Ok, this time Tiananmen Square and Forbidden City. This was not supposed to be far from where we stayed in Beijing so we just decided to walk. But thanks to our very good sense of direction, we ended up taking the long way round.
We kept walking until we noticed this massive wall of red - the Tiananmen Tower
Notice the picture of Chairman Mao? It's as wide as the archway below it. Tiananmen Square has been the site of a number of political events and student protests including the Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989.
These guys are quite strict in controlling the crowd.
At last we're in. Forbidden City!
Rectangular in shape, it is the world's largest palace complex and
covers 74 hectares. It consists of 980
surviving buildings.
Neil and Milton taking a pose in front of the Meridian Gate. This is the grandest of all the palace gates and marks the beginning of the palace complex. They say the central arch was for the exclusive use of the emperor. However, an
empress was granted the privilege of using this entrance once, and only
once, on her wedding day.
PDA in front of the Forbidden City. Here's a tip to the couple, there are 9,999 rooms inside...go get one!
The ancient Chinese people has certainly displayed their very considerable skills in building the Forbidden City.
Grand!
I think it's an awful lot of space for one ruler. But for a country with the size that of China, space is never an issue...or is it? Seems they need more space in recent days.
These are supposed to be door nails. The gates are with 9x9 array of golden door nails - 9 arranged horizontally and 9 vertically, 81 in total - represents the supreme power of the emperor. It is said that to rub the knobs brings luck.
A touch of luck is all we need.
These doors have intricate designs.
18 of these incense burners, scattered on the grounds of the palace, represent the 18 provinces of the empire of China. They are used during special occasions. They are huge incense burners!
As a measure against fire incidents, the emperor
ordered to have numerous of these water vats placed in the palace
grounds. It has been said that during the invasion of the Anglo-French forces, the army scratched off
the gold from the vats' surfaces with knives and bayonets. The scraping marks, visible till today, bear testament to the destruction of the many
other cultural relics in China by it's invaders.
Mythical creatures sprawled the complex. From the grounds to the walls to the rooftops of the buildings. The more animals you see the more important is the building.
They may look the similar, but each has it's unique design. They say no two are the same.
And there are a lot of these carvings in the marble terraces of the palace grounds.
Bronze Lions in front of a residence signify that the occupant is an official. High ranking officials have Lions with 13 bumps on their heads. The number of bumps decreases with the rank of the official, with 8 being the least. Officials with rank 7 and below are not allowed to display lions outside their gates.
The one below I think is a female. See the cub beneath its paws?
And I think this one's a male. Something link a globe under it's paws.
Pot session inside the Forbidden City.
A carriage for the empress on her wedding day.
A warrior's helmet
Silk...and their elaborate designs.
Not sure what they are, or what they are used for =)
Hair combs for the empress...one is missing.
A peek thru a gap between doors. One of the hidden pathways, off limits to the public.
Piggybacking along the wall
A young space invader.
Weirdly posed.
The Moat is 3800 meters long and 52 meters wide, was built for security purposes.
Neil and Milton
One last look. I think this would look amazing during winter, with the snow and all. Or when the waters are calm enough to reflect the corner tower. Or probably at night when they are beautifully lit.
The towers served as the defense facility just as the walls, the gate towers and the moat. According to a folktale, the design was based on a grasshopper cage.
My overall "wow effect" rating - maybe a 6/10.
