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So Beijing: our first entry point into China and a radical change from the Gobi desert, but we quickly adjusted to our new surroundings and the hustle and bustle of a huge Asian city. We stayed in one of the historic 'hutong' districts, in Dongcheng North, which is very 'chi chi' with lots of trendy Chinese tourists filling the quaint alleyways, which provided a wonderful excuse to get lost in amongst its network of alleyways and explore what you imagine an older Beijing used to look like.
This was the first time on our trip where we had no onward 'plan' and without an impending train timetable to adhere to, we ended up spending a week in Beijing, half the time sight seeing and half the time planning how we would spend the rest of our stay in China before our first 30-day visa ran out. We busied ourselves trying lots of weird and wonderful Chinese food, from the famous Peking duck to chokingly spicy 'hotpots', though not brave enough to try anything too extreme from some of the food markets, such as the spiders, scorpions (still alive and kicking on the kebab stick), and starfish etc that we saw on display.
Sights include the Forbidden City (largest palace complex in the world), the Summer Palace (former 'playground ' for the Emperors to escape to when heat of the city got too much), Lama Temple (most renowned Tibetan Buddhist temple outside of Tibet), an impressive drum show at the Drum Tower, Tiananmen Square…and of course a trip to the Great Wall. It was a very drizzly, misty day when we went, but this actually suited the setting very well, adding to the 'other-worldly' feeling you have there. We had a good 2-hour walk on top of the wall, which is renovated in parts, but in others you can still see the original wall…and of course we just saw a small part of the 8800km stretch across China. It was really awe-inspiring, and the surrounding scenery makes you feel like you are walking through an ancient forest, and just wish the wall could talk and share all it has seen.
It was really interesting seeing Tiananmen Square, especially as we were there the week of the 24th anniversary since the student protests and subsequent violent clamp down of 1989. We had heard from a few people we knew in Beijing that apparently a large majority of young Chinese don't even know about what happened, as the government has tried its best to eradicate it from the history books, and all social media chatter about the anniversary was also heavily censored or removed. Around the square you certainly still get a sense of regulation and of being watched…we were there one evening to watch the Flag Ceremony (the raising/lowering of the Chinese flag each morning and evening) performed by a troop of the People's Liberation Army - who are drilled to march at precisely 108 paces per minute, 75cm per pace - as they march from the Gate of Heavenly Peace in front of the Forbidden City across the road to Tiananmen Square, to lower the flag and then march back. This is a curious tourist attraction (to lots of Chinese nationals as we discovered, and us) but interesting to see - across the sea of iPhones and iPads recording the event - and also gives one a good opportunity to see the square all lit up at night, which is quite beautiful despite the fact it is surrounded by Soviet-style buildings and there is nowhere to sit (no benches) to take it in…and then just as you remember what happened here, you are herded out by the police and out through the surrounding fence, past the airport-style security scanners you had to pass to get in to the square. They say that the square still remains more in the hands of the government than the people - maybe like the nation's social media channels: Facebook and Twitter are banned and the Chinese versions are closely monitored - and the CCTV cameras, security and police presence certainly seem to reinforce that.
We really enjoyed Beijing, and found it an interesting mix of US/Western similarities (huge billboards, avenues, department stores) and the wonderful, idiosyncratic sights you may never see anywhere else: the taxi driver that had an electric shave, at the same time as driving us home one night; the couples dancing in the local squares every evening; the selling and eating of 'food' that you would only ever see being consumed under duress on "I'm A Celebrity…"; the fashion-conscious couples wearing matching t-shirts… for those that have seen it, we almost felt like we were in the Beijing episode of 'An Idiot Abroad'.
I am once again playing catch up with the blog posts - more to come on the rest of our adventures around China!
- comments
Louisa Revill Sounds incredible - glad you avoided the scorpions! Sending so much love. Loula xxx
Unni Hartley I think I would like to visit Beijing as well. With the blog and photos it sounds ad looks just amazing!!! You have already experienced so much. Looking forward to next chapter.... Lots and lots of love Mum Unni xxxxxxxxxxx
Hannah Simons's been getting taxis!!! Woo hoo this has made me very happy xx