Friday November 22, 2014
Beijing, China
Cold, Hazy but Blue Skies in the Afternoon
(This post is delayed a day due to Internet censorship issues)
Since I went to bed around 830pm getting up at 5am was a cinch to get ready for a fully packed day. Worked out for about 40 minutes at the fabulous gym at the Intercontinental Financial District, had a good breakfast of congee and veggies and of course a Latte, and then off to a full day exploring.
Met up with Ms. Lily and my driver around 820am. 20 minute delay as Ms. Lily got caught in Beijing trafiic. But no worries, did not make a difference. First stop – Tianamen Square. The place was packed with many senior Chinese folks as they all wanted to go see Chairman Mao in his mausoleum. First improession, wow! huge! and very Communist! The security was tight but my communist comment comes from the layout and the building architecture. We did not spend much time there but glad I went. I, of course, was imagining the student uprising and what it must have been for that lone gentleman standing in front of the tank…
We walked across Tianamen to enter the Forbidden City, the largest palace complex in the world and the most preserved. One realizes how culturally rich China was when one enters the Forbidden City. It is more obvious to me now that, China influenced culture, art and architecture throughout Asia. I forgot I was in Beijing and felt like I was visiting inside one of the beautiful traditional Chinese paintings you see in museums worldwide. It is so grand it is hard to describe in words. Thank god the British and French did not destroy it. And the attention to detail, oh my! My recommendation is to take your time looking at the details when visiting. I was fortunate to have Ms. Lily who majored in Chinese history who pointed out the details. Ms. Lily said she had another IBMer as a client and was a retiree from IBM Canada. He spent a week at the Forbidden City. I now understand how one can do that as there is so much detail to explore. I only had about 1.5 hours but if I had the time or lived in Beijing, I'll be visiting frequently to learn the hidden secrets of the beauty of Forbidden City.
We then took off for the 2 hour drive to the Great Wall. We had a wonderful lunch at a family owned restaurant near the wall of local Beijing cuisine. I had one of the best kung pao chicken ever and a very delicious barbecued local trout with stir fried local fresh cabbage. The trout was one of the best barbecued fish I've ever had. It was coated in unique spices that definitely had some cumin, pepper, black beans and not sure what else. So far the best meal in China.
Then it was time for a long drive to one of less touristy part (Mutianyu) of the Great Wall of China which was first built during the Qin dynasty (200 BC or so!). It's been my dream (and in my bucket list) to visit the Great Wall, but I always hesitated because I thought I'd be disappointed. My good friend Luis told me about his trip which was a section not opened to tourist andl life threatening (one mistake and you fall 1000 of meters) but his photos were magical which added even a higher expectation of what to expect. Well, thanks to Ms. Lily, I was not disappointed. Folks, photos do not do it justice. It's an amazing feat of human effort. I cannot imagine the hardships it took to build this wall which is over 6000 kilometers long. Unfortunately with my bad knee I did not do the 2 hour or so hike but did go to 2 stations while huffing and puffing. I have no idea how the guards got there and survived during the oppressive summer heat and bitter cold in the winter.
After soaking in the majestic wall, blue skies and fresh air, Ms. Lily took me to a cloisonne factory that has been in business for over 400 years. They still make cloisonne by hand so I learned about the process and of course, ended up shopping!
After a long day it was time to drive back to Beijing and I discovered what it's like to experience Beijing traffic. NOT FUN!! I could never drive in Beijing. There are 6million cars in this place! Anyhow, I made it back to the hotel in time for a nice salad for dinner and then a soothing hot stone massage.
Tomorrow I'm off to Xi'An!
Tianamen Square
Tianamen Security Guard
Moi at Tianamen with the Parliament building in the background
Facing the Forbidden City
Entrance to the Forbidden City. The painting of Chairman Mao is restored often so its always perfect
We are now inside the Forbidden City
Details of the doors. The gold knobs are a symbol of royalty
Gorgeous!
It's about the detail!
Shadows
I want these. The more figurines the more important the house
Shadows
Original sundial
The Imperial Garden. Again need to come back during Peony season
The talented Ms Lily took this picture. No it's not a cathedral but a library located inside the Imperial Garden
Leaving the Forbidden City
A different view from the outside
And blue skies with the last of fall in Beijing!
On the way to the Great Wall the driver stopped to show me the IBM building
Which is very near the Water Building where the swimming events took place during the Olympics
And Ai Wei Wei's birdnest.
The best barbecued trout I've ever had, demolished
Entrance to the Great Wall and you can see it in the background if you squint
AND it's HOME to Burger King! WHAT!!
Proof that I was there
Just a few of the 100s of pix I took of the wall
See that tower?? The wall is there too on that steep ridge
Would love to learn how to make cloisonne vases but it's time consuming. Learned the base is copper so could survive a drop
Fabulous day with Ms. Lily. Selfie at the Great Wall