BoomerGirl Diary

Suffering just a bit from jet lag, we are up and ready to go early on our second day in Beijing. Today’s tour is to take us to the center of Beijing to visit Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. Once again, instead of a coach tour, we are surprised to find that we are the only ones on our Gray Line day trip. We have the same driver as the day before, but a different tour guide. The four of us head out into the Beijing morning rush hour traffic as our guide tells us that 1000 new cars are added everyday into the already problematic traffic. The air pollution had not seemed too bad the previous day, but it had been Sunday and we had traveled out of the city. Now we are in the smoggy thick of it, and the sky is no longer blue, but a sick yellow instead. Beijing has a reasonably well thought out system of very modern, multi-lane highways circling the city. The connecting roads that make up the “spokes” of this system are also very wide, and bordered on each side by bike paths and pedestrian sidewalks. There are miles of beautiful roses growing along the sides of these streets. I have always thought of roses as being difficult to grow, but they seem to be thriving in this heavily polluted atmosphere. We are told that they are a special variety of rose called China Rose. Tiananmen Square is bigger than I had expected and seemingly full of Chinese visitors. We are shown the Monument to the People’s Heroes, the Great Hall of the People, and Chairman Mao’s Monument. There is a group of children dressed in dark pants, white shirts and red neckerchiefs standing at attention holding flags around the Monument to the People’s Heroes. We are told that local school children are rotated through this duty to help them realize what they owe to the previous generations. Then it is on to the Forbidden City, which is now known as the Imperial Palace Museum. Construction on this maze of 980 surviving buildings began in 1406 by the Ming Dynasty emperor, and was designed to be the center of the ancient walled city of Beijing. It is enclosed by a moat and a 24 foot tall stone wall. We are told that work to restore and repair this maze of buildings goes on constantly by the descendents of the original builders. The newly restored parts of the palace are beautiful, but there is little left of the original art and treasures on display. We are told that most of these items were taken to Taiwan in 1947 by Chiang Kai-shek. Our tour takes us back through a series of gates and courtyards, from the Outer Court to the Inner Court, to the Hall of Central Harmony, to the Hall of Preserving Harmony, to the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Then we stop for a short rest in a gift shop where a nephew of the last emperor is on hand with a selection of his calligraphy that is available for purchase. One side of the shop is lined with shelves full of antique Chinese artifacts; the other side is full of newly produced souvenirs. I find a large antique ceramic horse that I like very much. But to preserve Travel Harmony and Supreme Marital Harmony, I purchase a small, very new and hopefully genuine jade horse. Next, we are taken to the Temple of Heaven, which was constructed at the same time as the Forbidden City. Regarded as the son of heaven, each Ming emperor administered earthly matters on behalf of heavenly authority. The Temple of Heaven was the site of important prayer ceremonies where the emperor would ask for good harvest. The temples are situated in a large park that is still enjoyed by residents of Beijing today. It is a welcome respite from the whirl of traffic and people outside. Our heads whirl a bit too, as we are told about all of the symbolic numbers used in the construction of the complex. Every step, every tile and every ornament was carefully fit together in order to use only the luckiest of numbers. Nine is the luckiest of numbers, and represents the emperor, so the altar is reached by three levels of nine steps each. The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests has four inner, twelve middle and twelve outer pillars that represent the four seasons, twelve months and twelve traditional Chinese hours respectively. We are again impressed by the beautiful roses growing in decorative displays along the temple walks. More than ready for lunch, we are taken to a busy restaurant that is full of people, but we feel like the only tourists. They are ready for us though, as we are supplied with forks and spoons and given a multi-dish selection of foods to choose from. After lunch, we are taken to a teahouse where a lovely young Chinese woman shows us how to prepare each of the main types of Chinese tea. Again, I am shocked that we are the only customers in the place. Where is everyone? We taste our way though a wide variety of teas…and here I must admit that I lost track of what we were doing. Being an Ugly American, I exist on diet soda and tap water. Water is always safe to drink “back home”, so there is no reason to boil it. I never have the patience to heat water for any drink. I know that even if I love the favor of one of the sample teas, if I buy it, it will languish in the cupboard and never be used. That said, we did enjoy seeing the procedure for brewing each type of teas, and several of them did taste good. We passed on the opportunity to stock up on our favorite varieties, and instead bought a mug that had the 2008 Olympic Mascots on it. Thoroughly worn out by jet lag and sightseeing, we were only half listening to our guide as she asked if we were interested in “traditional Chinese farm methods”. At least, that is what we thought she said. Something about tradition….farm…would you like to see… We said sure, we’re interested, and as the car zoomed back into city traffic, I realize that she is using the same “perhaps you would like a massage” phrase that came up yesterday. Then something about free…and the word therapeutic. I begin to think we should be paying more attention. We arrive at an unlabeled, to our eye anyway, storefront and are ushered into a large room filled with waist high glass display cabinets that are full of small boxes and jars. I realize that our guide had been saying “Traditional Chinese Pharmaceutical Practices”. We are taken into a small lecture hall where we are again the only customers present. A very nice man in a white coat tells us about acupuncture, traditional medicines, and foot massage. Then he offers us a free visit with a Chinese doctor to see what traditional medicines or herbal medicines might help us lead a healthier life. We are also offered a free foot massage. Well, even being an Ugly American, there is no way I am going to make one of these white coat clad Chinese women massage my stinking, walked on all day feet. I know that I would be hesitant to use any traditional medicine not FDA approved and tested. So, we politely refuse the free doctor’s and masseuses’ time. There are so many faces looking at us from behind the counters and standing next to massage chairs! There are no other tourists or customers in the place, and we are out numbered six to one. In a city crowded as it can be, I again think, “Where is everyone?” After another trip through Beijing traffic, we are dropped off at our hotel and gratefully relax in our beautiful room, where once again orchids are floating in the toilet. Next: Finally, a tour with tourists…..