It's not forbidden anymore

Courtyard in Forbidden City
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Megan arrived safely on morning of the 24th although she had a close call with making her flight.   I was very happy to see her and we immediately set off on a very full day to see the Forbidden City.

After wandering in the right direction but not exactly directly we found our way into this vast complex with 100's of buildings.  This is considered one of the world's must-see attractions and I will admit it was pretty awesome.   The Forbidden City got its name because for centuries this is where the emperor (and his thousands of concubines) lived and the people of Beijing were not even allowed to approach the gates.   The emperors lived in the height of style and opulence but it still seems a bit depressing to me that they seldom left the walls.

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The architecture is fascinating with the beautiful chinese roofs topped with shining glazed tiles and intricate dragons and other designs.  The gates that lead into the city and separate the major areas are huge and detailed.  Unfortunately, the 2 large buildings were being renovated (this is what we get for traveling a year prior to Beijing hosting the Olympics) but just wandering around the complex and peeking in the smaller buildings was pretty great.  I wasn't very impressed with the "museum" side of the site but just the layout and history was enough to be impressive and we wandered for hours.

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We left the city to check out Tiannamen Square and marvel that there is still a gianormous painting of Mao hanging above the square.  We did skip the honor of seeing his preserved body on display.  The square is really just a giant square and although the breadth of it is impressive there isn't a lot to it.   So after all of the walking and being covered by the dirt that is Beijing we were pretty exhausted and decided to head back.

Maryann you are correct that the hostel is not exactly the Four Seasons but I will say that the hostels in China have been much nicer than I expected.  There are always western style bathrooms as an option (although I'm starting to get used to the eastern style as long as they are clean), the linens are nice and there has been AC everywhere.  Not too bad for $5 a night.