Beijing City Tour...

CHINA DAY 4: 
Energized from a long night’s rest, we met our tour guide again this morning for a full day tour of Beijing city.  We walked one block down the street from our hotel for the first stop- The Forbidden City.  Brightly colored buildings, ornately painted ceilings, and traditional Chinese architecture sum up the interior of this ancient emperor dwelling dating back longer than American history.  Every building was used for a different purpose and each seemed more impressive than the last.  Before our next stop, we had a traditional tea ceremony by a lady our guide liked to call “Ms. Hot Tea”.  We tried about five different teas and learned the purpose of each.  Of course, we all got suckered into buying more than we needed as souvenirs.  Our next stop, my favorite, was the Temple of Heaven.   Here hundreds of retired or jobless Chinese people enjoyed each other’s company and played games or strolled in the park.  There was music, laughing, dancing, and even poetry writing on the ground. We walked through the maze of old men and women playing games or performing before we got to the Temple itself.  Every site we visited had a common color pattern and design using yellows, greens, reds, and blues frequently to decorate roofs or columns.  It was gorgeous!  We learned about the ancient stories behind each building and the historical significance of each site.  Lastly on the tour, we visited a pearl factory and the Summer Palace.  The Summer Palace is situated on a hill overlooking a large lake lined by a beautiful covered pathway.  On every ceiling beam of the pathway there is a beautifully detailed painting of a traditional Chinese scene.  After saying goodbye to our guide we explored Tiananmen Square where student protestors were brutally stopped in 1989 by the Communist government.  I had intense anger toward the Chinese government being in the square.  Every inch of the area was monitored by multiple surveillance cameras and official guards as well as police cars patrolling (not to mention the security check we had to go through to even enter the square).  I thought about all I learned in my East Asian Societies class at USC about the history in this exact location and the oppression.  I couldn’t have been more happy to be American at that moment as I stood in the square and thought about the freedoms we take for granted and the liberties we enjoy.  We crowded in with the mob of people and watched the 6pm flag ceremony as guards filed out in unison under Chairman Mao’s portrait then retreated minutes later.  As it was getting dark we took a cab to the Olympic park about 30 minutes away to see the torch and bird’s nest stadium.  The entire area was bright with lighted buildings and structures.  It was a unique experience to walk around the 2008 Olympics location and then go back to our hotel and watch the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver on censored Chinese television channels.  Tomorrow- off to Xian for another Wonder of the World!!