Tiananmen Square

The Forbidden City and Tian'anmen Square are must dos in Beijing. Purely for their historical importance, but the aesthetic side is fascinating as well.

Most people start out seeing Tian'anmen Square. Although it bustles with the day to day business of city centre Beijing, there was - for me at least - a real sense of history from the protests in 1989. It was such a momentous event there's no doubt it's left an imprint on the area. Known in Chinese at the June 4th Incident, I don't remember seeing any memorials to the event on the Square - the only one I did see was in Qingdao.

Mao's Mausoleum is on Tian'anmen Square but we didn't go to it. Known formally as the Chairman Mao Memorial Hall, it's only open for a few hours each day, you sometimes have to hand over your passport to gain entry, you can't take cameras or bags in (you've to pay to store them, althogh entry is free) and by all accounts, the old man of China is getting a bit worse for wear. I believe his left ear fell off and had to be either stitched or sewn back on. He's reportedly taking on an increasingly waxy appearance, prompting rumours the embalming, which was carried out with the help of the Vietnamese, wasn't quite up to scratch. Mao's remains are on show for only a short time each day, shorter in summer than in winter. Guests are ushered through the mausoleum rather quickly (less than a minute I've heard), leading to suggestions the corpse is decomposing. It's also been suggested the figure is not Mao himself, rather a waxwork. When the glass coffin is not on display, it's lowered into a freezer under the hall of the Mausoleum.

So we didn't fancy going, either the viewing of a dead person or queueing in the heat on the Square. But maybe I'll pop in the next time I'm there.

Tian'anmen Square is bounded by the Forbidden City, the Great Hall of the People, the National Museum of China and there's lots of inspirational type statues on it too. There are usually people selling kites and ennjoying themselves, alongside the state police, who march through in formation.

We got lots of amused looks - three white girls, one very tall and blonde - wandering around, a few people asked to get pictures taken, but I imagine that's getting less common as more Westerners visit.

Inside the Forbidden City, we rented audio units. The descriptive tour was narrated by none other than 007, James Bond himself - Roger Moore! It was a very interesting narrative, and I'm glad we had it.

The Palace was the home of the Emperor from Mid-Ming to late Qing times. You enter through the Meridien Gate which faces onto Tian'anmen Square. Entry was around £1 GBP when I went, it may have changed by now, that and fluctuating exchange rates!

It takes about an hour and a half to come right through the complex. We passed the Starbucks which has since been forced out by traditionalists. We handed our audio sets back in and moseyed around the outside.

The complex of palaces, gates, halls and courtyards is immense - each means different things, some were areas for concubines, some for the eunuchs who were their body guards (eunuchs so they couldn't threaten the Emperor's standing as Alpha Male), and areas just for the Emperor. I'd love to go back when it's not under renovations - lots of the halls were covered in scaffolding.

The Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square are essentials on any itinerary to Beijing, and I hope to go back some day.

