Today I spent the day exploring the area around the hotel. I started the day by going down to the Tiena mien square area. Right outside the hotel, I ran into Jamie and Xao (sic?), who were visiting from Shanghai. We threw our lot in together and headed down the road. I've been very surprised this trip by how friendly everyone is, and how eager many are to speak english with anyone willing to talk back. Xao is a surgeon, and Jamie just graduated with an english degree.
Here I am in front of the Gate of Heavenly Peace, where Mao climbed up and proclaimed the People's Republic of China. It's also the entrance to the Forbidden City.
This is the mausoleum that holds Mao's tomb. It was closed. Supposedly it's open on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. However, it looks closed for renovation. The National museum, also on the square, is closed and has a huge countdown timer for the olympic games. Less than a year to go!
On a less festive note, this is the section of Tiena mien where the student massacre took place. My friends were quite willing to talk about this, and described it as a "secret" that people could only talk about in private.
After the square, they showed me around the Hutong area behind it. These are traditional people's accommodations - courtyard houses in very narrow alleys. Some are totally squalid - and some are being completely renovated. They reminded me of some of the things I've seen in thailand, but on a massive scale.Next, we went to a tea house for a nice cup of tea. A traditional tea ceremony, we learned, has 8 teas. We gave up after 6. We tried!
After that, lunch. We ate at a "hole in the wall" (almost literally) in the Hutong.
Here's Jamie, some Hunan Duck, and fish soup.
Yanjing is one of the names of Beijing, from ancient times.After this, they had to go, but I was determined to see the Forbidden city. The crowds were much too large in the morning, but they were manageable by 2:30. I agreed to let a tour guide show me around, although she really wasn't all that helpful since I had already read about the palace and gotten a tour of a similar (but much smaller) palace in Seoul.
Conditions were not good for pictures - hellishly hot and humid weather and the traditional total smog out conditions.After showing me around, the tour guide sent me out a different entrance. I had no idea where I was, and I was exhausted. So, I took the offer of a rickshaw ride back to my hotel. The driver took me on a super long ride through the Hutong, looking out for police, and then finally ditched me "5 minutes walk that way" from my hotel. Needless to say, it was more than 5 minutes, and I'd have gotten lost if I hadn't known my way around. I was quite happy to find my hotel, and I haven't left it since!
