Photo by Jabari Bell
Related Posts:
- Beijing, I Am Here
- The Temple of Heaven
- Summer Palace In Beijing
- The Forbidden City & The Hidden Hostel
- Photo Friday: The Great Wall of China
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Posts Tagged ‘Beijing’
Photo Friday: Temple At The Forbidden City
Friday, October 30th, 2009The Forbidden City & The Hidden Hostel
Thursday, September 10th, 2009
Photo by Jabari Bell
The Forbidden City is one of Beijing’s crown jewels – along with The Great Wall, The Summer Palace and The Temple of Heaven. The ancient capital is a vibrant city rich in history. There are plenty of gems scattered everywhere. If I had the time, I would have explored every single one of them. But I didn’t. I only had 5 days so I had to make the best of it.
It was hard to cram everything into 5 days. It was even harder deciding what to cram in. The Forbidden City was a must. Why? Because it just is. It would be a shame to fly half way around the world and not step foot into those gated walls. History is preserved for the present to see. But whether or not it will be there tomorrow is another story. I somewhat regret not taking a trip out to Kashgar to visit the Old City. The Chinese government has decided to destroy 85% of the town. It’s reason? To protect an ancient city, China moves to raze it. But I digress.
Back to The Forbidden City. Rain or shine swarms of locals and tourists spend countless hours losing themselves inside these gated walls. A large portion of it has been retouched in preparation for the Olympics. Now that the event is over, I would imagine it to be pristine. Words are vague when it comes to describing The Forbidden City. I’m not going to attempt in fear of boring you to death. You’ll just have to wait for photos every Friday. I’m sure you’d prefer that anyway.
But if you are visiting Beijing and are looking for a more authentic stay, I highly recommend The Far East International Youth Hostel. I wrote a review of it at Layyourheadhere.com, a new site where travel accommodation are selected for travelers by travelers. Here’s an excerpt:
Hutongs in Beijing are slowly becoming a thing of the past. But there are nooks and crannies that shed light to the old school way of life. If you’re looking for insights on the lives of the locals, you will find it in the daily interactions of the people living in hutongs.
The Far East International Youth Hostel is the perfect place to integrate into the local customs and lifestyle. Their accommodations are geared towards budget travelers. To score additional discounts, you can…
Click here to read the full review.
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Summer Palace In Beijing
Tuesday, September 8th, 2009
The Summer Palace - Photo by Jabari Bell
In Shanghai, I was caught in a typhoon. It wasn’t just pouring uncontrollably. It was pouring sideways and up my behind. Umbrellas and raincoats were rendered useless. Students were advised to stay in their rooms. Windows were to be shut tight. Bottled water and cup noodles weren’t the only things flying off the shelf. Trees, bikes, garbage cans and random objects ran down the streets like they had feet. I thought, “Wow, I get to be in a typhoon!” But I wasn’t so excited when my room started to sway. I was on the 16th floor. Luckily, I survived. (It really wasn’t that bad.)
In Beijing, while we were on our way to The Summer Palace, our cab driver told us that it was the coldest day in the past ten years. Don’t I just have the greatest timing for impeccable weather? Well, at least it makes for great memories. It was a day of furious intensity. The cold cut through my bones like butter. I might as well have went naked. When the wind blew, it threw my arms and head back. And my lungs? It was like someone shoved a fire extinguisher down my throat. Inhaling the icy wind made it hard to breathe. I wasn’t climbing a mountain or trekking up The Great Wall but I was gasping for air just by walking against the wind. I hope heaven isn’t really this cold.
As JC, Jabari and I walked through the complex, we realized we were being such big babies. Locals were fishing in the frozen water with their bare hands. A grandpa was jogging in shorts and a T-shirt like it was a spring morning in Central Park. We hung our heads in shame. Seeing that shut us up for a little. Then the wind picked up and we went back to being babies.
It was a little ironic that we went to the Summer Palace on the coldest winter day in Beijing. The emperors of China preferred to spend their summer days in the airy, lush gardens of the Summer Palace instead of being cooped up in the walls of the Forbidden City. The architecture of The Summer Palace is s a harmonious balance between the nature of its surrounding, like the mountains and lakes, with a marble boat, bridges, pavilions and palaces.
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The Temple of Heaven
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009
The Circular Alter - Photo by Jabari Bell
The Temple of Heaven…I think the photo says it all, don’t you? It is a very heavenly sight. It’s one of the largest complexes in China. Chinese emperors considered themselves the sons of the Heaven. As a sign of respect, they built the Temple of Heaven even larger than The Forbidden City. Many visitors crowd in and around the Circular Altar, where sacrifices were made every Winter Solstice in hopes of bringing good fortune and prosperity for the coming year.
