Communism at its Best
We all woke up early and cranky from lack of sleep. I hustled down to grab a dough ball form breakfast, which I was so unfortunately not excited for, before jumping on the bus last minute. The bus filled with snoring and “zzz’s” on the way to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. After our guide Bella finally coerced everyone awake, we all headed for a little hike across the huge expanse of stone that makes up the Tian-‘anmen Square, which is the largest square in the world. Mao Zedong, the leader who united the country under the PRC in 1949, built it to impress and inspire awe. The square is surrounded by Soviet-style monuments and government buildings, and houses Mao’s mausoleum (where is body is chemically preserved) at the end opposite the entrance to the Forbidden City. There are also four marble lions in front of the Tiananmen gate. The northwest one has a bullet hole on its stomach from the 1989 Tianamen Square massacre, but it is fenced off and nearly impossible to get up close to. As we made our way across the square, we approached the Forbidden City entrance that is marked by a HUGE portrait of Mao’s face. Numerous street vendors tries to sell us Mao watches with his arms waving in the background, but we weren’t fully Commies yet.
The Forbidden City
This is truly the spot to appreciate the might and grandeur of the Imperial Chinese court during the height of its power in the Ming and Qing dynasties. Despite the transformation of the city around it, the Forbidden City remains mercifully relatively untouched. Surrounding the Forbidden City are several former imperial gardens and parks, all of which are accessible for tourists except Zhongnanhai, the headquarters of the Communist Party of China. It was a truly impressive structure that never seemed to end. Cassidy, Angela, Cory and I started to worry we were heading in circles since all the architecture is the same on every building, but eventually we somehow stumbled upon the exit.
Temple of Heaven
Before heading to the Temple of Heaven, we stopped for lunch at the Shan Shui Jian Royal Restaurant in the Chongwen District. They served a delicious, but similar variation of the foods we had been sharing family style. We got tiny plates again! It really made me feel like we were at a six year old’s tea party again! Afterward, we were unleashed at the Temple of Heaven, which is located in southeastern Beijing, and is where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties made visits for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for good harvest. We got to run around and take pictures of:
- Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests: a magnificent, circular wooden building, where the Emperor prayed for good harvests. The most impressive part was that it was built without nails.
- Imperial Vault of Heaven: a circular building, built on a single level of marble stone base. While there, we tested out the Echo Wall by yelling things to each other across the smooth, circular wall.
- Circular Mound Altar: is an empty circular platform on three levels of marble stones, where the Emperor prayed for favorable weather. We each took turns taking pictures, while mashed between other tourists standing at the very center where the emperor stands to make prayers.
Silk Street Market
To our delight, the final “site” before the Chinese Acrobatics show, was an eight-story market that sold everything under the sky from designer bags and shoes to pearls, silk and pirated DVDs. You could even get crystal engraved, stamps made or mini clay statues of yourself made. Seeing as you could buy high quality Ugs for $20 and Burbeery coats for $15, all the girls were going crazy. It seemed a little ridiculous that we had just experienced all the poverty in the world, and yet students were still dazed by the labels hanging cheaply in front of them. I can’t really complain though, since the Ugs I got fit snuggly (and warmly) on my feet for the rest of China. Mid-shopping we stopped to re-fuel quickly with Subway sandwiches, since that is the one food we actually miss the most from home. Sandwiches of all things? While sitting outside Subway, a man approached us and asked if we wanted DVDs. Cory, Angela and I were interested in what he had to offer, so we followed him to his “store.” After following down a crowded alley and into an outdoor restaurant, he opened an old refrigerator and pulled out a suitcase of pirated DVDs. We knew right there, not to buy and thanked him for showing us his “store” before heading back to the shopping mecca we had just left.
Chinese Acrobatics show
Once we all stuffed ourselves back into the bus that was no filled with shopping bags of goodies and gifts, we headed to the Chinese Acrobatics show. The show was put on by a school that trained impoverished rural children in the arts of juggling, balance and gymnastics so they can perform to make money. Honestly, I thought it would end up being a little lame, but we were all in awe of the way they could bend their bodies. No joke this woman could have literally shoved her head up her ass. Some of them held the weight of four people on their heads! They did tricks jumping through hoops and onto polls. They used bicycles to flip around. The men also did this hilarious running man pose before exiting off stage each time. I would have loved to touch one of the guy’s bodies just to see how much they feel like steel. After that performance, I can say with full confidence that Ninjas do actually exist.
Nighttime
Cassidy, Kyle and I made it to the only WalMart in the area just in time for closing. We literally sprinted into the place, so we could grab things we needed. Cassidy and I got $3 enormous duffel bags to get things not only back to the ship but also home from Miami. Afterward, we headed back to the guesthouse to hang out and relax for a bit. I ended up passing out early while Kyle watched Prison Break on my laptop.
Highs and Lows
My “high” was finding out that things may be bigger in Texas, but they are f-ing HUGE in Beijing. My “low” was finding out Chinese authorities will seized documents, literature and letters that they deem to be pornographic, including People Magazine!
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