So, after taking our time walking in Tiananmen Square, we went down to an underpass to reach the gate of the Forbidden City. The underpass has strict security, too. When we reached the other side, the water fountains came to life one by one and the cutest rainbow was formed; it's backdrop was the sky's vivid blues. Again, thanks for the strong, chilly winds. I gushed and clapped happily like a child. Who wouldn't? However, the fountains were spraying water like rain and reluctantly, we marched toward the gate, lest we get a cold.
There were a lot of people entering the gates, but I guess not as much people as in summer, so the crowd was bearable. Besides, it was cold, so I wasn't concerned about the heat (I perspire easily, that is why). So, as we near the gate, Chairman Mao's painting at the gate looks gargantuan, and in fact, it is. It is so huge that it seems bigger, if not really bigger, than the gate itself.
After entering the gate, you must walk through a small courtyard of some sorts with vendors and shops and a small parking lot. At the end, is the gate where tickets are needed. When we were there, for some reason, the police or guards of some sort were congregated in that place and they were posted everywhere at the parking lot every two meters or so.
And so, we finally entered, and what we saw was simply astonishing. The details, the gleaming roofs, the ancient silk tapestry, the craftsmanship...all these were so beautiful. No wonder people were concentrated on the doors of the famous halls, trying to get a peek into the lives of the emperors, empresses, courtesans, court officials and everybody else who lived inside the Forbidden City. It was really fascinating. I could have learned more had I listened to our tour guide. But I was so busy marveling at everything that I didn't pay attention to what the guide was telling us. My bad.
After an endless hall-hopping, we finally came towards the end. By the way, the Forbidden City's huge! My friend was constantly asking, "are we near the exit?" When we're finally near the exit, we thought that there's nothing more to see but to our surprise, a huge tree with branches that look intertwined in an embrace was stealing the show. Or, is it a couple tree, meaning, it's composed of two trees? I'm not so sure because I wasn't paying attention to the tour guide. [Folk, pay attention to your guide. Don't follow my lead]. A lot of people, couples, especially, were having their pictures taken; apparently, if you're with your beloved, you'd have a long and lasting relationship or something. We didn't have significant others in our lives but that didn't deter us from having our photos taken.
Wow, I never thought I had this many pictures taken. I still have a lot which I didn't include here. I guess, I was too shutter-happy. After visiting the Forbidden City, we headed straight for lunch, and afterwards, we went to the Summer Palace and the Beijing Zoo's panda section; the details of which will be blogged in the coming days (hopefully!).
Time really flies and it's an hour before Christmas Eve. It's time to thank all the readers of this blog. Thank you for taking time to view my posts, and I hope to help anyway I could. Merry Christmas, everybody!