While I was there, I got a kick out of watching the people near the Three Echo Stones. It is located outside the Imperial Vault of Heaven. I think this was the only time I saw Chinese people line up properly. They were simultaneously shouting at the wall and shoving their ears against it. It is said that if you speak facing the first stone on the Vault, you can hear one echo. If you speak facing the second stone, you can hear two echos; third stone, three echos and so on. The frigid cold didn’t seem to deter any visitors away. There were swarms of them everywhere. And a large crowd of tourists usually means that a horde of taxi drivers were waiting nearby.
When we left the Temple of Heaven, they were all parked outside the drop off area. We hopped into a black Benz. I watched as the taxi driver snatched the removable sign off the roof of his car. His furtive glances back and forth gave it all away. He was running an illegal taxi business. He toss the sign in the car and we drove off. At first glance, it is a little suspect and it would be something to be wary about. But JC is one of those people who’s always curious and always full of questions. Unlike others, he actually takes the time to have an actual conversation with locals wherever he goes.
As it turns out, the taxi driver wasn’t a bad guy. He admitted to running an illegal taxi business. He even told us he wasn’t a local from Beijing. He came to Beijing in search of better work opportunities but it didn’t turn out as easy as he had hoped for. As a result, he drives around in a Benz disguised as a taxi. He risks paying fines with money he doesn’t have and serving jail time when his family depends on him. But this was a stable way for him to provide for them. By law, it is illegal. By law, this makes him a criminal. But is he really?
For many tourists, they only see the facade of what life is like in China. That’s why there is such a big difference between being a tourist and being a traveler. Tourists only sees what’s on the surface. Travelers seek to discover what’s underneath.
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A Snow Day On The Great Wall Of China
Tuesday, September 1st, 2009
Photo by Jabari Bell
I conquered 7,200 steps to the top of Taishan and trekked 4 hours around the West Lake in Hangzhou. Climbing The Great Wall? Sure! No problem. Except I forgot to factor in the high altitude and nearly freezing temperature. I huffed and puffed all the way up. Either my cardio was really bad or my cardio was…just…really bad. The Great Wall is segmented into sections based the difficulty of the route. I chose to climb Badaling. It was one of the lesser strenuous routes but I still found myself lagging behind.
The good thing about going in December is that it’s not a tourist season. The Great Wall felt like my wall. I glided down, knees bent, arms out, on the snow caked paths from descending slopes. I marked my initials in the snow. I built a snowman far superior than the person before me. My snowman had two yuans for eyes. And no, I did not steal the twig arms from the other snowman. I’m no delinquent.
My climb on The Wall was not just a climb. I took away more than just pictures and souvenirs. For many of us, we stand in awe at the length of The Wall, the rolling moutains and the vastness of the land that it sits on. We enjoy its beauty and its history. But for us to have all that, many of my ancestors had to slave to build it. The opportunity for me to climb it was all due to their backbreaking sweat because the only way to stack each stone was to carry it up the mountain. And if you’ve ever climbed The Great Wall you know that it can be a grueling journey.
Photo by Jabari Bell
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Beijing, I Am Here
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
Photo by Jabari Bell
There are a million and one posts about Beijing. They go something like this: “I went here and I paid this much. I stayed at this place for this much per night. I ate here for breakfast, lunch and dinner and I saw this, this, that and oh, this. It was amazing! Here are some pictures. Ta-da!”
I’m not going to repeat the formula. Instead, I’m going to ramble about the small things that might not matter to you but it matters to me. Many people have seen The Forbidden City, The Great Wall and Tiananmen Square. But did you know that Sprite from Subway’s in Beijing is like magic? A sip of that bubbly refreshing sweetness made my taste buds dance. It was the best tasting Sprite I had ever inhaled. Now, whenever I think of Beijing, I thirst for Sprite. Like right now. But Sprite in New York is different. There’s no magic.
In Beijing, no matter how mind-numbingly cold it is outside, the Peking Duck will always melted in your mouth. It was so frigid one December day that my friend, Jabari, dropped his new set of Chinese chess because he lost feeling in all ten fingers. The chess pieces scattered. Everything paused. The pans stopped sizzling. People stopped chattering. Men stopped hocking mid-loogie.
Throughout the night, servers approached our table and asked, “这个是你的吗？” (Is this your’s?) One by one, each piece returned to the case. By the end of the night every piece was in its place.
These are just some of the stories I tell when people ask me how Beijing was. Photos are plenty but experiences are one of a kind. And to me, that’s the most important part. When it comes to traveling, the destination might be the same but the experience never is.
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