May he rest in peace...althogh that will be hard with about 5000 people a day passing by his mummified corpse.

I arrived in Beijing, caught a cab to my hotel and found that prices had tripled…But so had the quality…

The next morning I made my way all by myself to Tian’an Men Square…which is a very big place…with airport style security…some wonderful flower sculptures and a huge amount of people…as I crossed the square and gazed upon the giant portrait of Mao Tse Tung, I couldn’t help but think that China is indeed The Market, the world is flat and it’s only a matter of time before all vestiges of closed markets are history.

On my way beneath Chang’an Ave, a homely bespectacled Chinese girl sporting broken English appeared at my side. She began asking benign questions about how long had I been in Beijing, where I was from and tossing out flattery…then she made her pitch…she was a “student” who had an art exhibit that she and her classmates were interested in showing people…and would I take a look…”oh all right”…of course it was a play to sell mediocre Chinese artworks under the guise of supporting education…a clever ruse none the less…I politely viewed the works, thanked the girl and then made my way…finally into the courtyard that leads to the start of The Forbidden City.

Me, in The Forbidden City. Not forbidden if you pay 60 RNB.

After buying a ticket to enter for 60 Yuan, I began my fleet footed pilgrimige through this amazing complex of courtyards, stairs and former living quarters of the Chinese royals.

I hardly spent enough time to see the main structures, never mind the alcoves, antechambers and former gathering spaces that now contain untold antiquities. The place itself was mobbed…with thousands of people simply wanting to gaze at the throne rooms of previous dynasties. I generally avoided these crushing views for the less frequented areas…for the most part…The Forbidden City is not unlike any other museum…with artifacts accompanied by educational descriptions, gift shops, and overused facilities.  That said, the scope of size, quality of craftsmanship and demonstrable forsight of the construction is breathtaking.

Ok…I’ve got to get ready to attend a photo exhibit…more later…