October 14th - Xingang-Beijing - Part 2

Made a quick stop at a silk factory on the way to the Summer Palace, but nothing tempted me.

 

The Summer Palace is a former imperial garden with temples, lakes and walkways. The setting is lovely.

 

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, and it was time to make the 3 hour drive back to the ship.

 

The day before arriving here, the skies were their typical cloudy and there was lots of pollution. Just like magic, the day before, the winds came and blew all of this away, so there were clear skies and very little (comparatively) smog for my visit.  On the drive back to the ship, the pollution was making a return visit.

 

I forgot to mention, yesterday the Sacramento Kings were also visiting the wall at the same time. I felt cheated – I get to feel tall here, but with them around, I felt very small.

 

A big “Thank You” to our guide Shane, for getting us to all of our destinations.

 

October 14th - Xingang-Beijing - Part 1

Went to Tiananmen Square first thing this morning and was just able to walk around, since it was closed for a big bike race. This is the square where the violent student protests of 1989 took place.

 

From here it was on to the Forbidden City, where ground was broken in 1406. It took 14 years to complete and has been home to 24 emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties and the infamous Dragon Lady. It is massive with more than 8700 rooms.

 

I had people staring at me, and I was starting to get nervous or think I had spilled something on myself.  When they started asking to have their pictures taken with me, it was explained that they were fascinated with my platinum blond hair – that it is a novelty here. I am not sure if I felt like a movie star or a freak!