After our long flight with my fellow students from the U.S. to Beijing we finally arrived to the brand new Beijing airport! It is beautifully designed and I believe it's only about 3 years old or perhaps less than that. We started off our first night there the way every foreigner should by having the popular "Peking Duck" for dinner :) I must say that I actually enjoyed the duck. There were several other dishes that I tried that were a little too odd for me such as chicken which is normal however I wasn't ready for the bones to still be in it. I almost chipped a tooth! Moving on though. Obviously, we saw the Great Wall. It really is an amazing sight to see. We went to a part of the wall where it was very popular for tourists so there were a lot of people climbing the wall at the time we went.. but for the most part that really didn't bother me. There are also lots of vendors on the wall selling random souvenirs like "i climbed the great wall" t-shirts and what not.. You can definitely haggle here!! Don't be afraid to stick with your price because they will laugh at you and act like your price is way too low and sometimes it makes you feel stupid. BUT that's just one of their tactics to get you to raise your price. Remember that ANYWHERE in China that you haggle. They go on and on about the quality and if you just walk away many times they chase you and they will keep lowering their price until you agree! So have fun with that! Next we went to Tian A Men Square and the Forbidden City! I loved the Forbidden City, the architecture is beautiful and so much cooler to see in person than in pictures. One thing that Beijing is trying to help before the Olympics arrive is the air pollution. OMG if you are standing in Tian A Men Square you can just see how thick the smog is that covers the sky. I'm not kidding I had a horrible raspy voice when I got back from China that has finally cleared up but I seriously think it was from all the pollution in the air... Now as for shopping!! We went to Pearl Market and Silk Market, both are great places for haggling for all sorts of things such as fake purses, designer jeans, pearls, make-up, North Face jackets, its all there! So if you like bargain shopping..I suggest you go there! There are some other really cool malls in Beijing that I wish I could remember the name of. But I do know they had a Zara there (my favorite store) and Guess and places like that!
Finally, we did go to one nightclub while we were there, called Vic's! We had a group of us and we had a great time they were good about getting us drinks and a place to lounge and the night we were there they played a lot of kind of pop music. Generally, I prefer house and electro..but it was a fun atmosphere and if you are drunk..it'll be fun haha. Well, I think thats all I have to say about Beijing..It's a great city, there's lots to do. The Olympic stadiums are awesome looking from the outside, lots of people ride bikes. Oh and one more thing! Go sometime at night to the outdoor food market. Lots of vendors sell weird foods like scorpian, sea urchin, snakes, lamb balls. If you are too nervous to try those sort of things (i know I was) it's at least fun to see others eat them and take pictures! The Chinese vendors are funny too!

This square is South of the Forbidden City and is a vast expanse at the heart of modern Beijing. It is the biggest square in the world: Here you will find:

Ming Dynasty Gate and Mao’s Picture – Mao proclaimed the founding of the Peoples Republic of China on 1st October 1949 from this Ming Dynasty Gate where his huge portrait remains. (Rumours are that the picture is changed every year to make him look younger).

National Flag – This is raised at dawn and lowered at dusk everyday.

China National Museum – Built in 1959, this building was originally home to the Museum of the Revolution and the Museum of Chinese History, now merged. Outside is the countdown board in days, hours, minutes and seconds until the 2008 Olympic Games.

Monument of People’s Heroes – This granite monument was erected in 1958 and is decorated with bas-reliefs of episodes from China’s Revolutionary history and calligraphy from Mao Zedong and Zhou Elai. It is dedicated to all those who struggled in the revolution.

Mao’s Mausoleum – This building contains Mao’s embalmed body. His casket is raised from its refridgerated chamber and is on view morning and afternoon.

Revolutionary Statues – These flank either side of the Mausoleum.

Great Hall of People – Seat of people’s legislature, the vast auditorium and banqueting halls are open for part of the day. Margaret Thatcher tripped on the steps when she visited in 1982 and in 1989 President Gorbochev’s entrance to the hall was blocked.

Student protests of 1989 – More commonly known as The Tian’an men Square Massacre. Demonstrations were led by students, intellectuals and labour activists. The participants were critical of the Chinese Communist party. Soldiers were ordered to fire on the demonstrators. According to the Chinese government 200-300 people died. Chinese students and the Chinese Red Cross said that between 2,000 and 3,000 died. No guide will stand in Tian’an men Square and tell you about the massacre. It is forbidden.

The place has an unique flair...it's fantastic

But don't go there on a 9th September - it's Mao's day of death and pretty crowded then.

Located
at the center of Beijing City is Tiananmen Square, where you can
visit Tiananmen Tower, Monument to the People's Heroes, Great Hall
of the People, Mao Zedong Memorial Hall and see the national flag
raising ceremony. Thousands of people come to the Square every day.
It is the must place to visit in Beijing City.

Forbidden City

You could spend two days just going through this palace. 800 buildings and 9000 rooms covering 250 acres. Its mind boggling and blowing. The buildings stand as they did more than 500 years ago. Its just awe inspiring to see this, words don’t do it justice, therefore..

Tian anamen Square

Located just outside the heavenly gate of the Forbidden City. This square is huge and it is filled with people. People strolling, selling kites, flying kites, selling knick-knacks, and taking pictures.
On the opposite side of the square is the mausoleum of Chairman Mao. In the middle of the square are statues commemorating the revolution.