March 6th, 2007
In the morning we saw the Temple of Heaven, the largest temple in China. Although not considered a religious center, the Emperor used to pray here once a year for good harvests. Nestled on a very clean and well groomed piece of land the size of the forbidden city, you’ll find many retired local citizens doing everything from the rumba, waltz, lion dancing, tai-chi, double fisted badminton, Chinese style hackey-sack, chanting/singing in heards and playing Big 2. The best thing about this scene was it was free for the Beijingers and they all got some good exercise while having loads of fun!
On our way to lunch a quick stop was made at the local silk/carpet factory. After the 15 minute tour, we really have a new found appreciation for those Persion rugs you see on 33rd and Knight St. in Vancouver, as everything is hand made, and can take up to 18 months to complete!
In the afternoon, we experienced a Hutong Tour. Basically Hutong is an ancient city alley or lane, formed by the arrangement of 4 separate small housing complexes or ‘quadrangle’. Many are found near the Forbidden City and were built during the 3 dynasties of Yuan, Ming and Qing. The tour game us a glimpe of the rickshaw and a snap shot of what life is like for an ordinary Beijinger.
Our final night in Beijing culminated with a ‘Peking Duck Dinner’. Pretty good duck with hoisin sauce…but of course, anything is way better when you’ve had sweet n sour pork, beef + vegetables, fried rice, pork with celery, etc.. for 6 straight meals!
In the morning we saw the Temple of Heaven, the largest temple in China. Although not considered a religious center, the Emperor used to pray here once a year for good harvests. Nestled on a very clean and well groomed piece of land the size of the forbidden city, you’ll find many retired local citizens doing everything from the rumba, waltz, lion dancing, tai-chi, double fisted badminton, Chinese style hackey-sack, chanting/singing in heards and playing Big 2. The best thing about this scene was it was free for the Beijingers and they all got some good exercise while having loads of fun!
On our way to lunch a quick stop was made at the local silk/carpet factory. After the 15 minute tour, we really have a new found appreciation for those Persion rugs you see on 33rd and Knight St. in Vancouver, as everything is hand made, and can take up to 18 months to complete!
In the afternoon, we experienced a Hutong Tour. Basically Hutong is an ancient city alley or lane, formed by the arrangement of 4 separate small housing complexes or ‘quadrangle’. Many are found near the Forbidden City and were built during the 3 dynasties of Yuan, Ming and Qing. The tour game us a glimpe of the rickshaw and a snap shot of what life is like for an ordinary Beijinger.
Our final night in Beijing culminated with a ‘Peking Duck Dinner’. Pretty good duck with hoisin sauce…but of course, anything is way better when you’ve had sweet n sour pork, beef + vegetables, fried rice, pork with celery, etc.. for 6 straight meals!
No comments:
Post a Comment