Day Five (Monday)
What a delight to wake to a brilliant blue
sky! After hearing from friends who had been here before that the smog in
Beijing is terrible, we were thrilled to have a day of clear, cool fresh air!
We set off to the Forbidden City and Tianamen Square. This is easily accessed
off the subway, although the crush was intense! When the subway stops, people
tend to not wait for people to exit, and everyone just mashes into everyone
else! We are getting more comfortable with the whole idea of joining the
teaming throng, and just crowding in!
There isn’t much time at the stops, so forget about being polite and just get
on the darn train!
Seeing the Forbidden City was a dream come
true for both of us; several times, we just stopped and caught our breath
thinking about the history that is within its walls; it is a massive place,
several city blocks square, with uneven paving stones and stairs, which made
walking a bit tricky. The entire place is surrounded by a huge wall backed by a mote, which helped to
protect it during the days of the roaming hordes.
Right across the highway from the Forbidden
City is Tianamen Square, which is framed by the Government Buildings. It
reminded me of Washington DC, with the wide open spaces surrounded by important
buildings. Everywhere, there were marching guards in their long green coats and
lots of cameras mounted high up on standards all along the promenade.
While we highly value our freedom in the
West, there is something to be admired about all this order. Not once have we
felt unsafe during our stay. There are lots of security and cameras in the
subway as well, and everything is just spotlessly clean. It is a treat to be in
a city that is completely graffiti free and orderly.
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