I'm going to split our first day in Beijing into two posts since the day and night were quite different from one another. We were up relatively early to begin what was supposed to be a sixteen hour day of touring. This was our welcoming party as we left the ship. I was in a hurry or would have gotten a picture with them myself.
Serenade was only the second cruise ship to arrive in China since the pandemic so there were lots of local news reporters there to cover our arrival. Again, apologies for this poor photo, just too hurried to get to the bus as we were the last to get on after waiting for Chuck and LeaAnn. I told her if we were going to be on a bus for nine hours I needed her nearby to keep me laughing.
Tianjin, which means "heavenly port" in Chinese, is the largest port near Beijing and there were thousands of these containers piled near the port. China is still in an economic recovery mode from the pandemic so it's probable many of these are waiting empty.
These were the kinds of housing that I would have expected to see. There were clusters of them not far from the port and others scattered along our three hour route to Beijing.
I could not figure out what these mounds were that I kept seeing, decorated with flowers, throughout the countryside. This looked like a cemetery,
but then I would also see just random mounds. Someone else finally asked our guide Glenn, that's his English name, what they were.
They are indeed burial mounds and the decorations are for what Glenn called the "Tomb Weeping Festival" which had occurred two days previously. Descendants will bring flowers and food to their deceased ancestors, to remember them, feed their souls, and try to commune with them, often weeping for those who are lost as well. Glenn shared that at one such festival he could feel the spirit of his grandfather with him as he sat pondering. So all in all it's similar to Memorial Day with the exception of the need to bring food.
One thing that surprised me was the number of orchards that we saw along our drive. I never found out what kinds of birds have nests like these but they are probably something large.
Partway to the city we stopped for a bathroom break. Glenn passed out this tan colored toilet paper that looks but doesn't feel like kleenex. The issue with this potty stop was that there were three buses that stopped at once so you know that had to mean lines for the women's restroom. It was exacerbated by the fact that all but two of the stalls were squat toilets rather than seats. Needless to say it was quite a wait if you wanted to use one of those two "handicapped" bathrooms. Different places, different customs.
More of the rows and rows of fruits trees.
One more of the decorated tombs on the left, and some of the many lilacs we saw alongside the road. It made me so happy to be able to see lilacs even if I couldn't smell them.
I put together this collage of some of the flowering trees we saw by the road. Spring is definitely a beautiful time to come to this part of the world.
A couple more of our views as we passed through the countryside.
On the outskirts of Beijing we started to see housing like this,
or the occasional humble looking place like on the left. Weird thing is you also see Mercedes dealerships, which seems rather ironic for a communist country. China is definitely weird that way, communism and capitalism side by side. Times have changed since we were there last because Glenn told us that he turned down the invitation to join the Communist Party, something that would have been unheard of not long in the past. Apparently that is happening more and more with the younger generations. He also had nothing good to say about Chairman Mao and his Cultural Revolution. Maybe speech is getting a little freer.
This collage is one of my favorite crazy things I saw everywhere in Beijing. Mind you, it was a lovely spring day, I wasn't even wearing a jacket as you'll see in some pictures, but people were bundled up like this lady on her scooter. You saw all kinds, colors and shapes of these scooter quilts, for lack of a better word. Most of these were just like what the man on the left had. Scooter Lady was the most bundled up that I saw, just right for a winter day in my mind.
Here is more evidence of the contrasts of Beijing. There's lots of new construction but as we would learn the next day, housing prices have dropped considerably the last couple of years. It's hard to read it on the sign on the left but it's advertising apartments that are "Boutique Living". Mao must be turning over in his grave!
Before heading to the Forbidden City we were treated to lunch at the Qianmen Jianguo Hotel. We had a variety of dishes, quite a feast, and it was all very good. Once we'd eaten and had another bathroom break, stick with Five Star hotels for those because they have more seats, we were off for the destination we'd come to see.
Buses aren't allowed on the streets next to the Forbidden City so we got off and then took a walk along the streets to get to the entrance.
