Upon our arrival in Beijing, Michael, our super-duper stellar guide, presented us with a list of optional tours which we could join, in addition to the handful which were included in our package. Being the independent traveller that I profess to be, I refused to check off even one. "No optional tours for us" I informed Michael. I had my guide book, had printed plenty of pages off of the internet and could tackle all of the activities covered in the tours at my own pace, on my own time, without making any annoying "shopping stops". That conviction held strong until I woke up the second day fighting a nasty cold and a growing awareness that communicating with anyone outside of the comfy confines of our hotel was not going to be easy. Then, I started looking at the suggested amount of time each activity we wanted to do would require. Even with no glitches in our plan (which, let's face it, was not going to happen) we would be hard pressed to squeeze in enough time for both the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace...and this was our only day to see them. Glumly, I pictured us wasting valuable time walking in circles in the cold, saddled with a dry audio tour and me with a burning fever. It began to dawn on me that perhaps this was one of those times when it might be better to leave it up to a professional. A fellow group member sealed the deal for me by pointing out that with the amount of time we were given, this could not help but be a "highlights tour", any extensive exploration would have to wait until the next visit. That struck me like words from an oracle up above (that may have had something to do with the fact that I really was quite feverish at the time, but I still think it was a very pertinent observation. Thanks Dave.) And with that, I signed up for our first optional tour.
We joined Michael, along with 30 of our 32 fellow group members on a visit which began at the
Forbidden City. (note: just now, in looking for that Forbidden City link, I think I may have stumbled upon a portion of the audio tour we could have rented. It doesn't seem as bad as I had feared, but still way too wordy to be listening to in 35 degree weather!) The Forbidden City, which was the site of the Imperial Palace from the Ming to the Qing Dynasties (or roughly from 1420-1911) is, to put it in one word, huge. It is also grand and stately and beautiful and exotic, but I can't stress enough how big it is. It is said to have 9,999 rooms (although that is the result of a system based on counting the number of columns in front of a building and not actually rooms in the way we think of them). The city is divided into an outer and inner court; the outer court being used more for ceremonial purposes, while the inner court was where the Imperial family (along with assorted concubines and eunuchs) would live. We were lucky to have to share the Forbidden City with only a handful of tour groups, during holiday periods, the City receives in excess of 100,000 visitors. A day!!! After strolling through the entire complex, we exited through the Imperial Garden, where we posed in front of the "consort pine", a 400 year old tree which symbolizes the harmony of the emperor and empress and is said to be bring good luck to those who pose before it. I'm going to say that it worked, because shortly after leaving the City grounds, we boarded our nice warm tour bus, waiting to whisk us to our next destination. (Technically speaking, I think the tree is supposed to help in matters of love, but hey, whatever works, right?)
Our next stop was the
Beijing Zoo, a rather run-down affair, which benefits greatly from its star attraction, the giant pandas. I have read that most of the enclosures here are woefully small and ill-equipped, but the pandas, which are the only animal we visited, do get a half-way decent home (although still pretty shoddy by western standards). It was here that Michael had to work the hardest to maintain the group's attention. As much as he tried to get us to move along, we stayed transfixed by the sight of the pandas. He plaintively tried to convince us there were more pandas ahead, but I, for one, was sceptical. What if I followed him outside of the panda exhibit and there were no more pandas? Cautiously, I wandered outside, and sure enough, there were more pandas to be seen. I had a suspicion that Michael would continue to use the promise of pandas to lure us to follow him, throughout the rest of the tour, but it never materialized. I, on the other hand, was promising Shawn pandas around every bend.
After lunch, we had the obligatory stop at a pearl factory, where I must admit I was charmed by the enthusiasm of the factory guide, up until the point where she cheerfully slaughtered an oyster to reveal how many pearls were hidden within.
Next it was time for a visit to the
Summer Palace, a royal garden, which, as the name implies, was used by the emperors as a summer getaway. It is here that I wished we had more time to enjoy the serenity that the park offered. There were bridges, sculptures, painted walkways, pagodas, a lake, and more scenic spots than you can shake a lens at. Had we not been on a group tour, I am sure we would have dedicated ourselves to exploring the park more fully, although, truthfully, that is something that is probably better left for summertime. We would have, however, missed an unplanned stop. At the behest of some of the shoppers in our group, Michael took us to the
Silk Street Market and, oh yowsa, am I glad he did. This market is known for selling knock-off designer goods, so I expected something akin to NY's Canal Street but this was altogether something different. It was five stories of jam packed booths with every designer name you can imagine. There was one floor devoted just to clothes (including, as Michael called it, plenty of "North Fake" jackets on display). Another had designer glasses, and even several opticians on hand to provide prescriptions and grind down lenses. Yet another floor had jewelry, with the ubiquitous baby blue boxes as far as the eye could see. There were fake electronics, massive dvd catalogues, everything except for, strangely enough, handbags. Any purchases required patience and hardened haggling skills, but for me, it was like watching a sport. ESPN, only an interesting version. Of course, the official line is that fake goods are illegal, frowned upon, yadda, yadda, but the running joke is that the Americans who come over to hold conferences on the evils of counterfeits all manage to find time to do some shopping at the Silk Street Market, which is conveniently near the US Embassy.
By the time we headed back to the hotel, I was sporting my new designer shades, browsing through my photos of both the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, happy that I had not had to choose between the two and reading Michael's list of optional tours a bit more closely.
Soong Ching Ling's home
A pyromaniac's dream
Teas, teas, teas
View from the Drum Tower
Temple of Heaven
Michael leading the way
By the fourth day, we were finally ready to venture out on our own. We had the morning to ourselves and my guide book had a suggested walking tour of the Hutongs, so a plan was set. The Hutongs, as they are known, are the small alleys and lanes leading to a jumble of simple homes which used to proliferate most of Beijing. But sadly, progress always has a price and in the story of Beijing, it is the hutongs that have paid the most dearly. Swath by large swath, they are being eradicated to make way for high rises and Olympic stadiums. The area near the Drum Tower, which is where we went, has become quite popular with tourists looking for a glimpse into the days of Old Beijing, so it appears to be safe from imminent destruction, although, it may now face a similarly disappointing fate. On one of the main intersections, there now sits a Starbucks. But in spite of that, to repeat an oft-stated lament, I wish we would have had more time there. It had the most "soul" of anyplace we visited in China. Had I all to do over again, the entire trip, this is the place where I would want to devote the most time. I would love to take a day and just spend hours following narrow lanes and narrower lanes to see exactly where they lead. But our schedule being as tight as it was, we did not have such a luxury. We had to run to meet Michael and the rest of the group for a visit to the Temple of Heaven, which is where the Emperors would go to pray for a bountiful harvest. Considering China was mainly an agrarian nation, this was no small task. The wooden structure, built without the benefit of any nails whatsoever, is considered to be one of the greatest examples of Chinese architecture and is commonly used as the symbol of Beijing. We got to spend some time enjoying the Temple and the park that surrounds it, before we were whisked off. It was time to head to the airport for our flight to Xian, where the warriors awaited our arrival....
