Tag Archives: Beijing

We conquered!

 

Chinese history states that if you climb and walk the Great Wall, you must be a hero. Today we are heroes since we walked along one section of the Wall.  Stretching over thousands of kilometres, the wall was built progressively by different dynasties to protect the land from invaders.

The initial walls were built from rammed earth being piled up to form a wide barrier around a kingdom in China. As leaders became more concerned about invaders from Mongolia, granite stones were added and the wall extended. Finally bricks were added and the sections of the wall joined in strategic areas . There is a main wall and then a secondary wall should invaders breach the first section, Even reading about it, you are not prepared for how awe inspiring the Wall is. This is not because of its length and height, but it was built thousands of years ago from local materials and sticky rice.The sheer effort needed to move materials and the number of people needed to do this, is mind boggling.

Some sections are steep with deep stairs which must have been difficult to negotiate in snow or rain. Boys were sent to the army when they were 18 years old and they were posted to distant outposts

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The area near this section of the wall has become a popular place to take dignitaries. Carvings and gardens have been used to decorate the area.

      

 

From the Wall we left for the Imperial Gardens. This was the area the Emperor spent the summer months. The last Emperors’ mother, the Dragon lady, renovated the gardens for her own use. She had a huge lake dug and a marble dragon boat built to sit in it for banquets.

 

Today Dragon boats take tourists out around the man made island , past the Buddhist style temple to the other side of the gardens.

The gardens contain manmade elements of water as a lake or pool, a mountain in the form of a huge rock or built hill, plants to reflect the seasons and objects to create beauty for the visitor to rejuvenate their spirits.

   

      

Modern apartments appear like towers reaching for the sky in what was once farm lands. Like all cities , housing affordability is forcing people to move further out from city centres. This is very different to the original China culture.

Dinner!

Yes you are seeing correctly, scorpions. They were very crispy and somewhat chewy with a nutty flavour. Quite a delicacy at the famous Peking duck restaurant. This restaurant frequently has a queue and you have to book months in advance to eat here. The rest of the menu was conservative in comparison to this dish.

 

 

 

 

 

Beijing by night.

   

 

 

 

 

Trans-Siberian Railway starting in Bejing

 

     

We arrived in the city  in the early hours of the morning and the first thing we noticed was how quiet it was compared to other Asian cities we have visited.

Rain overnight cleared the atmosphere of smog and we woke to an emerging modern city. Our tour, yes we are officially on a tour ,(going on a tourist train and not the local train , so I hope you are not disappointed to not be getting the local viewpoint ) was not until the afternoon. Walking around the city is easy compared to Hanoi or Saigon. There are less people on the main streets near our hotel. Cars and bikes have their own separate lanes on the main road, side streets are shared places with vehicles ignoring one way signs.   

    Traditional houses were build in a compound type complex  of a group of homes built around a courtyard area .  This provided communal area for the homes surrounding it. There may be quite a number of these groups forming a “district ” and these would in turn be surrounded by a high wall. Families supported each other and built community respect for each other.  These were evident from walking around the streets. Wealthier houses were marked by the doors or plants outside. These buildings were all built before modern plumbing so there were communal toilets and bathing areas. Because of this characteristic, public toilets are easily found in Beijing. Electricity and telecommunications have created more interesting issues.  Imagine trying to find the fault in these wires!

So we are still venturing out as Travellers and not tourists.


   

     

Our guide told us how excited she was to move to a modern apartment with indoor plumbing. Feeling of community , knowing and supporting your neighbours was being lost in these buildings as each person lived behind their own doors as there was no shared communal area. No balance has been found yet in combining old and new ideas to provide a better way of life.

Tiananmen square is known in western countries for the death of students in the Student rebellion.For the Chinese , it is the site of Mao’s mausoleum, the Peoples’ statue, and the square marking the entrance to the former Imperial or Forbidden City. China’s history has been marked by power struggles and rebellions. The  square itself is huge.

 

          

 

 

 

 

The Forbidden City was built in the 1400’s for the Emperor of the time. It is built in the traditional manner with huge gates on each corner and a wall surrounding the area. Within the wall was a moat, and then sections leading into the main living area of the Emperor. Each area was surrounded by a wall and entered by a series of gates. There is believed to be 9000  and a half rooms in the Forbidden city.  The father had had 9000 and one rooms ao he didn’t want to compete. Only officials appointed by Continue reading Trans-Siberian Railway starting in Bejing