On Thursday morning we joined our tour group and headed off to Tienanmen Square and the Forbidden city. Our guide indicated that because of the large military presence and surveillance she could not answer political questions in the Square but she would answer them while in the bus.
The political system might seem unfavourable but you have to admire how far the Chinese government have brought this country in the last 40 years. We are very impressed with what we have seen.
Most tourists in China are actually Chinese. Tienanmen Square is about 44 hectares and is the largest public square in the world. It gets about 200,000 visitors each day. The day was hot but windy which as you can see kept all the red flags blowing.
The building above is the Great Hall of the People where the representatives govern the country.
The People's Republic of China flag has 1 large star and 4 smaller stars. The large star represents the Communist Party and the 4 smaller stars represent the Students Party, the Workers Party, The Peasants Party, and the Labour Party. The body of Chairman Mao who declared the People's Republic of China in 1949 lies in the mausoleum which overlooks the Square.
There are very few trees in the Forbidden City because the Emperor thought they would be a security risk. However there is one very lovely garden in the inner courtyard close to the personal residences. There are very few treasures left in the city because after the end of the Chinese civil war Chaing Kai Shek , the losing general, whisked them away to Taiwan.
This is what the Imperial family would have looked like.
Being close to the Emperor was not always a good thing. If you were a concubine and the emperor died you were expected to die with him. You were given a choice of death by poison or stabbing.
The Empress or first wife of the Emperor was always chosen from a select group of families. However , the firstborn male child became the next emperor even if it was born to a lesser concubine. So you can imagine how much competition and intrigue there was to produce and maintain a boy baby.
A final security feature was the moat that surrounded the entire city.
Next we visited the Temple of Heaven where the Emperor went twice per year to pray for and give thanks for good harvests. At that time, only he was allowed to access the temple and the beautiful grounds surrounding it.
Now it is designated as a public park and many people use it like a community centre for exercise classes, playing chess, card games etc.
It is also the place where parents go to find suitable marriage partners for their children. They line up with resumes and walk up and down the aisle stopping when they find a description that they like and then arrange a blind date.
After the temple we went to the old city for a rickshaw ride and a visit to a local family.
If you think real estate prices are outrageous in parts of Canada Real in Beijing it is outrageous........ costing about US $10,000 per sq metre. That is why most Chinese live in apartments....private homes are very rare.
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