October 25th (3rd day in China) - After breakfast at the hotel it was time for our tour of the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was built during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties. It was built in the Chinese court architecture style using feng shui to determine the position and shape of the buildings, with 8,706 rooms where some 10,000 people lived over 170 acres. The emperor ruled from the Dragon Throne located in the Hall of Supreme Harmony with a large courtyard that could hold 90,000 spectators located in front of it. Four sided roofs covered with yellow glazed tiles were used on imperial buildings. It was outstanding to be standing, seeing and walking though so much of Chinese history.
Next we went on a visit to a Silk Quilt Factory which was exceptional. The demonstration done here was the best in my opinion of all the factory demos we saw because not only did they show us the process and teach us about how silk is made but we also were able to participate in some parts of making a quilt. The kids seemed to really get into it all. After we had time to shop we were given our own private fashion show. By then it was time for lunch with western style food at a restaurant called You Shi.
Next we went on a visit to a Silk Quilt Factory which was exceptional. The demonstration done here was the best in my opinion of all the factory demos we saw because not only did they show us the process and teach us about how silk is made but we also were able to participate in some parts of making a quilt. The kids seemed to really get into it all. After we had time to shop we were given our own private fashion show. By then it was time for lunch with western style food at a restaurant called You Shi.
Following lunch it was time for the Hutong tour. The Hutong was once the center of life for people who lived out side the Forbidden City (Imperial Palace) but is quickly disappearing as Beijing grows. We had tea in a local family’s home in the Hutong and learned about their pet fighting cricket (the top crickets fetch more than $2000!!). The kids played hackie sack in the courtyard before it was time to leave to take our Pedicab (rickshaw) tour of the Hutong. Our Pedicab tour ended at the Drum and Bell Towers which were used to indicate the start and end of the day. Then it was time to go do a little bargaining at the Lido Market. It was an unusual experience that I’ll have to say I did not enjoy. We did walk away with some great deals, don’t get me wrong, but I did not like the bargaining process in small spaces with way too many people in it. It was like nothing else I have ever experienced. But we won that round! We bought ski jackets and ski pants for Joseph and myself – the asking price for Joseph’s ski jacket alone was $220, but in the end we bargained down to $38 for ALL FOUR PIECES!! That night, we had dinner back at the hotel and then crashed for the night.
No comments:
Post a Comment