Every trip is different. That being said, I'm a big believer in planning the right trip for you.
I’m not saying my Mom's and my method was perfect (because we questioned what we were doing sometimes) but we did see the highlights. And if you have a limited time frame like we did, the highlights might be all that you are able to hit. On our two-week adventure into Asia, we hit four cities. The first was all about Discovering Beijing!
Day 1: On A Plane Again
Despite the plane gods trying to slow us down by delaying our flight (again), I finally stepped foot on my fifth continent to date, where we were rewarded with a little royal treatment. My Dad’s company had reserved a driver to take us to the hotel to meet him. Talk about traveling in style!
I initially thought having a driver reserved was a bit overkill – especially since I assumed we could just hop in a cab to the hotel – but customs are different in China, and the driver helped ensure the ease and safety of our travel.
We stayed at the Crowne Plaza located on Wangfujing, which is a walking street/shopping district. The social aspect of the area made you feel very comfortable walking around the city late at night, so we decided to check out the outside of the Forbidden City. Although you could only see the outer walls, it was our first glimpse at the ancient Asian architecture and sculpture, which we absolutely loved!
Day 2: Forbidden City & Tiananmen Square
We started our morning by heading back over to the Forbidden City – this time to get to venture inside.
We had our first taste of the Chinese Culture during the "queue" through security, which consisted of airport-type metal detectors and X-ray machines. A queue is probably a bit too sophisticated a term – it was more like being amidst a group of children rushing to get free candy. People continually were pushing to try to get just an inch closer. We are slightly taller than the average civilian, so it at least reduced the feeling of claustrophobia.
We spent most of our day exploring the Forbidden City - there is one central axis where most of the tour groups head because it contains the largest and most important buildings - but it's worth venturing off to one of the side temples. Fewer are restored, but often you can see the interiors and are able to get what felt like a more real look.
At the north end of the Forbidden City is Jingshan Hill, famous because it is an artificially made hill and the last emperor of the Ming Dynasty committed suicide there. The short walk to the top is a beautiful view for overlooking the Forbidden City and the rest of Beijing. This is your opportunity to grasp the true size of the Forbidden City and the surrounding, seemingly never-ending modern city that has grown up around it.
From the bottom we took a tuk-tuk back to the south side of the Forbidden City, where you can then enter the Tiananmen Square. Notably from high school history class, I knew it from learning about the massacre there in 1989. In fact, the Chinese government doesn't share that part of history with their people or in their literature at all, and it's not published since it was a protest against the government. Therefore the historical details are and will always be a little hazy.
Now, the only notable features that remind you of the events that unfolded there are the extreme video surveillance on every light post and the fire extinguishers positioned near every guard. The Chinese has kept and intends to keep the history of protests in the square under wraps – proving once again the major cultural differences between China and the US.
That night we had one of the more notable and authentic meals of the trip at a famous restaurant called Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant – which went on-the-nose with giant yellow duckies out front.
Dad's company had even pre-ordered for us and reserved a private room - the service was so incredible that we typically had more waitresses than people. It was a great opportunity to have authentic Chinese cuisine, which featured (you guessed it) duck as the main dish. Our orders ranged from pickled cucumbers to a spicy prawn to shark fin soup, plus a full roasted duck and purple tarot cake. Every dish was a new experience that I don't even think can be compared to anything we have in the U.S. The food that is served at most of our "traditional" Chinese restaurants look as much like authentic Chinese cuisine as much as McDonalds looks like filet mignon.
Day 3: The Great Wall and Summer Palace
One of the biggest items we researched when planning out our trip was where we wanted to visit along the Great Wall. I didn't realize how much entrance choice would shape the experience until I started reading. So here’s the lowdown of what you need to know before you make your decision:
- The total wall was built by four dynasties over about 1,200 years. The sections of the wall that are still intact and are commonly visited are from the Ming Dynasty, which was from 1367-1644 BC.
- There are four places that have been restored and are suitable for the average visitors (I am told there is also a way to explore the unrestored parts, but didn't check into that).
- The most famous entrance has supposedly become akin to a Disney Land experience, so we opted for one of the lesser traveled - hence our choice of the entrance at Mutianyu. It's only about a 15 minute further drive from Beijing than Badaling and Jujongguan, but you'll probably make up that time by the lack of lines.
We hired a car to take us from our hotel to the wall at Mutianyu, to the Summer Palace, and back to the hotel. I'd definitely recommend it if you are looking for a stress-free traveling experience. I'm told you can also take a bus to the wall, but we didn't actually research it.
We chose to take the Gondola, rather than hiking up to the wall itself. Thank goodness for that, or we would have been even more exhausted from the day of hiking! Plus, we decided we'd much rather spend our precious time exploring the wall itself.
If there is one recommendation you follow for the Great Wall: hike uphill. While it may seem daunting at first (and you may have not been planning on breaking a sweat), you won't regret the amazing views and pictures when you get to the top. Also, make sure you bring lots of water with you - there are people who sell it up on the wall, but they'll charge double or triple for it.
After the Great Wall, the car took us over to the Summer Palace. This was definitely one stop that we didn’t budget enough time for. I would classify it more as a park than a palace, in that the two large features are the hill (atop which sits the palace) and the lake. The lake isn’t actually natural; it was dug out to form the hill atop which the palace would sit. The side of the hill facing the lake is built up with a series of paths and temples, as seen in traditional Chinese architecture. But the opposite side, more of the “outside” per say, is a tough and rugged series of trees and rocks, which was left untouched in order to fend off attackers.
Day 4: Temple of Heaven and Olympic Grounds
We started off by visiting the Temple of Heaven, which was a temple built during the Ming and Qing dynasties to provide a place to worship the prayers of good harvest. The grounds around the temple are quite vast, but there are three buildings which sit along an axis and are the main features of the present-day “park”
- The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvest is a large, circular building on a stone base. It’s construction is pretty amazing, since it’s wooden, but contains no nails.
- The Imperial Vault of Heaven is a smaller circular building, which is connected to the main hall by the Vermillion Steps Bridge. While walking on the bridge, you can hardly tell it’s a bridge at all, and feels more like a paved road.
- The Circular Mound Altar is the furthest southern structure and is an empty circular platform aside from the low, round slate stone in the middle. It’s called the Heart of Heaven, where the emperor prayed for favorable weather.
Though the history of these grounds was amazing, one of my Mom's and my favorite parts was seeing all of the people around the park doing yoga-esque practices or dancing or playing some sort of musical instruments that we’ve never seen or heard of.
The last stop in Beijing was the Olympic Grounds from the 2008 summer games, which featured the honeycomb-esque aquatic center, birds nest stadium, and dragon-shaped waterway, as well as various random plazas.
Though we were only there for an hour or two and didn’t get to go into any of the buildings, it was definitely worth the stop. It was interesting being in a place designed to hold so many people, when we were some of the few people around. It kind of made you feel like an ant.
Stay tuned for more on my first trip to Asia... Next Stop: Xian, China!
