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Wandering the Forbidden City and The Great Wall - Part 2 of 4

October 13, 2006

It seemed a privilege and an honor to wander about The Forbidden City, a place that was once forbidden to the general public. It took a couple of hours or so just to walk across the palace grounds and get a glimpse of the 800 buildings and over 8,000 rooms. As it was build centuries ago, the walk, or rather the ride, was a bit bumpy for Rodney. Rodney and the rest of us were able to make our way from one end to the other, but there were some places Rodney did not get to, as it would have taken navigating large flights of stairs. But Rodney was quite happy being able to see the former home of Chinese royalty. We wondered what life must have been like here on the grounds over a hundreds years ago as compared to now when there were lots of tourists like us wandering the grounds. The majestic buildings and their trimmings were a sight to behold.

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

Photo Forbidden City

After a couple of hours of wandering, we were ready for a break. We got back on the bus on the other side of The Forbidden City. On our way to the Great Wall outside of Beijing, we stopped at a Friendship Store for lunch and also a bit of shopping for those who were inclined. Friendship stores were state run stores opened in the late 70’s to tourists visiting from outside the country as a gesture of friendship. Today, these stores are privately owned and many have closed with the introduction of capitalism in China. We filled ourselves up with lunch at a restaurant located at the store, and contemplated a bit of shopping. Rodney and I decided that we were not too interested in shopping, after all, this seemed to be more of a tourist trap and things were a bit overpriced. Hopefully I would encounter other souvenir buying opportunities before our trip was over, this place did not suit me as a place to shop. Although the character of the store was different, it seemed too much like the overpriced mall stores in the USA.


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