Beijing Day 2: The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, and the Coolest Lime Invention EVER!!!

Refreshed from my 15hr nap, I leapt out of bed and headed to the Forbidden City. Ok, so maybe it was more like, rolled over groaning like a beached whale, I slid out of bed and into hot cup of coffee at the breakfast buffet downstairs... but then I was all sorts of bright-eyed and bushy tailed. After a quick 5 min walk, I arrived at the

The Forbidden City



It is big. Very very big.



Full of old buildings. Actually the picture above is the Northern Gate. But seriously, there are some goregous buildings inside that have more or less withstood centuries of wear and tear with a little help from the Chinese government.



There were a bunch of canons just inside the Southern Gate. I never did find out why they were aimed towards the interior.


Quick sidebar... Chinese Nationalism is pretty freaking pervasive. Every which way you look, there is a picture/sculpture/bust of Mr. Mao, some important military figure, or commemorative something or other. One could argue that this is simply one giant government sponsored indoctrination program. But its nonetheless amazing to hear the pride in peoples voices as they describe the banal origins of a jade comb, stone tablet, insert old object here... And even more amazing watching the listener soak it all up.



This particular Big Chairman Mao was above the Southern Gate facing...

Tiananmen Square


The logistics of getting to the square were a bit nutty. I experienced for the first time the underground crosswalk. Unlike most other intersections in Beijing where its one giant game of real life Frogger (more about that later), you can't actually just cross the street into the square. Instead, there are a number of subterranean walkways on the four corners with corresponding portals on the adjacent streets. The part that was a little crazy was the fact that each end of the tunnel had an active security checkpoint with armed guards, metal detectors, and x-ray machines that most people by and large ignored. Oh and not all the tunnels from the surrounding streets led to the square.

In the center of the square is the Monument of the People's Heroes. It's surrounded by Mao's Mausoleum to the south, and the Great Hall of the People and National Muesum of China to the west and east respectively, all of which were closed because evidently the government also rests on the seventh day. So in lieu of more sight seeing, I set out in search of a very late lunch. And thats when I discovered the greatest lime dessert ever invented. Sorry, I wish I had a picture to share, but I haven't been able to keep one whole long enough to actually pull out the camera, let alone take a picture. It's like lime meets coconut dreamsicle. And did I mention that it was amazing?