor in the 1920's. Today I thought about him arriving at the city for the first time. He like all those of this time must have been completely awestruck by the sheer size of city. Even by todays standards the gates are incredibly large structures. The other thing that really amazed me was the level of detail in the artwork covering all the buildings. Part of the city was renovated for the 2008 Olympics but there is still a majority to complete.

Tonight we visited the Chaoyang Acrobatic Theatre. It was exceptionally good. Don't miss it if you visit Beijing. Fun, artistic and very clever, a great nights entertainment.

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Photos

81 Stud Door
9 rows of 9, 81 studs, 8+1 =9= lucky

Fire bucket
All over the city these huge 500 year old buckets were for fighting fires. Heated in winter by fires beneath they were the first line of fire defence.

One or two
Crowds in Beijing who would have thought

Chaoyang Acrobatic show
Stunning Performance.

Lusongyuan Courtyard Hotel
Stayed here for 3 nights. great location in the Hutongs of Beijing.