Considered to be the "front door" to The Forbidden or Imperial City, is Tienanmen Square! This was incredibly awesome to experience, as we were the ONLY European-looking people. The ONLY Americans. A little intimidating.
I had pictured things differently. Kinda like this:
Only because this was the only picture I had seen in regards to the Square. It really wasn't at all what I had imagined. It had a different spirit and feel to the Square. I thought there would be more guards and more militants, but there were only a handful and it was pretty much low-key. Very interesting history to it. We crossed this gigantic street, by the way.
I laughed at this sight, why do they need a guard to keep this stone lion tame?
At the north end of the Square, is Tienanmen Tower. It was initially built in 1417 in the Ming Dynasty. (1368 A.D.-1644 A.D.) It's HUGE!
Here's the base of it. It doesn't show the sheer size of this monument.
The Mao Zedong Memorial Hall is at the south side of the Square. Chairman Mao's body lies in a crystal coffin in this Hall and it costs money to see; so we didn't go in. But I wanted to! The line was very, very long and sure didn't move very quickly.
The granite Monument to the People's Heroes is in the center of the square. Built in 1952 it is the largest monument in China's history. Chairman Mao wrote the words engraved on it, "The People's Heroes are immortal." It portrays unusually large figures engraved into the granite as show the development of modern China.
We walked by the Totem pole with the dragons and Phoenixes on it and there was a guy that had his arm raised and was shouting; getting people's attention. I didn't know what he was saying, but his body language certainly suggested he was praising and hailing Mao.
Mao's picture hangs where all can see it. You get into this line made up of hundreds of people. (truly amazing, we were always in a line anywhere we went. Just a lot of people)
We crossed the bridge,
And went through the entrance to The Forbidden City!
2 comments:
Kind of creepy that they are preserving Chairman Mao's body isn't it?
Yeah, and that he is in a crystal coffin. And people can rent flowers to pay homage to him. I'd like that job...the one who provides those flowers...talk about job security!
Glad you were able to be there and see all those things. What a trip we had, huh? Does it feel real now, looking at the photos...or does it feel like a dream?
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