On a recommendation I booked a two day private tour guide to Beijing in December. I have serveral students from Beijing and they recommended visiting in December. Whilst it is a cold time of year, there are less tourists and the snow is beautiful against the colourful buildings. Having a guide for the two days was brilliant besides taking the effort out of organising tickets etc our tour guide was incredibly with her knowledge of the history of the different places we visited. She also sorted out great places for us to eat as I was interested in great local Beijing food.
Tian’anmen Square and The Forbidden City
Tian’anmen Square and the Forbidden Palace were both amazing places and near each other. I was amazed at the size of Tian’anmen square. Tian’anmen built in 1417 as the the main gate to the palace.
The Forbidden City, was so much bigger than I expected, the colour of the buildings contrasting with the snow was stunning. This was the Imperial Palaces for the Ming and Qing Dynasties spanning five centuries between 1416 and 1911. Our guide explained the amazing design of the Forbidden City which feature a central axis and symmetrical design. As we walked around our guide also explained the importance of the colours. The colour yellow was for the exclusive use of the emperor and connects to the element of earth, red is about warmth, happiness, honour and good fortune.
The Temple of Heaven
Temple of Heaven is a stunning place to visit. First we walked through a beautiful park. We found a large group of people exercising. The parks in China often have ourdoor gym equipment which are well used. I had a lovely conversation with a women in her late 70s as she was doing the splits! She had started practicing over the a year ago and just said ‘a little everyday’. It was amazing the work-outs that were taking place. From here we moved on to the Temple of Heaven itself. The roof is a cobolt blue and stunning. My understanding is that the blue represents heaven. Built in 1420 for the emporers to worship heaven and includes an alter for good harvest. It sits within a huge area – 270 or so hectares.
Whilst it was cold to visit Beijing in December it is a beautiful time to visit. I would like to visit Beijing again. There was so much to see and do. I was suprised at the scale of the places we visited and would like to spend more time visiting and learning about them.
A few more photos
If you would like to know more about these places here are some links:
The Forbidden City: UNESCO and China HIghlights and Temple of Heaven: UNESCO and China Highlights
