Beijing
The first thing that I noticed about Beijing was the pollution. Holy Moly was it bad. You could see it engulfed the entire city and at night it was a bit eerie. It cleared up a bit the next day but it was still bad. I wonder what is going to happen during the Olympics. They promised to have it cleared up but how do you do that in a few months.
The first day I walked around Tiananmen Square and saw the Forbidden City, Chairman Mao mausoleum and was on my way to a art gallery to by a painting and there was a local who wanted to practice speaking English (they do that a lot her and are not trying to swindle out of anything) and sure enough she was an artist. So I want to here exhibit and bought a really nice painting. We then went for dinner do it was nice to go where the locals go and we had Peking Duck of course. It was amazingly good.
5/3/08
The Great Wall
The Great Wall of China was built over 2,000 years ago, by Qin Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of China during the Qin (Ch'in) Dynasty (221 B.C - 206 B.C.). In Chinese the wall is called "Wan-Li Qang-Qeng" which means 10,000-Li Long Wall (10,000 Li = about 5,000 km).
After subjugating and uniting China from seven Warring States, the emperor connected and extended four old fortification walls along the north of China that originated about 700 B.C. (over 2500 years ago). Armies were stationed along the wall as a first line of defense against the invading nomadic Hsiung Nu tribes north of China (the Huns). Signal fires from the Wall provided early warning of an attack.
The Great Wall is one of the largest building construction projects ever completed. It stretches across the mountains of northern China, winding north and northwest of Beijing. It is constructed of masonry, rocks and packed-earth. It was over 5,000 km (=10,000 Li) long. Its thickness ranged from about 4.5 to 9 meters (15 to 30 feet) and was up to 7.5 meters (25 feet) tall.
During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), the Great Wall was enlarged to 6,400 kilometers (4,000 miles) and renovated over a 200 year period, with watch-towers and cannons added.
The Great Wall can be seen from Earth orbit, but, contrary to legend, is not visible from the moon, according to astronauts Neil Armstrong, Jim Lovell, and Jim Irwin.
I did a 10 km hike along the wall which was really good except for the fact it was lashing rain and I was soaked through to the skin. That was ok because it kept the crowds away. It was about 90% original wall and about 10% refurbished. It was tough sledding at places but certainly not a hard hike. At the end of it there is a long zip line to get you across a lake and back to the pickup point.
From it is a small world. I was talking to a woman on the hike and she lives in Calgary and I use to work with her sister.
I have a bit of hangover today. I went out last night with 2 Mexican women, a British man and a Chinese woman. Do we ending dancing at a Cuban bar it was a lot of fun.
5/6/08
I thought I was going to be a giant in China. I had visions of grabbing people by the back of the collar with my thumb and index finger and throwing them out of my way. Christ, I am short in China as well.
The subways are amazingly crowded at rush time. Like Russia you just kind of shove and push your way like the locals and no one seems to be bothered by it.
I went to the Temple of Heaven Park yesterday. A complex astrological and symmetrical outlay so the emperor could pray for a good harvest and other rituals. It was pretty relaxing for Beijing and a nice way to spend a warm day.
I went to a Kung Fu show last night. It was one part River Dance, 1 part Phantom of the Opera and all parts cheesy and fun.
I am just waiting to catch an overnight train to Shanghai and will continue south until I get to Hong Kong.
The Forbidden City
I thought for some reason that all of Beijing was called the Forbidden City just as New Orleans is called The Big Easy. The Forbidden City is a part of Beijing that was only accessible by the Emperor and staff, etc-hence the Forbidden part
Lying at the center of Beijing, the Forbidden City, called Gu Gong in Chinese, was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Now known as the Palace Museum, it is to the north of Tiananmen Square. Rectangular in shape, it is the world's largest palace complex and covers 74 hectares. Surrounded by a six meter deep moat and a ten meter high wall are 9,999 buildings. The wall has a gate on each side. Opposite the Tiananmen Gate, to the north is the Gate of Divine Might (Shenwumen), which faces Jingshan Park. The distance between these two gates is 960 meters, while the distance between the gates in the east and west walls is 750 meters. There are unique and delicately structured towers on each of the four corners of the curtain wall. These afford views over both the palace and the city outside. The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court was where he lived with his royal family. Until 1924 when the last emperor of China was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. Listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace Museum is now one of the most popular tourist attractions world-wide.
I now have seen the triple crown of embalmed communist leaders. Ho Chi Minh, Lenin and now Chairmen Mao. I know this is not like winning a Nobel Prize but I think I now get a set of steak knives.
The Forbidden City
I thought for some reason that all of Beijing was called the Forbidden City just as New Orleans is called The Big Easy. The Forbidden City is a part of Beijing that was only accessible by the Emperor and staff, etc-hence the Forbidden part
Lying at the center of Beijing, the Forbidden City, called Gu Gong in Chinese, was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing dynasties. Now known as the Palace Museum, it is to the north of Tiananmen Square. Rectangular in shape, it is the world's largest palace complex and covers 74 hectares. Surrounded by a six meter deep moat and a ten meter high wall are 9,999 buildings. The wall has a gate on each side. Opposite the Tiananmen Gate, to the north is the Gate of Divine Might (Shenwumen), which faces Jingshan Park. The distance between these two gates is 960 meters, while the distance between the gates in the east and west walls is 750 meters. There are unique and delicately structured towers on each of the four corners of the curtain wall. These afford views over both the palace and the city outside. The Forbidden City is divided into two parts. The southern section, or the Outer Court was where the emperor exercised his supreme power over the nation. The northern section, or the Inner Court was where he lived with his royal family. Until 1924 when the last emperor of China was driven from the Inner Court, fourteen emperors of the Ming dynasty and ten emperors of the Qing dynasty had reigned here. Having been the imperial palace for some five centuries, it houses numerous rare treasures and curiosities. Listed by UNESCO as a World Cultural Heritage Site in 1987, the Palace Museum is now one of the most popular tourist attractions world-wide.
I now have seen the triple crown of embalmed communist leaders. Ho Chi Minh, Lenin and now Chairmen Mao. I know this is not like winning a Nobel Prize but I think I now get a set of steak knives.
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