So here's one other interesting money maker in Beijing. You can rent a costume to wear to the Forbidden City to try to understand what it might have been like to be there during the Quing (Ching) Dynasty. These two girls are dressed as emperor's concubines. There were multiple shops where you could rent an outfit. You'll see more examples later in the post.
Cute and colorful were sights we saw all along the way. Those candy covered fruit sticks always looked so tempting but we were told to avoid Chinese street food.
Finally we got a glimpse of the walls and gates of the city.
And then i saw lilacs and got to smell them and it just made my day!
They felt like a little piece of home. Question, do you call them "lilahks" or "lilaks". Apparently if you're from Texas it's the latter according to LeaAnn who was teasing me about the way I said it.
Here's more of the 26 foot tall wall that surrounds the city. For centuries the only ones allowed inside were emperors and their families, plus the occasional important visitor or two, hence the name Forbidden City. Common people like you and me would never have been let through the massive gates.
There is also a moat that surrounds the city outside the walls.
Walking, walking, walking, it was sort of crowded but not horribly so. Most of the people in front of me were on our bus.
And here we have the emperor himself heading towards the gates! You know he's the emperor because he's dressed in yellow. And just a few blossoms to offset his photo.
We finally reached the first entrance, the Meridian Gate, at the south end. Just to note here, the Forbidden City is the largest palace complex in the world, 980 buildings.
One thing about these gates, they were massive.
Each of the successive gates looks much like the one before it, this outer one is taller since it is part of that outer wall, which was actually an inner wall of the old city that was begun in the 17th century, expanding an an even more ancient city.
Although this map may be unreadable it might give you an idea of how the different buildings are situated as you walk through the main part of the Forbidden City. I'll mostly just walk you through here with photos and a comment or two here and there.
So you walk through those huge doors and enter this large space. It is about .6 miles to walk from the front of the city to the back, much longer though when you wander around inside. Anyone who entered here would have to have been impressed.
The first building you come to is the Gate of Supreme Harmony, a structure that would have been used at times for banquets or other ceremonies.
Just one of the many dragons, symbolizing strength and good luck, that are found throughout the city.
An intricately carved bridge is part of the courtyard.
Lions flank either side of the hall, just two of many throughout the city. The female is on the left and her paw rests on a lion cub, symbolizing endless offspring for the royal family. The male lion's paw rests on a ball which symbolizes the unity of the world. Their curly hair symbolizes power.
Here you can see the female lion in relation to the hall.
The eves on all the building are beautifully painted.
Two more beautifully dressed young women who were kind enough to let me take their photo.
The view as we reached the Hall and made our way around it to the next one.
The second and most imposing structure in the complex is the Hall of Supreme Harmony, a building that would only have been used for ceremonial purposes such as enthronements, or imperial weddings.
I can always find LeaAnn and Karl wherever we go together because they both have their 360 cameras up in the air.
Back side of the Gate of Supreme Harmony here.
Selfie time in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony. Are you confused with what's what yet?
These large incense burners could be found throughout the complex.
In one of the buildings beyond the tourist areas to the left of this hall is the place where the president of China resides.
Details on the Hall of Supreme Harmony.
The tortoise is a sacred symbol that suggests longevity, power and tenacity.
Cranes are also symbols of longevity and are often found near the tortoise.
All of these animals that are protecting the hall have magic powers.
You can see that there is a lot of protecting going on here.
Unlike the large pot you may remember from the museum in Taiwan, this one is not for cooking enemies. Beginning in the 14th century it would actually have been filled with water in case of a fire in this wooden city.
A detail from its handle.
Note that the tiles on these halls are yellow, again symbolizing royalty.
More details along the stairs and railing.
Dragons painted along the walls for protection.
A carved detail in the wall.
Here you can see the contrast between old and new, plus how the current city encroaches on the old one. There in the background is the CITIC Tower, the tallest building in Beijing.
Next up was the Hall of Central or Middle Harmony. This would have been the emperor's transit lounge where he would make any last minute preparations before getting back on his sedan chair to be carried to his final destination.
Behind there is the Hall of Preserving Harmony where twice a year the emperor would hold a banquet to entertain heads of state, imperial kinsmen, and high ranking ministers.
