Well
There Ain't No Party Like The Communist Party, Cos The Communist
Party... Runs A Very Efficient And Enjoyable City.
Sometime
way back in July I got a nice little surprise in my tax return. I
decided then and there, that some of that money should go towards a
trip from Hanoi to Beijing. After all, you only live once, and I
didn't know when I would next find myself close enough to China to
take such a trip. If I was close enough to see The Great Wall of
China, and I still had the money in the bank, I would never forgive
myself for missing it.
When?
Well I guessed it would be towards the end of my trip, at that vague
section after I'd made my way up the coast of Vietnam, but before I
was ready to come home to Perth. With no firm plans on a flight home
I was a little unsure... early to mid December maybe?
I
remember my father's exact words. 'Beijing in December? You'll need
some warm clothes because it'll be bloody cold!' Well Tommy Boots,
you were right. It was bloody cold. I took his advice and bought a
jacket before I left Hanoi, and I will be forever grateful for my
fathers advice. :)
I
landed in Beijing in the late afternoon and passed easily through
Chinese immigration with a smile. I had expected them to be stern and
officious, but they were friendly and pleasant. The first of many
preconceived notions to be shattered.
I
exited the terminal and was immediately shocked and delighted by the
snapping cold. Hanoi had been a muggy 35 degrees Celsius, Beijing was
a very crisp 10 degrees. After almost five months of sweltering
humidity in south east Asia, it was a refreshing change to feel cold.
On the taxi ride to my hostel I gazed out the window at the clean
highways, soviet style apartment blocks and highway signs written
entirely in Chinese characters. How strange and foreign everything
seemed, and yet at the same time it seemed so much more like home
than the messy, crowded, hot, bubbling streets of Hanoi.
I
had expected a huge, noisy city, with vast sections of 'old town'
crammed in near huge skyscrapers and a vibrant CBD. Instead there
were neatly spaced, mid level, apartment blocks and block after block
of clean and tidy, low level commercial buildings. The whole place
seemed so sterile and clean compared to the mess and excitement of
south east Asia.
Then
suddenly the landscape started to change and there were cafes,
bookshops, pedestrians, food carts and music all around the taxi.
Traffic seemed to emerge from nowhere and the taxi was slowed to a
crawl. Everywhere I looked there were cafes and bars. The taxi driver
pulled over and motioned to a side street, ' hotel over there.' I
paid the fare and tried to ask how far down that street the hostel
was... but I had exhausted his use of English. I stepped out of the
warm taxi into the cold wind, strapped my pack on and headed off in
search of the Beijing Downtown Backpackers.
As
I walked down the hutong towards the hostel I was amazed by the array
of funky clothing stores, gift shops selling ironic and kitsch
communist propaganda souvenirs, music stored blasting modern music...
'cool' alternative western music??? And then there was the food.
Coffee shop after coffee shop, little hole in the wall kiosks selling
huge shish kebabs, huge restaurants serving entire Chinese banquets,
tiny restaurants serving rice and basics, western cafes, churros
covered in steaming hot fudge, a food cart selling... something, and
a shop called 'Mr Beard', the logo was a cartoon faced old man with a
fisherman’s hat and a snowy white beard, that only sold eclairs (
or giant profiteroles in my opinion). So random. So wonderful.
Once
I found the hostel I quickly dumped my bag in the dormitory and
practically ran back out into the Hutong to explore. Everywhere I
turned there were amazing smells wafting around, groups of young,
trendy Chinese kids laughing and milling about, and music filtering
across the top of it all. I immediately loved the neighborhood. I
spent the evening wandering through the local hutongs, snacking,
shopping and soaking in all the sights. I also took the opportunity
to buy gloves, a scarf and a cardigan from one of the many women who
had set up an impromptu night market along the street selling cold
weather gear. Night set in, the wind picked up and the temperature
dropped to about 4 degrees. It was too bloody cold for a Perth girl.
The
next day I teamed up with Hannah and Ollie, fellow Aussies from my
dorm, to catch the subway out to the Summer Palace. Catching the
subway in Beijing is an experience in itself. Just when you think
nobody else can possibly fir into the carriage, another 25 people
manage to cram themselves in. Add to that the amusement of Ollie, a
more than 6 foot tall white guy, towering over a carriage full of
fascinated Chinese people.
We
spent a day wandering about the beautiful gardens and buildings of
the Summer Palace. Set on a lake, it was a serene and peaceful place
that allowed us to appreciate the beauty of the traditional
architecture and the gardens. We also took great delight in laughing
at the many many many people wandering the grounds in panda animal
hats. They sell them on just about every corner in Beijing and while
I'm sure they keep your head and ears warm, they look ridiculous. The
sights at the Summer Palace all had names like, ' the garden of
utmost harmony and peace' or ' the temple of divine wisdom and
serenity.' Towards the end of the day I started to be confused by all
the different versions of peace, wisdom, harmony, serenity and truth.
That
night a big group from the hostel headed out to find some Peking
duck. There was a little lake near the hostel surrounded by a
boardwalk full of restaurants. We had been given a card at the hostel
and told it was THE place to go for Peking duck, but we couldn't
manage to find it ourselves. With not much Cantonese/Mandarin between
us, we were very luck to eventually stop an English speaking passer
by who was very friendly and escorted us to the restaurant. We had
actually walked past it already. Perhaps the giant cartoon duck
statue out the front should have been a giveaway. ;) What followed
was not only a delicious meal of Peking duck, but a floor show of
dancers, jugglers, acrobats and contortionists. Value for money!
