The beautiful weather continued on this busy, active, and very crowded day that started early at Tiananmen Square. China’s National Holiday was one week away, and a mega-sized floral display had already been set up. Security forces, while relatively unobtrusive, were definitely visible.
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Tiananmen Square
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The Forbidden City (open only to imperial family members and invited officials during dynastic times – thus its name) turned out to be an unexpected challenge. There were many stairs with no railings and a huge crush of people, and tripping and falling were a constant concern. It was a bit of a disappointment as this was an exterior tour only; there are no interior tours because of the excessive numbers of tourists. A multi-course lunch at Lost Heaven, located in the former U.S. Embassy and specializing in Yunnan cuisine, was a much welcome break.
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Forbidden City
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After lunch, we visited the Temple of Heaven complex, which is now a public park. We had a tai chi demonstration and were invited to try some of the moves ourselves.
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Temple of Heaven Complex
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On the way back to the hotel, some of our group chose to do some shopping at the Pearl Market (aka Hongqiao Market), but the rest of us, still adjusting to the 12-hour time change, decided to catch up on some much-needed sleep. We had another great dinner in Brasserie 1893, a French restaurant, in our hotel.
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Pearl Market, Beijing
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