Beijing Part Two and Personal Space

Our second day in Beijing was spent checking off another couple Beijing must-dos off the list. We went to Tiananmen Square and then to the Forbidden City. When we were last there, it was February, 2006 and Beijing was very cold, even for winter. There was hardly anyone in Tiananmen Square or the Forbidden City. Today that was not the case. There were tons of people everywhere, understandable given it is the height of tourist season; but, it made me appreciate our last visit and the relative emptiness of the place. Our tour this time was also more formal and it was nice to have some insight into things we were seeing. However, one of the more interesting things is a result of us travelling with our kids: we get lots of attention. Sometimes it is for the girls, because people know they are adopted; and, sometimes it is for the boys because they are tall and blond and twins. In the square today, they could have made some good money charging people to take photos with them. People come up and ask them if they can get a picture with them. Our boys, being good natured, comply, which leads to more people asking to have their photos taken with them. We finally had to cut it off and move on.

For the most part, the tour was pretty standard. One of the things last time that amazed me was that in the middle of the Forbidden City, a sacred place for Chinese culture, there was a Starbucks. I am pretty sure I wrote about it last time, too (and would link to it if China wasn’t blocking the site!). I was happy to see that since our visit they’ve removed it.

One of the rooms that the crowds were fighting to see was the Throne Room. Our guide said, “be Chinese and push your way in!” Carli and I went up to the door, ready to try and get a look. We pushed up, trying to get a good look, and were crowding up against people, way beyond my comfort level for personal space. However, it wasn’t enough. People were still ahead of us and with Carli’s small stature, we needed to get up to the front. I told Carli to hold on; I put her in front of me and we started pushing, really pushing. It worked, and no one gave us a dirty look. The more they didn’t react, the harder I pushed. We got up to the front, but weren’t positioned quite right. So, we pushed to the left, hard! It was amazing… it worked, and we got a good view of the throne. But, to be honest, the jostling and pushing was more interesting than the Throne Room.

After the tour we went to lunch, which was fine, but nothing special. It is the reason I don’t think I like tours… they have to plan meals to appeal to the lowest common denominator. Our feature dish was Peking Duck, which was fine. Most of the other dishes were variations on Chinese food that you’d find in the states, including Kung Pao chicken, sweet and sour meat, rice, etc. It was all good and it was enjoyable hanging out and relaxing a bit, but definitely not a culinary experience.

After lunch we went to the silk factory, following a prescribed format. They take you to a “factory” and show you how the goods are made and explain why their goods are high quality. They then take you in to the large store and give you time to shop. It isn’t a scam – lots of people want to shop at reputable places with fair prices – which these are. It just isn’t our thing. Though, I must admit I bought something at this one.

After that we did a rickshaw tour of old Beijing neighborhoods. These are narrow roads that have been preserved to demonstrate what it was like not too long ago. In fact, it has only been in the last 20 years that cars have become more prevalent and roads have been expanded. My grandparents visited China back in the early 80s and it made me wonder how different the Beijing they experienced is from the one that exists now. Today, cars outnumber bikes, roads are wide, and traffic abounds. In some ways, it is kind of sad to me. China has changed a lot in the last 10 years, even since we’ve been here, and the chance to really experience a significantly different cultural history are disappearing.  Both Amanda and I have been wondering what Jenna’s hometown, Huazhou, will be like since our visit in 2004.

That concluded the day of touring. But, our day wasn’t over.  We decided to go to the Beijing Acrobatic Show. It was a short but highly entertaining variety show demonstrating feats of strength, agility, and daring. After that we decided to go find a restaurant with some culinary intrigue… or at least a good bowl of noodles. We ended up at a hot pot restaurant. If you haven’t been to one of these, this is where they put a boiling cauldron of broth in front of you, on a burner, and you order meats and veggies to cook yourself, in the broth. Luckily, our server was very patient and through gestures and pointing we ordered a pot that was half regular broth and half “a little spicey.” I would have hated to see what really spicy was like! I was the only one that ate much cooked in that broth. The meal was highly enjoyable for all of us and gave us a great family memory. I think the idea of a group of friends or family sitting around a fire in a communal type of meal appeals to our core and produces an enriching experience. We saw many tables of friends sitting around their pots, laughing and enjoying the evening.

Tomorrow we do a bit of touring and then board the bullet train for Xian and the Terracotta Warriors.

Now they think they’re rock stars

The other kids in our travel group. They’ve all become fast friends

Boys enjoying the ride

Hotpot Delight