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Published: November 25th 2007
The Great Wall
Mutianyu sectionAfter the farce of the flights was finally sorted it was back to enjoying ourselves again. Beijing is massive and is home to some 14 million people. We found the language barrier to be far greater here than in Shanghai and although the barrier existed it is still no excuse for the rude and impoliteness of many of the Chinese. We had experienced language problems in the past but never the response that we have recieved here. However some of the people were just lovely and restored our faith, well some of it.
The city itself is a wonderful mix between traditional Chinese architecture and the new, more recent sky scrapers. We had to brave the freezing temperatures (in our summer clothes) to see these remarkable buildings but we were justly rewarded as they are magnificent. The Forbidden City in particular was impressive. The Emperors of the Qing and Ming Dynasty's lived here along with their many wives and concubines. It was called the Forbidden City because the 'common' people were not allowed in. The youngest ever Emperor was just 3 years old and retired at the grand old age of 6. This was the end of the Qing Dynasty.
The Summer Palace, a place whereby the Emperor would go for relaxation was beautiful. A very scenic place with a wonderful lake and mountainous backdrop. It was at one point a prison, holding one of the Emperors captive for introducing new policies which the Dragon Lady (the emperor's auntie) did not agree with.
The Great Wall of China, one of the seven wonders of the world, what more needs to be said! We seem to be making our way steadily through these magnificent wonders, the Taj Mahal, Angkor and now the The Great Wall. Due to the enormity of the wall, the wall is split into several sections and is a total of 4000 miles long. Communication between the watch towers was achieved via smoke signals and cannon blasts, this gave the soldiers time to call reinforcements and to warn of enemy movements. We visited the Mutianyu section, a good couple of hours outside Beijing, set high in the mountains and stretching for miles it was really astonishing to see. The views were simply spectacular especially on such a clear day. It involved a few steep climbs which we found rather tiring but had so much fun. We learned
that the wall is sometimes referred to as the biggest cemetary in China due to the staggering number of men who lost their lives whilst building the wall.
Not suprisingly there was alot to see in Beijing and although we could not do it all we did manage to see most of its highlights. Tiannamen square was cool to see with the People's Monument placed in the middle and statues of the People's Hero's. It also had the Olympic Countdown which probably excited us more...oh so cultured! The Temple of Heaven was really quite beautiful and is the place where Emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasty would worship Heaven and pray for a good harvest. One of the buildings was round and the others square, a pattern symbolic of the ancient belief that Heaven was round and Earth was square. We were privileged to witness many people dancing and singing in the surrounding park. Everyone seemed so happy and it even drew a small crowd. Apparently in China it is common for people to get up as early as 5am to do exercise (dance) and it is done collectively in a public spot.
We visited the biggest
Tibetan Buddist Lama Temple in Beijing. Built by the Qing Dynasty and made into a palace with the Chinese meaning of 'harmony and peace', it was quite possibly the best temple we have seen. It was very traditional and colourful even on the inside. In the past many temples although stunning on the outside have been ruined on the inside but the Lama temple was beautifully preserved. Finally we took a pleasant stroll through Beihai Park. Mounted on top of a hill was a huge White Pagoda which offered fantastic views of the lake and park.
We stumbled across a street food market which had the most amazing food and of course very cheap. We were not too adventurous however and didn't try the beatles, snake or sea horses!! Generally street food was far better than restaurants although the Peking Duck was just delicious.
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Laura
non-member comment
hiiii girlies! just thought id sat boo! how u doing? i check ur website everyday for any updates and it looks amazing, hopefully guna do summet like you are wen i finish uni........just not as heavy! looks like ur havin a wicked time. much love xxxxxxxx