Nee How from Beijing!

15.02.2008

Hi everybody! We began our first day of touring Beijing and we were all so excited. We started in one of the most well known areas of the city…Tiananmen Square. It is located in the centre of the city and is most famous for the protests that took place there in 1989 (1), where hundreds of activists were slaughtered here by the Chinese Liberal Government in one of the most controversial political movements of all time. It was so strange to be standing in the same spot such a famous event (and picture!) took place. We found the square itself wasn’t incredibly scenic. It is the many political events that have taken place here that give the square its fame. The square is open all day long and admission is free (2). From the square, we made our way over the Forbidden City , called Gu Gong in Chinese. The City borders Tiananmen Square (1) and it houses the famous Temple of Heaven (2). It was such an amazing site, but a little overwhelming! The City was the Chinese Imperial Palace from the Ming Dynasty and for five centuries served as the home of the Emperor. Admission was only 40 yuan and it took us about 3 hours to tour the grounds of the City. Tonight we’re headed out for a Chinese delicacy,peking duck, and some karaoke at one of the hundreds of karaoke bars in the city. Wish us luck as we brave the stage!

Tiananmen Square
www.britannica.com/eb/art/print?=84955