BEIJING

October 6, 2014

October 6th, Part 2

Previous --- Design & Pictures by BJH --- NEXT

Today was totally packed with sights. We began with breakfast at the hotel then boarded the bus for the Temple of Heaven. Built during the Ming Dynasty - 1420, this series of buildings is spectacular. The theme "square is earth, round is heaven" is repeated many times throughout. The finial of the actual temple is 125 feet high. More...



When you look through my pictures, you'll realize how immense it is. We went for lunch after visiting the Temple. The entire area which the temple and all its buildings covers is huge. Visiting the temple were THOUSANDS and THOUSANDS. If that area was huge, how can I describe Tian'anMen Square? I estimated being part of a crowd of AT LEAST 10,000. My favourite sights on that square were the topiary gardens and the flower basket.
After we crossed under a street, we finished our walking tour in the Forbidden City. All I can say is "WOW!" ENORMOUS and GORGEOUS!! One fabulous view after another. I'm sure people get lost there every day. But what a place to get lost in! Highlights for me were the carvings on the corners of the roofs and also the Imperial Gardens. By the end of that tour, we'd walked approximately 19 km.
We ate dinner at a big restaurant with three other Sinorama tours. After dinner we went to the Beijing Opera which I'd describe better a combination of ancient Chinese rap and gymnastics.