Walking
home we joined an impromptu tango class being taught on the boardwalk
and played a game of shuttlecock hackey sack ( anyone who's been to
Vietnam of China knows what I mean). Again I was struck by how fun
and vibrant Beijing and its people were.
Early
the next morning Ollie and I boarded a minibus to take a day trip to
THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA!!! Katie, the uber sporty Canadian girl in
our dorm, had opted for a more taxing 6km hike of the wall, but Ollie
and I were content with what was described as the 'fun hike' to
Mutianyu.
I
had explained to Ollie that I was really keen to see the wall, but I
also wanted to revel in the cliched tourism of it all. I wanted to
watch countless Asian tourists make the peace sign in their photo's
at the wall, I wanted to photo bomb their pictures, I wanted to make
the peace sign myself, I wanted to watch hundreds of people scurry
along after tour guides carrying flags and whistles. I did not want
to spend 5 hours running to keep up with Katie and the other uber
hikers. Ollie agreed that the 'fun hike' sounded like much more fun.
After
3 hours on the minivan we arrived at Mutianyu, at the foot of the
wall. Janet, our guide, explained that we would have 3 hours to walk
along the wall before we must be back to meet for lunch and the ride
back to Beijing.
We
caught the chairlift up ( yes it is that touristy) and started to
walk along the top of the wall. It was perfect. Mutianyu is not the
section closest to Beijing so while it does attract a lot of tour
groups, it is not swarming. Not so many people that you can't get a
photo on your own, but enough people that I was able to fulfill my
photo bomb desire. ;)
I
won't try to explain the wall. I can't do it justice. Just know this;
it's awesome and you should go see it sometime. Early in our walk,
while we were making good time, I made the glib comment that, ' they
give you 3 hours so that even people who are half dead can make it
back in time.' We walked to the furthermost tower in our section of
the wall and then made it back down to the chairlift with time to
spare. At this point we decided to follow the wall up in the other
direction, a direction filled with a lot more upward stairs. The walk
was hard, but the view was spectacular and certainly well worth the
effort. Of course we were 15 min late back to the restaurant (
remember my half dead comment :~), which I could see annoyed Janet.
Still, given the choice again I would take THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA!!!
over missing the start of lunch.
Eager
to make the most of my short time in Beijing, I booked a trip to a
Chinese acrobatic show through the hostel for that evening. Wow! I
knew it would be good, but I was not prepared for how amazing those
Chinese acrobats would be. Jumping through rings with a 20cm diameter
that were held over 6 feet high, flying across the stage in flips and
bounds that did not look physically possible, hanging from ropes and
plunging to within centimeters of the stage, everything they did made
my jaw drop. And of course the female acrobats came out with their
bicycles and astounded me even more. At one point I swear to god
there were about 15 girls balancing on one bike as the rider cycled
it around the stage at a great speed. I laughed and smiled so much my
face hurt afterward. If you are in Beijing you MUST go and see a
Chinese acrobat show!
In
the morning I rose early and started a day of hardcore sightseeing.
Jingshan Park, Tiananmen Square, The Peoples Monument, The Forbidden
City and Beihai Park. It was a day where I got to see the beauty of
Beijing's history and the almost fanatical patriotism of its
citizens. In Tiananmen Square, with the giant picture of Chairman Mao
looming over the square I watched slightly perplexed as Chinese
families posed for pictures and beamed as their small children wagged
small plastic Chinese flags. I resisted the urge to tap someone,
anyone, on the shoulder and say, ' ahem, excuse me, didn't something
happen here in 1989?' But the only indication of the Tiananmen Square
Massacre comes from the metal detectors and tight security screening
you have to pass through in order to center the square. Aside from
that, it is as if the death of those protesters never happened.
My
final night in Beijing was spent at the Chinese Opera, an event that
I was told was a ' must see' while in Beijing. Hmmmmm... what to say
about the Chinese Opera. I think it is certainly an acquired taste.
The costumes were beautifully crafted, the musicians were very
talented and the short martial arts performance in one scene was very
entertaining. The plot, not fantastic, and the singing, sometimes
hard to listen to. Still, it was something new and now if I ever have
the opportunity to see it again I will know that it is not really my
taste.
Suddenly
it was my last day in Beijing! I got up early and caught a cab to the
Lama Temple ( not to be confused with a Llama temple … which I
secretly think would have been a bit cooler) to soak up some final
bits of Chinese culture. I strolled down the street to the Confucius
Temple, but reading the information outside the temple I found that
it was actually just a garden full of stone tablets naming students
who had studied under Confucius, so I opted not to go in. On my walk
back to the hostel I stumbles across a street that was full of old
school Chinese medicine men. Literally a whole street full of offices
where you can go to see a medicine man for ancient Chinese medicine
and I'm assuming some wise advice. As I strolled down the street and
peeped into the windows I was delighted to see that each and every
one of them was rocking a Fu Manchu mustache!!!
With
that I collected my bags, caught a taxi to the airport and flew out
of Beijing feeling that I had seen everything I could hope to see in
4 days.
