In contrast to the modern international metropolis which is Shanghai, Beijing, China’s seat of government and power is a mix of old and new. For 1000 years, it served as the center of power for multiple major dynasties.
In the 13th Century under the rule of Kubla Khan it was known as Khanbaliq, then the Ming and finally Qing dynasties ruled from the Forbidden Palace at the cities epicenter until it’s collapse in 1911.
We began the day with Tienamen square. As you enter the Square through the Front Gate you see to your right the enormous portrait of Chairman Mao hung at the place where he declared the establishment of the People’s Republic in 1949, in front of you is the Forbidden City and on your left across the street is the Great Hall of the People with an assembly hall large enough for all 10,000 appointed representatives of the people to meet.
Tienamen Square is huge. A smile came to my face as I walked across its large expanse recalling the events of June 1989. Of course, I wasn’t smiling about the demonstrations that occurred in the Square, the standoff and brutal government response but about the event which occurred at the Metropolitan Hospital in San Antonio at 12:34 PM on the 6th of June of that year. The birth of our eldest child Emily.
At that time, with the permission of the obgyn, Dads were permitted to film the births of their children. I had purchased a new camcorder for that purpose but Cary was less than enthusiastic about the idea and told me that I could only start filming after the birth when she was handed our new born baby to hold.
The TV in the labor and delivery room was on and as Cary’s labor advanced, I became more and more anxious and apparently was staring at her wide eyed. At one point she had enough and sort of barked at me in a less then friendly voice that I should go ahead and “turn on the blankety blank camcorder” because it would give me something to do rather than just stare at her.
And in the video of Emily’s birth as background noise to the sounds of her first cries you can hear the news coverage of the events in Tienamen Square. Not very long ago, such a memory would have brought a tear to my eye rather than a smile to my face.
From the Square you enter the Forbidden City through the Tianemen (Gate of Heavenly Peace) and then the Meridian Gate.
The Forbidden City is breathtaking. Preserved as a museum since the 1920’s and a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1987. The three great halls and courtyards are a spectacular thing to see. It’s one of the world’s best preserved and largest historical sites.
Ming Emperor Yongle ordered it’s construction which required more than 1 million workers over a 16 year period from 1404 to 1420. Built of wood and marble it is enclosed by walls more than 10 meters high and surrounded by a moat more than 50 meters wide.
Ordinary mortals were denied entrance to the Palace which contains more than 8000 rooms where up to 10,000 people lived including eunuchs as well as the maids and concubines that attended to the emperor in residence.
My favorite part was hearing the story of and seeing the quarters of the Dowager Empress Cixi who effectively controlled the Chinese government from 1861 until her death in 1908.
In the afternoon we went shopping at Panjiayuan, an enormous flea market, with booth after booth selling jewelry, clothing, antiques, silk, jade, teak and items of every kind and nature.
Yan Ping is a brutal negotiator. I found a stall selling Tibetan Buddhist religious objects, picked out an item of interest and called out for her to help me. By the time she was done negotiating I had added 5 treasures to the collection of Tibetan Buddhist religious objects that I began collecting during my Yatra in the Indian Himalayas. And at a price for all 5 that was less than the price the vendor originally quoted me for the first item in which I had expressed an interest!
And on the way to the exit, I happened on a stall selling antique hand carved wooden figures. I was drawn to a figure of a bald headed man (no comments please) and again called for Yan Ping. In the end I left with 4 figures including a magnificent carving of The Buda for half the price he had originally quoted me for my bald headed friend alone. Pity the poor vendors when faced with Yan Ping’s formidable negotiating prowess.
And then it was time for Peking Duck. Peking Duck is to Beijing what the soup dumpling is to Shanghai. In fact the word Peking is merely the anglicized word for Beijing.
Ducks whose destiny it is to be served Peking style like geese in France who are destined to produce fois gras are force fed and drink only spring water. Once properly cooked they are carved into precisely 108 pieces by a trained carving master ensuring each piece has an attached section of crispy skin. I don’t know the significance of slicing the duck into exactly 108 pieces but I doubt it’s merely a coincidence that the number of beads in a mala (garland of prayer beads used by Hindus and Yogis) is also 108.
You grab a pancake so thin it is almost translucent, add a few pieces of the sliced duck dipped in duck sauce, a few slivers of onion, roll it up and with your first bite you are in Peking Duck heaven.
We enjoyed our duck at Quanjude where all visiting foreign dignitaries and celebrities go when visiting Beijing including George and Barbara Bush who dined on Peking duck at Quanjude when he was the US envoy to China in 1974. Yan Ping’s brother who lives in Beijing, his wife and son joined us for dinner.
I had five delicious duck filled pancakes and was stuffed to the gills but they were so good I couldn’t resist a sixth. We all laughed heartily as the family regaled us with the story, now legendary, of the time Justin set the likely never to be beaten family record by eating 21 duck filed pancakes in a single meal besting Dylan Richman’s count of 20 by a single pancake!
What a great first day we have had in Beijing. Tomorrow among other things we are scheduled for our visit to the Great Wall, a tour of the Olympic Village and a performance of the show the Legends of Kung Fu at the Red Theatre.
Did I mention that the Great Wall will be my fourth of the World’s Seven Wonders? But who’s counting?
Next up Episode 4, Beijing Day 2!