Beijing is a wonderful city! But I know for sure that I would love it a lot more if it wasn't so crowded with tourists! It isn't exactly tourist season right now, but throughout China, for the entire first week of this month, it's a national holiday. So that means 1.3 billion people are on vacation, and very likely flocking to the major cities in China, which puts Beijing at the top of the list. I got to Beijing the day before the holiday week started, so the crowds were just starting to gather and it wasn't so bad. Yet.
On my first day, after checking into the hostel, I went to the Forbidden City and Tian'an men Square. The Forbidden City exceeded all expectations in every sense! It was ENDLESS. Built in 1406 to 1420, it was the imperial palace and the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government from the Ming to Qing Dynasties. There are almost 1000 buildings, and it covers 7.8 million square feet! Walking through the Meridian Gate was surreal. My awe increased with every step (which was the exact intent of the architectural design and layout of the area, back in the day). Everything was so detailed and so colorful! From the undersides of the ceilings, to the door knobs, to the rails on the bridges... Scarlet reds, deep blues, vibrant greens... Dragon statues, water lily carvings, swirling cloud designs... Ohhh man. It was so awesome! Can you geek out over beauty and aesthetics, because I totally did. The Hall of Supreme Harmony, which is the largest and the heart of the Forbidden City, was so gorgeous. Walking up a staircase of white marble, which was beautifully carved and decorated with dragons, I got to a red pillared entryway. The hall housed the Dragon Throne, a crazy-intricate throne covered with interwoven dragon carvings and delicate details of gold. So so beautiful! I spent a good 3 hours there, wandering around, getting wonderfully lost in the history and the crisscrossing paths. 
Tian'an men Square is another awesome area of history. As the biggest city square in the world, it's seen so many protests and political events. It was amazing to stand where one of my favorite photographs of all time, "Tank Man" by Jeff Widener, was taken. The Monument to the People's Heroes looked, well, monumental and heroic with the sun setting behind it, and I sat for a bit to watch the projected panoramic films playing on loop of Chinese culture and history.
Later, I met a very nice guy from California at my hostel, and we went out exploring the Donghuamen Night Market. I was expecting it to be your average tourist-focused market with trinkets and cheesy souvenirs, but it was actually all food vendors. And they had the most bizarre foods! They made everything into kabobs- chicken, beef, fish, squid, starfish, sea horses, centipedes, scorpions... EVERYTHING. And the scorpions were still alive on the sticks! I asked a vendor about this, and he replied in broken English, "So it made fresh to order!" And he proceeded to grab a stick with 5 live and squirming scorpions, held it over an open fire grill and then tried to hand it to me. I giggled uncomfortably and walked away as fast as my legs could carry me.Okay, this post is getting long and I'm getting sleepy. I'll write about the Temple of Heaven and the Summer Palace tomorrow! Peace!
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