Life between trips

There are a couple of Hutongs in Beijing with Qianyuan Ensi being one of them and also Luogu Lane being another. As majority of these are still residences you can only get a glimpse of the main entrances will walking down the streets.  After walking through the streets i head to Nanluogu Alley where the shops and cafes are to browse for souvenirs. 

One of the four temples built during Ming dynasty. The four temples are Temple of Sun, Temple of Earth, Temple of Moon and finally Temple of Heaven. The most significant will be the Temple of Heaven. The layout shows that the area is made up of inner wall and out wall. The inner part housing the complexes. While the outer wall is made up of the music administration.  The Temple grounds cover 2.73 km 2  (1.05 sq mi) of parkland and comprises three main groups of constructions, all built according to strict philosophical requirements: The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿) The Imperial Vault of Heaven (皇穹宇) The  Circular Mound Altar  (圜丘坛) The most magnificent is the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests built on 3 levels of marble stone base. Its the Hall where the Emperor will pray during the year for good harvests in the Ming and Qing dynasty.  The Imperial Vault of Heaven is  single-gabled circular building, built on a single...

One of the plans is to visit the Ming tombs and due to accessibility issues, the plan is to engage a driver to bring us to the locations. We found a travel shop at the bus interchange, and requested for quote of pricing. After much negotiation, we agreed and fixed the day for pick up.  First stop for the day is the Ming tombs, which are the burial site for 13 emperors of Ming dynasty. Chang Ling, the tomb of emperor Yongle is the biggest and earliest in the area. Most of the unearthed relics on display in the Hall of eminent favour which is the largest wooden architecture in China.  The tomb we visited is Ding Ling the joint tomb for the 13th Ming emperor Zhu Yijin and his two empress. It is the 1st ancient emperor tomb to be excavated. The mausoleum is the only one that is excavated.  We are told that these gold ingots bestowed to officers cannot be used as it is an honor of gift from the emperor. You can see them but you cannot use them. 😓 The emperor crown mad...

Forbidden city  looks as ominous as it sounds today. What with the grey skies and chilly weather.  The weather has been forecast to rain for the entire day. It doesn't really help when i wake up with a headache.  We decide to enter the historical site via Tiananmen East which will pass through Tiananmen Square.  There were lots of barricades around the area and there are long queues to get into the Tiananmen. But the process is still considered smooth. Just then right before we can pass through the main gate to forbidden city, the guards stopped everyone from entering for no reason. An the crowd started gathering at the square. To make things worse, it started pouring.   The wait to get in was an hour and the rain didn't stop the entire time. Not the most pleasant experience.  Alot of interiors are not accessible to visitors, and we can only peek through the doors to for a glimpse. This hall is one of them.  Despite the weather, there is...

The great wall of china is one of the wonders of the world and of course we'll make a trip there. There are few locations to choose  and we decided on Mutianyu based on the recommendation of a friend. Other locations for great wall are: Badaling, Jinshanling, Jiankou, Simatai, Huanghuacheng, Gubeikou, Juyongguan, Huangyaguan, Shanhai Pass.  Located in Huairou District in Beijing. Mutianyu is 70 km away from city centre. The No. 1 Great wall cable car lies at the foot of Mutianyu. This part of the Great wall was built by General Xuda under the reign of Zhu Yuanzhang during early Ming dynasty and is famed for it beauty.  Getting there is possible by subway followed by the bus. There are direct bus to the location early in the morning with a few bus trips. But after 9 am, you will need to wait for the regular bus which comes once every hour.  You can take a taxi ride or wait for the bus. Be aware of taxi operators touting at the bus stop to Mutianyu station.  ...