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My Vacations |
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China October 2002 |
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Beijing - Xi'An - HuangShan en route Nanjing & Tunxi � QianDaoHu � HangZhou - Shanghai - SuZhou |
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Great Wall of China, Badaling section |
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BEIJING, Day 1::After over 24 hours since waking up in NZ, we finally arrived at midnight in Beijing, China. It was fairly peaceful outside, on the way to the hotel. Despite lack of sleep, the 6 of us woke up bright & keen. The first attraction of our tour, Ming Tomb, was disappointing (Are those 3 wooden replica boxes all to see??). There, we witnessed the persistency of a peach seller. We were all looking forward to the eagerly-awaited GREAT WALL OF CHINA at famous Badaling! Our local guide tried to coy us into going to the nearby, �newly opened� G-YungGuan. Thanks to the �don�t go there� advice of a friend who visited a month ago, we debated and decided to stick to our itinerary. What a relief� when we drove past G-YungGuan with its bright new red and green replicas of ancient Chinese buildings fit for a theme park and the extremely short piece of Great Wall. We arrived at Badaling after 1.5 hours drive. It is the HIGHLIGHT of the entire tour, the MOST SATISFYING!!! Yiin and I chose the steeper part to climb, less visitors. One peak after another we climbed but the Great Wall stretches like never-ending. We were in awe of the amazing view � wavy, layered mountains in the mist, Great Wall snaking on the range, trees showing a hint of autumn colours� First time in my life I saw and stare into a red sun through the smog at sunset. We shopped at WangFuJing Street after dinner. Everywhere we went, we had to bargain, bargain, bargain� even in departmental stores! |
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| Forbidden City, Beijing |
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Forbidden City Hall of Supreme Harmony |
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Forbidden City Moat |
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BEIJING, Day 2::TianAnMen Square, Forbidden City, and Summer Palace � there we went! At TianAnMen Square, the workers were busy dismantling and taking away the floral arrangements set up for China National Day celebration in early October. Plain-clothed police (Gong Aan) were strolling around in suits, and army-dressed men standing guard. Busy main roads surround the Square. I enjoyed the walk heading towards the Forbidden City, past MaoZeTong Memorial Hall, classical western buildings, etc. Forbidden City is enormous; over 10,000 rooms but those we saw are very small, except for the emperor�s room. Somehow, I was a little sad that it is not as well-maintained as other places we later visited. Army men were seen squatting, getting rid of the hardy chewing gum on the ground. Yiin and I rushed up to TianAnMen Gate to view the interior and catch a wider view of TianAnMen Square. Upstairs at the 2nd fortress opposite (Meridian Gate), actors dressed as emperor and wife / concubines were waving & posing. We exited the City through Imperial Garden, constructed by the empress CiXi. The moat encircling the City was pleasantly clean. Summer Palace � I was impressed, especially the Long Corridor with colourful drawings along the ceiling, depicting flora & fauna, folk stories, buildings, etc. The Corridor was built for the emperor�s mum so she could be entertained indoor during rainy days. Another empress CiXi�s toy is the marble boat with colourful stained glass piece. A cruise on KunMing Lake before dinner. We watched a Chinese circus afterwards. An exhausting day. |
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Summer Palace, Beijing |
Long Corridor at Summer Palace |
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