The day was meant to start at 8:45 a.m., but after all of us met downstairs at the lobby, we soon learned that our tour guide, Christina, was stuck in traffic and would be a half hour late. While we waited, we learned that we had spent 400 Yuan yesterday in tickets and food! That’s understandable. We DID visit many places AND saw the acrobat show. Well worth it! After Christina arrived half an hour later, we were ready to go!
The best start of the day = blue skies!! It had been a while since we had the opportunity to see blue skies -- the pollution and haze had always blocked it. On our bus ride to our first stop, the Temple of Heaven, Christina explained details of Beijing and its people to us.
We arrived at the Temple of Heaven shortly and learned that it was built 600 years ago by the first emperor of the Ming Dynasty (the same person who made the Forbidden City) to worship the God of Heaven. Currently, the place was turned into a park. Thus, only 15 percent of it is architecture -- the rest is park space. Christina told us that many older and retired people come to enjoy the parks because they have no entrance fee like everybody else. The beautiful area was abundant in trees and roses. Many people could be seen doing Tai Chi, playing music, singing, and just relaxing.
Morning exercises at the Temple of Heaven
The park wasn’t overwhelmed with tourists like the rest of the attractions, so it was nice just to relax and enjoy the nature -- which we did for about an hour. After the park area, we went inside what people think of as the Temple of Heaven. The building, called by its real name -- The Hall of Good Harvest -- was magnificent … and this is where it got crowded again. After this location, we moved on to the Echo Wall where if it wasn’t so crowded, and if the walls were newer, one whisper could be heard clearly on the other side. Clearly, great acoustics! Also, it was said that if you stood on the third step and clapped, it would echo. We all, as a group, tried it at the same time. It sort of worked. Finally, our last location was the Round Altar, completing our visit to the Temple of Heaven.
Temple of Heaven
After our visit here, our professor, Jessica, tried to communicate to Christina that we wanted to eat lunch at a smaller restaurant. Unfortunately, that got lost in translation, and we were, yet again, taken to a fancy restaurant with the round tables -- this time, even with a chandelier. Oh well. We ordered less food and decided to try again to figure out how to ask for a smaller restaurant. Our food was delicious as always. After lunch, we walked outside and saw a park with a nice lake and decided to walk. It was gorgeous --the lake was surrounded by willow trees and was full of lotus flowers.
Lunch by a lake
After our lunch, we continued onward with our journey. The next stop was Quianmen Street –a famous pedestrian street with Chinese and international stores. We spent about an hour here and had a great time walking around the street and into different the different stores. Almost all of us bought something like chopsticks or other small trinkets. What an experience!
Quianmen Street
The next stop was Tian’an Men Square. Unfortunately, although Christina did explain the most important buildings on this site such as Mao’s Tomb, the People’s Monument, the China National Museum, the meeting place of Congress, and the gate of Mao’s photo, we walked through to get to the Forbidden City. The tickets to the Forbidden City stopped selling at 4 p.m. Around 3:45 p.m., we started speed walking -- and for a second, weren’t sure whether we would get our tickets! Fortunately, Christina got them, and we were in!
The Forbidden City was impressive. It had to be. After all, it was made for the emperor. Christina told us the story of the last emperor, Puyi, and also of the many constables that all of the emperors had. She mentioned how the constables were lucky, but at the same time, almost imprisoned once chosen. We did not go inside any of the halls in the Forbidden City, but we did walk in both the outer and inner courts. It was very interesting to learn about the history of the different places we actually got to see!
Forbidden City
Because the Forbidden City was closing around 5 p.m., we got out soon and were on the bus. We reached our hotel and decided to rest for about half an hour. A little after 6 p.m., we were all out ready for dinner and exploration, even though it was drizzling. We went to a place which can be translated as a “food court.” All of us could choose what we wanted, and it seemed like a great local place to eat. After dinner, some of us explored the night market while others explored other areas. The night market was amazing -- haggling was definitely necessary, and it was fun! The beautiful lights hanging above the alleyways made the market a pleasant place to walk.
Overall, it was a great day. All of us enjoyed today’s sites and we are excited for tomorrow as well when we will be touring the Great Wall of China! As of today, many of us are tired, and it is time to recharge. Although exhausting, today was well worth it. As for now, however, good night!
-- Madhuri Kulkarni
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