Forbidden City, Temple of Heaven, Tian'anmen Square paper

Hey everyone! Below is my paper... it's a little dry this time... didn't have as much to talk about. Feel free to simply skim! Love and miss you all!!! Oh, and today's weather report: 83 degrees, blowing sand and haze. No lie, that's what it says on the Weather Channel.com

Hilarious! Pray I don't die from breathing it in all the time!

On Saturday (24 May 2008) we visited three of the top sites in Beijing: Tian’anmen Square, Forbidden City and the Temple of Heaven. All three sites I have visited before, but each time offers a new experience. I have enjoyed seeing the sites again because I now have a new appreciation from studying more about the culture and learning the language. It is exhilarating to be able to read the Chinese signs, the temple names and even some descriptions. I am looking forward to understanding more as my language skills grow.

In the early morning of the day, we began our travels at Tian’anmen Square. We were unable to walk in the square on Saturday because of fences and guards blocking the entrance. I don’t know if the square was blocked because of the earthquake or because of another reason. I do know that the previous Monday marked one week since the earthquake; and Tian’anmen Square was the location of the ceremonial lowering of the flag to half-mast. I don’t know if this had anything to do with it, but the square was still interesting to see and evokes many emotions, especially questions about the massacre in 1989.

From the square you can see the portrait of Mao hanging high as we made our way to the Forbidden City. Once arriving at the entrance, we were given a map and set off to explore the ancient wonders. The Forbidden City is the best preserved imperial palace. It is rectangular in shape and forms the largest palace complex in the world. The city is divided into two parts: the southern section (outer court) and the northern section (inner court). The Outer Court is where the emperor exercised his power over the nation. The emperor and the royal family lived in the Inner Court.

Having been here before, I found it interesting to pay attention to the reaction of my friends. I remember coming two years ago and honestly being distressed that many of the buildings were under construction. During my first visit, many buildings, including one near the front entrance, had a canvas picture of the building over the actual architecture. This was done so the public could see how the building was designed and but was currently under renovations. I appreciate the canvas as opposed to just the construction site, but would prefer to simply see how the buildings look in their original form. All of the Forbidden City has been repainted to represent the old colors.

The Forbidden City began construction in 1407 and was completed 14 years later. It was home to 14 emperors during the Ming Dynasty and 10 emperors of the Qing Dynasty. Now called the Palace Museum, the city is one of the most popular tourist sites in the world. I found it interesting to learn what materials were used to make the bricks and cement. The bricks were made with white lime and glutinous rice. The cement is made of glutinous rice and egg whites. These materials, which seem more like a dinner combination rather than building materials, make the structure of the Forbidden City extremely strong. Yellow dominates the color palette of the city because the color represents the royal family. The only building without a yellow roof is the Wenyuange (library); it is painted black to represent water, which is used to extinguish fire and fend off destruction. Although we didn’t see the library, it was interesting to find out the reasoning behind the color choices. The city is vibrant; however, some parts of the walls appear to be older and show faded colors, making it seem like you are experiencing the original structure of the building.

During the heat of the morning, we stopped outside the Hall of Clocks to get some drinks. It is interesting to note here that a bottle of coke is cheaper than a bottle of water. At the stop, we were able to learn some more information about the city from another tourist who frequented the site. Short on time, we began to move quickly through the middle quadrant of the city, not having time or money to see the side exhibits, including the Hall of Clocks and Treasure Hall. I would like to go back in order to spend more time and see these additional relics.

As we moved through the Inner Court, we saw the Hall of Mental Cultivation, where the emperors often slept. Legend has it that the Forbidden City was supposed to contain 9,999 ½ rooms, only one-half room away from the 10,000 rooms in Heaven. The city never actually constructed that many rooms, coming short by roughly 1500 rooms.

At the northern most part of the Inner Court contains a temple and ancient garden with deformed cypresses. The Forbidden City exits along a river. We were slightly delayed during our journey because of our students didn’t arrive at the meeting place at the north gate. After waiting half an hour, we left for lunch, leaving an advisor to wait for him.

Lunch was again eaten on a lazy-suzanne with 10 people to a table. We ate dishes such as lotus root, sweet and sour chicken and several different tofu dishes. The lunch break allowed us to re-energize for the second half of the day when we traveled to the Temple of Heaven.
Construction began on the Temple of Heaven (Tiantan) in 1420. It is three times bigger than the Forbidden City and is the largest existing complex for worshipping Heaven. Twice a year, the emperor would go to the temples to pray for a good harvest and conduct ceremonial worshipping. All the buildings have special dark blue roof tiles which represent Heaven. When we entered the complex, it was amazing to see the vast gardens and fine details of the temple architecture. The buildings were constructed with squares and circles in a precise manner. The squares, representing Earth, are located on the bottom of many of the sites. The circles, representing Heaven, are used for the design of all the temples. I didn’t learn until later about the effects of the Echo Stones. I have heard that if you speak facing the Imperial Vault of Heaven while standing on the first stone, you will hear one echo. If you stand on the second and third stones, you will hear two and three echoes respectively.

Also, the Echo Wall is designed to hear even a whisper. It’s been said that if you and a friend stand on the east and west roots of the wall, one is able to utter a whisper and the other can hear it clearly. The long corridor was marked with local musicians and numerous citizens lounging along the walls, playing different instruments and chatting together. The gardens are lined with rose bushes and low-hanging trees, providing shade and a relaxing atmosphere. I don’t think we had enough time to fully experience all there was at the Temple of Heaven. We didn’t get the chance to visit the Abstinence Hall, which is where the emperors would fast in worship. I would also like to spend more time sitting in the gardens. Saturday’s weather was extremely hot and an ice cream was a must. The cold refreshment helped during our long walk through the temples.

In 2005, the Temple of Heaven underwent a 47 million yuan renovation to prepare for the 2008 Olympics. Many of the famous sites in Beijing have undergone construction and facelifts for the many people who will flock to the city during the Olympics this summer. It is exciting to see the changes in the city and the infrastructure that has been added to better the city. I have been interested to see the changes around me from two years ago to today. I look forward to seeing other sites in the city and how they have been altered, mostly for the better, in order to prepare for the 2008 Games.