Tokyoahead - Beijing Siteseeing

Beijing is one of the few places in the world where many of the attractions are so huge that you could spend a day just walking through each single one of them. Also, all of them have a history full of superstition, royalty, war, intrigue, murder and creation. The stories told about the Chinese dynasties are only to be taken by running through or by seriously studying them. The monuments still visible in the city show the importance of the capital and the country through their sheer size as well as the uncounted legends, mysteries and facts that surround them. Hearing about those many stories makes one think that large empires always create big troubles and that the money spent and work done for the palaces of a larger size seem like a huge waste. However, the astonishing artwork and craftsmanship on display, some in mint condition and some rotting away, leave you inspired with awe.


The great wall is one of those huge monuments that can be visited in 30 minutes or studied for decades. The meandering walls and rising towers are until the horizon and the logisitcs just to feed the many soldiers guarding it must have been immense. Today, the people's congress is deciding over the countries fate instead of a wall, but the size is not small either.

Just "around the corner" is the forbidden city, which is so huge that you need a checklist to make sure you did not miss anything after visiting it for a full day. The many streets, huge and small buildings and dusty rooms are never-ending, and one realizes what must have been going on there in ancient times, when all of those rooms had a special funcion for a special day of the year or a daily ritual.

It is hard to make out the end of the city, even from the highes places. Everything inside seems to be shielded off from the rest so that some privacy can be guaranteed, but the amount of people who have lived there must have made it impossible in return. Through the spreading of stories and rumors the life here must have been everything else than a secret.

Ornaments are a key element all over the city, also in the Summer palace (center image). The more ornaments, the more important the building. Each of the ornaments has its fixed order and place, importance and meaning. Trying to change things by reversing them is a sign of hubris (right image). A female emperor tried to change the order of things by putting the phoenix to the center instead of the dragon, and is still considered today as the examples of hunger for power.

The summer palace in Beijing is not only the sice of a larger village, but it also has its own, huge lake, all surrounded by bridges, castles, temples and more buildings of which each has its own stories of pride, intrigue and megalomania. Be it a ship of stone or endlessly painted covered walkways.

The gates to the temple of heaven are studded in red and gold colors and with the number of 9 per line, all of the elements forbidden to anyone outside of the royal family. Today, the temple of heaven is apreciated for its large park by the senior citicens of Beijing whihc come here every morning to dance, do sports and discuss the recent events.

The actual temple in the park is a well-known monument and also has its own stories and rituals, this time connected to the harvest and other annual celebrations. The modern places (right image) like restaruants take decoration more lightly but do not forget that they are in china.

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