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See how hazy it is outside? Even half
a block away, things start fading into the background.
This is Tiananmen Square, just across the street from the
entrance to the Forbidden City. Admittedly, this is a lousy picture.
I was just plain too hot and tired to walk over and frame the statue
better!
Notice the security camera mounted on the light pole,
visible just above the statue. In China, someone is always watching. |
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No rest for the wicked -- now we're ready
to visit the part of the Forbidden City that is open to tourists.
A large portrait of Mao
looms over the entrance, as if to remind the Chinese people that these
buildings are only part of their history, and not who they are today. |
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Only a comparatively small part of the
Forbidden City is tourable without special arrangements. This is a
zoom view of the largest building on this courtyard, which was a film
location for the movie "The
Last Emperor." |
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But that small part is still HUGE, with
many buildings, courts, and some museum displays. We went through
only a fraction of the open areas, and by this point we were grateful for
that!
In the foreground
of this picture is a man-made river that flows through the Forbidden City. |
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There are several throne rooms at the
Forbidden City. This one was considered "informal," and was used by
the later emperors for intimate court functions.
I picture a casual
affair, with only fifty or so bureaucrats and eunuchs kowtowing to the
emperor...! |
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This is one of several very large inner courts,
near the main throne room. I'm
sure it has a name, and I'm sure I don't remember what it is. |
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All around the courtyard,
each tier has a row of downspouts carved like dragons. I would have
liked to see them during a hard rain (and, that might have cooled things
down a bit, too)! |
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This courtyard had been beautifully restored.
Buildings were painstakingly repaired, refinished, and repainted with
amazing precision. Even
gold leaf was applied (although it may not be real gold.) |
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Here is a detail from a restored building.
The accuracy and attention to detail in every area is truly impressive. It must have taken YEARS to repaint
and restore these buildings,
and many more are still waiting. China's cultural heritage is
dauntingly rich. |
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For comparison, here's a detail from an
unrestored building. I do not know if this paint is original -- it
may have been restored several times through the ages. |
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The roofs were made of thousands of glazed terra
cotta tiles, with a special ornamental border on each one. The
manpower required to build and maintain these palaces was amazing, and a
testament to the emperor's divine status.
The statuettes on the
roof corners are protective figures, and guardians of the China. |
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I thought this was a particularly nice way
of saying DO NOT TOUCH. Many signs contained didactic elements, such
as the many admonishments we saw about recycling that ended with "Thus
conserving for Tomorrow." |
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"OK, so take my picture
already...!"
By this point, I think everyone was overloaded.
Most of the kids stopped even pretending to pay attention to the tour guides, and
just played games whenever we stopped. Vendors sold a feathered sort of
shuttlecock, that was meant to be used like a hackeysack. They were
cheap, and almost all of the kids bought them. |
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The gardens we saw were
beautiful, and not at all formal. The lotuses were just starting to
bloom -- the color was so fantastic, it almost seemed unreal. |
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