Big Beijing, China

Well Hello Beijing. There are 35 million Chinese that live in the greater Beijing area. and on their day off they all visit the Forbidden City, a huge palace complex in the center of the city. It was crowded to say the least. For you history buffs, The Forbidden City served as the home of some serious emperors and their households as well as the ceremonial and political center of Chinese government for almost 500 years. The Forbidden City was constructed so that if you didn't get an invite inside...you definitely weren't getting in. No crashing this party. Walls 50 feet high, moats, guard houses/lookouts, twenty foot doors a foot thick and walls within walls were just a few of the touches that were employed.  If an intruder actually got in, they'd never get out alive which is why it's lasted more than 500 years.  As in other temples and palaces in Asia, this huge place was constructed without nails and used joints and other architectural fixes to do the trick. An impressive place. 

Funny thing, if I didn't see the Chinese folks running around all over Beijing I'd think I was in New York. It has the same type of energy, they dress the same, they drive the same cars, they shop the same, the families act the same out in public but they're Chinese, that's the difference. Good or bad, they look Americanized. In many ways, they are just like us.   

However, there are differences.  The government is a subtle but all encompassing presence. It's kind of creepy.  Our tour guide told us that Beijing, with so many millions of inhabitants, is very safe, and I believe them. (Step out of line and they will take you away.)  And there is a subtle existence of discomfort when a local talks about something like Tienanmen Square, which our guide termed the Tienanmen Massacre.  When visiting Tienanmen Square the place was heavily guarded.  Like they want to make sure that if the students ever thought about protesting again...maybe they should think again. Anyway, anywhere we went we did feel safe.  

A few other differences...the men like to hock one up and spit.  Our cab driver did this and since I caught some wind when he opened the window to hang one out, I actually ducked. Thought that was an anomaly but I observed other drivers and guys on the street do it regularly. Never saw a woman do the same.  They do have standards. And may I chat briefly about the men's restrooms?  There are alot of no smoking areas around. So when the men start to have a nic fit they head to the restrooms.  Never in the open, they always grab a stall, close the door and light up. You would guess that the restroom would smell kind of like...you know...how restrooms smell, odorous? Fetid?  Not here.  They smell exactly like a full ashtray...a large ashtray.  However, as Terry tells me, the women's powder room does not have the same, ah,  "fragrance" as the men. Speaking of women, just about everywhere we traveled, women seemed to be subservient to the men, to one degree or another. America has made such great strides to level the playing field in gender equality...that it becomes noticeable when one human being is under the thumb of another. However, not my country so I kept my thoughts to myself. 

Smog.  They have a problem here. Air pollution particulate levels are measured on a 6 tiered scale from 0-50 which is an acceptable range to >500 which is considered an Emergency. Several days we were there it was above the 500 level and we work masks.  Several weeks prior to our visit to Beijing they recorded levels in the 700-800 levels.  Not so good. They're trying to get a handle on it. Not all cars can drive each day of the week. Industry is fined and limited from functioning if the levels get too high.  I would say that 90% of the motorbikes and scooters are electric. So normally when walking down the street you hear a cacophony of scooters.  Not in Beijing. They putter down the street as quiet as a church mouse. Electric cars and hybrids are on rise. Anyway, they are trying.  

The Great Wall was pretty interesting.  6000 kilometers or 3728 miles long, depending on who is measuring. It was built to prevent marauding nomads from invading the kingdoms. It also was a trade route and allowed different regions to collects taxes and control immigration and emigration. There where initially many walls, but eventually they were connected up. At one point, the wall was guarded by over 1 million Chinese guardsmen.  A pretty monumental task. 

We visited quite a bit of Art while in Beijing.  Our hotel, The Eclat, was designed and built by Hong Kong's George Wong, an architect.  He was a big supporter of art and was also exhibited art around the world, particularly in Asia and Europe.  Our hotel was filled to the brim with great art and has the largest collection of Salvador Dali Sculptures in China. It was fantastic to be able to see it all.  

Terry contemplating the Great Wall 

Well, there you have it everybody.  We just arrived back home and I wanted to finish this off.  Hope you have enjoyed.  

Loose ends iin Chiang Mai and Bangkok

I like Chiang Mai.  It has a certain energy to it, an easy excitement. Moon and I were a little sad to leave.  Didn’t have enough time to see all there was to see.  It’s cooler due to a higher altitude so that was nice, compared to Bangkok where it’s hot and humid and I was thinking often about taking a shower to cool off.  I’m not dissing Bangkok because it's one of my favorite places.

Above of Chiang Mai in the mountains is a Buddhist temple and a Thai Hill Tribe. With Moon on the back of our motorbike, we headed up the windy road all the way to the top.  A motorcyclist dream of a road.  In and out of the corners with with a big smile on my face.  You could feel the sudden changes in the temperatures, the coolness of the shade from the tall trees and the warmth of the sunlight when momentarily breaking out into the open. Then there I was thinking I'm in Nirvana, taking in the fragrance and lushness of the jungle, Moon would yell, "GET BACK ON THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ROAD!!!". We'll it was peaceful when I remembered to stay on the left side of the road instead of the right like we do in the states. We enjoyed the view all the way up and the cool weather at a higher altitude. The Temple was beautiful and the hill tribes showed off their hand made wares. And, of course, we bought some.

The Thai people are a gracious and respectful bunch. Easy to smile. They only get riled if you touch their head, point, or say nasty things about their King.  Otherwise, they’re pretty easy going, with one other exception. Driving. Men and women, young and old think of themselves as Michael Andretti types.  Driving here is just one big game of Chicken. Cutting in, tailgating, passing to on-coming traffic, making 5 lanes of traffic on a three lane highway, it might not be legal but it's permitted by your fellow drivers. Merging is accomplished by whoever gives up first. You name it, they do it. That said, no one seems to get upset or angry, no hand gestures, little to no honking, no road rage...no malice.

Moon and I snorkeled in Koh Lanta.  When the boat arrived everyone climbed in and took off their shoes, then thrown into a plastic clothes basket so we wouldn't get sand all over the floor of the boat.  The snorkeling environment was beautiful, the coral and fish...lots of fish.  The water was so warm it was amazing. I could have stayed in the water the whole day.  After finishing, the anchor was pulled and we were headed for home in unsettled seas.  There were four delightful giggling Japanese women on the boat and one of them started to turn green.  She finally jumped up and headed for the garbage can, but unfortunately only made it as far as our basket of shoes to relieve her stomach upset.  We’re her friends aghast? Discussing how they might comfort their friend ?....No they were all giggling, which led the rest of us to start giggling too.  It was funny.

Traveling is Therapy.  It allows time to let go of all the tensions daily life might bring at home, even if they are insignificant and grants some space to reflect in a different environment. I could probably do that at home but would miss the richness and diversity of other's culture and people.  It can also be a humbling experience to know we have it pretty good back home in Seattle Washington, USA.

Beijing next and last.