Again, the unique yellow tile roofs.
Us again at the Hall of Preserving Harmony.
Just added this one for the sign that cautions you to be aware of falling objects. Hopefully that doesn't happen very often.
When I saw this little cutie standing nearby I asked her, as well as her mother, if it would be all right to take her picture. She posed for me and said "Okaaaaay!". Adorable!
Next up was the Gate of Heavenly Purity.
You can see how time has done its thing on the stone carvings, looking pretty worn here.
Another crane symbol of longevity.
This is the largest stone carving in the Forbidden City, weighing 200 tons. It's called the Dashidiao and is located on the back of the Hall of Preserving Harmony. Designs here are still quite sharp thanks to its being re-carved in 1760. The stone for it came from 80 km (50 miles) from the city and according to historical records it would have taken 28 days for 20,000 laborers to bring the stone on sledges to the palace. Quite a project!
LeaAnn and I front of the Dashidiao.
More of the lions at the Gate of Heavenly Purity.
And here's the gate itself. Note how you have to step up and over the door sill, every building is like that.
This would be the Palace of Heavenly Purity, I believe. If I'm honest, they all started to look alike. This was the emperor's audience hall.
We detoured from halls and palaces here to visit the "Exhibition of Imperial Birthday Celebrations", things that were gifts to the emperor or empress, most wishing them longevity.
This is just a part of a beautiful silk painting that showed the Forbidden City.
A detail from the painting.
There are various gifts here from the 17th through 19th centuries, from different celebrations of emperors and empresses on display. These are jade seals from the 18th century.
These green jade sheets are inscribed with records from the 18th century.
A jade carving of five old men for Emperor Qianlong circa the 18th century.
It a bit difficult to tell but this milk-tea pot had a beautiful cloisonné enamel exterior inlaid with precious stones.
These porcelain pieces were decorated with symbols of longevity.
I loved the color of this carved red lacquer box with the dragon designs.
I learned that the peach is a symbol of longevity in China, note that both of these pieces have a peach shape.
This may have been my favorite piece in the museum, a red lacquer peach-shaped box with gold tracery, another 18th century artwork. I told my dad I've finally figured out how he's lived so long, it's from growing all those peaches. It's rare any of us think of him without thinking of all the delicious peaches he's grown for us over the years.
I just laughed at the title on this piece, "Fairy officers sending auspiciousness". Not sure what exactly fairy officers are.
Rather than a crane, this one is a cloisonné phoenix, the picture couldn't do it justice.
These are wish sticks that were presented to the emperor and empress.
Definitely longevity symbols going on in this piece, a crane and a peach.
Hairpins with symbols that read "longevity is limitless".
One last piece made of sandalwood with inlaid gems that form a design that means "wishing an aged person a long life".
Another of the raised door sills with no one there so you can actually see how high it is.
Inside the Palace of Heavenly Purity is the emperor's throne.
Palace of Heavenly Purity.
This small building is the Hall of Union, a spot where the empress would have received high ranking subjects during major festivals.
One of the last major buildings is the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, the residence of the empress during the Ming Dynasty. In the later Qing (Ching) Dynasty, it was only used as the wedding chamber of the emperor and empress.
On the other side of the palace are the Imperial Gardens.
Some of the beautiful details of cranes and dragons in the garden.
This odd looking "mountain" in the garden is made from rocks that came from near Shanghai. They were cemented together in 1583 to create this Mountain of Accumulated Elegance.
Yes, I was here.
This golden elephant was a surprise for me to see at the Forbidden City but in Chinese culture they are symbols of strength and wisdom.
And finally out we went, through the Gate of Divine Prowess, the northern gate to the Forbidden city. First built in 1420 it was the empress's access to exit and enter when leaving the city to worship.
Outside there is a large open space again and a spot where we caught a shuttle bus to take us to our tour bus. The double decker ones like the red one in the background are the only buses allowed here.
Quick shot of this interesting little police van as we walked to the bus. It was marvelous to visit the beautiful Forbidden City again. Now we were off to visit The Great Wall of China at Badaling Pass!
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