Day Seven

For the first time since I got to China I actually sat down this morning and "orient"-ed myself...get it? haha. I woke up this morning a little earlier than I have been and read for an hour then took out my China travel guidebook. After getting a sense of where I was and where I'd been I walked down the street to a local farmer's market.

Last night, I talked to a vietnam vet/NY firefighter named Billy who had discovered the market with his girlfriend the day before. The market was situated in a large wherehouse in the middle of a residential district (very isolated and without tourists). I bought a bunch of bananas, as a breakfast and walked back to the hostel to figure out what I woud do for the rest of the day.

I ended up just reading up more on the history of China and specifically Beijing's history. Around noon-thirty I walked around the lake near my hostel to a main road. It was on the main road that I got a cabbage and noodle stir-fry lunch. I brought the food back to the hotel to eat.

Once I finished eating I gathered my stuff and headed out in a taxi to the Tian'anmen Square. The plaza is known for its grand size. Throughout Chinese history city and town squares were avoided because they allowed people to gather, potentially in anti-government groups. The square is surrounded my the National History of China Museum (west), the Hall of the People (east), The Chairman Mao Memorial Hall (south), and the entrance to the Forbidden City (north).

After taking some photos from the center of the square I walked into the Forbidden City through the Tian'anmen Gate, famous for the massive Mao portrait over it's entrance. The Forbidden City was basically the Imperial Palace to a multitude of dynasties. There are countless palaces within the gates, each serving a different purpose to different emperors. I paid for an audio tour which explained some history of each palace.

I exited the Forbidden City from the north gate and caught a taxi to meet up with my friend Luting (at her internship). The place she works is above the mall that we watched Spiderman 3 (Wangfujing Mall). We walked around the Imperial Palace, and actually back through Tian'anmen Square. Once we got back to the street we grabbed a taxi to Houhai Lake.

Houhai Lake is a beautiful area with bars and elegant restaurants lining the walkways and bridges around the lake. Most bars and restaurants had red Chinese lanterns and/or neon signs that beautifully illuminated the opposing shores. We had a wonderful 'spicy' dinner [fish head (actually extremely good), green chili eggplant, mushroom stew, and iron pot beef). After we ate we walked around the lake and I bought Brandon and I a couple t-shirts that were custom designed by a shop owner and of a limited supply. Tomorrow I plan on going to the Temple of Heaven and then checking into my new hotel to await the arrival of my teachers and colleagues.