Beijing

May 19-23

Day 16

The Temple of Heaven was built in 1420 during the Ming Dynasty. It originally served as the place where emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasty would hold an important worship ceremony. Surprisingly, it is even larger than the Forbidden City because of its designation to Heaven. It features many sacrificial halls that our guide informed us that the animals could never be eaten, just sacrificed. The Circular Mound alter is a popular center stone for people to stand on, although it was originally a place of sacrifice. Today, it features gardens and a popular exercise park.

The Lama Temple is a lamasery built in 1694 during the Qing Dynasty and was originally the residence of Emperor Yongzheng when he was very young. It is composed of several gates and halls, each representative of different beliefs such as the Hall of Harmony and Peace and the Hall of Everlasting protection.

We ended the day with a popular acrobatic show that left many of us speechless. They had their people doing stunts that probably wouldn't have been allowed in the United States.

Day 17

On our last day of activities, we finally visited one of the 7 greatest wonders of the world, the Great Wall. We visited the Badaling segment nestled in a mountainous area that gave us quite the breathtaking view. The wall itself was said to have been started before the first Chinese dynasty, the Qin, although emperor Qin is said to have connected its pieces and added onto it. Most of what we know as the Great Wall today was constructed during the Ming dynasty. It's generally 5-8 meters tall and is over 21,000km long. The popular tourist segments are restored although many parts of the wall are in ruins.

The Summer Palace is a result of a form of corruption. It was originally designed as a garden to celebrate Emperor Qianlong's mother's birthday, but then Empress Dowager Cixi used China's Naval funds were used to turn it into her permanent residence. Ironically, a marble boat that can neither float nor move is built within its compounds. Today, it is a beautiful garden area on Kunmino Lake and features Longevity Hill.

The Bird's Nest and Water Cube were deisgned and built for the 2008 Olympics. Due to a conference, we were only able to view them from afar. The Bird's Nest covers an area of about 64 acres and holds 80,000 seats. The Water Cube is the Beijing National Aquatics Center and is about 177 square meters and hold 17,000 seats. The Bird's Nest is planning to be reused for the 2022 Olympics.

Day 18-19

Free time in Beijing. Fly back to Detroit on Day 19/May 23, leave at 5pm and be home after 6 the same day (12 hour time change)

Day 15

Tianamen Square is the center of Beijing, China. It houses Mao Zedong's Mausoleum, the National Museum of China, the Monument to the People's heroes, and the Great Hall of the People. Also, the city's center axis runs through its core, and leads into the Forbidden City. It is well known for its protests, including the well-known image of the man who stood in front of the tanks. Its first gate was built during the Ming dynasty in 1415, but was rebuilt along with the rest of the square in 1651 before being enlarged by a factor of 4 in the 1950s.

The Forbidden City was constructed in 1407 and served as the imperial palace for 24 emperors during the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368–1644 and 1644–1911). It is nearly 75 hectacers and is composed of around 8,700 rooms. Although parts were closed off and under construction during our visit, our local guide informed us that the entire palace is expected to be open to visitors in a couple of years. Special colors represent Chinese culture in the Forbidden City. For example, most of the city features the color yellow, a symbol of the royal family.

We were given the opportunity to see the Beijing Wangfujing Catholic Church, which was very similar to Catholic Churches in the west.

Free time at Wanfujing Street, another popular shopping district with a small, hidden local eats street where many of us tried eating bugs.

We also stopped by the National Grand Theater. It is an Opera house that contains nearly 2,500 seats and is designed for large scale dance and opera shows.