Chinese Magic and the Summer Palace

On Thursday Lori and I decided that we were going to the Summer Palace. However; one task had to be completed first, I needed some painkillers for my arm.

After our little game of hacky sack on Monday night, I managed to strain a groin muscle and, much worse, damage a tendon in my left shoulder. My shoulder was bad on Tuesday and got worse as the day progressed. On Wednesday, my arm was almost non functional. I had to lift my left arm with my right hand to put it on the dinner table or to do anything that required me to use my left arm.

We made our now usual week day trek to Starbucks at Nanlishilu for our morning coffee. On our way to coffee we remembered that there was a pharmacy in a street of stores near the Nanlishilu subway stop.

Once our liquid gold had been consumed and our cigarettes extinguished, we made the trek across the busy street (crossing the street in Beijing is an extreme sport) and went on to the Pharmacy.

As we entered the shop with its glass cases displaying all types of over the counter medicines, I pulled out my handy dandy Mandarin phrase book, given to me by Eddie gave me before I left for China, and pointed to the Chinese characters for 'I need some painkillers'. After reading the phrase I was pointing to, the lady pointed to her head indicating a headache, of which I did have as well from the pain of my shoulder. I responded with the affirmative but also pointed to my shoulder.

The lady in the Pharmacy proceeded to pull out a box of Ibuprofin with a picture of a man on it and various parts of the body highlighted by red and yellow dots indicating the pain relief points. After becoming terribly excited at the prospect of some pain relief, she then started pointing at her shoulder as a request for me to indicate where my pain was. She also wanted to see my range of motion. I was happy to show her that, although I could bend my arm at the elbow, I could not raise my arm to any degree, perhaps a 5% range of motion remained.

With my right hand, I indicated the spot on the front of my shoulder where I could feel the greatest amount of pain. She then began poking at my shoulder to discover the exact source of the pain. With a grimace of pain from me, she was satisfied. Then, unaware of the connection, she requested, through body language, that I try to put my arm behind my back. I was successful in reaching the small of my back, but that was the extent. She sat me down, grabbed my left arm and put it up behind my back until I was doubled over in pain. With a giant smile on her face, she rushed over to a display case, retrieved a box and pulled out two discs that looked to have a heap of Tiger balm on them. As I revealed my shoulder, she poked at me again to obtain the correct spot on the front and had no difficulty locating the spot on my back, right on the shoulder blade.

Once the discs were applied, she gave me two perscription like receipts and sent me off to pay. With payment settled, I returned to this goddess of pain relief and presented my two stamped receipts. With a smile she placed the Ibuprofin and the remaining discs in my hand and sent me off on my way.

Lori and I walked about 100 meters and stopped for a cigarette in the shade before heading back onto the subway. As I was smoking, I realized I was smoking with my left hand and bringing my cigarette to my mouth using my left hand. By the end of the day, I could grab the overhead bar on the subway. Thursday morning I was able to wash my hair without bending over to bring my head down to hand height.

Chinese magic is wonderful and I will never forget that wonderful woman and what she did for me.

On to the Summer Palace........

After a dismal attempt to find Bus 808 to take us to the Summer Palace earlier in the week, Lori and I decided to return to the area we were staying in and take a taxi from there. The Summer Palace is in the North West of the city and we are staying in the West. We hopped into the taxi, showed the driver where we wanted to go and in no time, we were at the gates of the palace. I would estimate the gates at being 24 kilometers away, the taxi starts at 10 yuan and charges an additional 1 yuan for ever 3 km travelled.

Queueing up to purchase the all inclusive tickets (entrance to all buildings) we noticed a fellow Canadian in front of us (it seems as though only Canadians stayed behind after the Olympics were over).

With tickets and souvenier maps in hand, off we went through the gates to Summer Palace.



Once inside, the grandeur of the Palace was immediately evident. There was an expansive lake (Kunming Lake) that was completely man made and had been enlarged and deepened during the Empress Dowager Cixi after the Palace had been raped and pillaged by the Anglo French Allied Forces, twice, once after the Second Opium War and the second time after the Boxer Rebellion.

Cixi used 100,000 workers to enlarge the lake with the removed soil being used to construct hills on the site.

The first marvel we came across was the 17 arch bridge, so named because there are 17 arches on the bridge that link the mainland to the island, South Lake Island (Nanhu Dao).



Once across the bridge and after a wander through the temples and halls, we came by a rather busy area with boats coming and going, dropping off and picking up tourists. We took a boat over to where the Marble Boat and the Tower of Buddhist Incense were.

The first object you see is the Marble Boat that the Empress Dowager had constructed. The Boat is said to represent the solid and unsinkable strength of the Qing Dynasty.



Walking past some more Temples and Halls, there are too many to see in one day, we happened upon a Hall that was used by Cixi to accept Birthday gifts, the majority of which were very unusual and interesting, others were just very beautiful.




On to the Tower of Buddhist Incense. What an amazing place, there were 5 sets of 59 stairs to climb once you were through Cixi's dressing room she used when going up to the Hall. Each landing provided a very unique view of the Palace grounds and the surrounding city.






the Summer Palace was a very spectacular sight that provided a glimpse into the beauty of the surroundings Cixi made sure that she had. She used money set aside for a modern navy to redo the Palace.

With the park closed and twilight coming on, it was time to head back into the city for some dinner. As we left the park, a taxi driver asked us if we needed a taxi, he would only charge us 50 yuan to take us to the nearest subway, we then asked to go to the subway stop close to where we were staying, he wanted to charge us 80 yuan. I laughted at him and said it only cost us 19 yuan to go to the Palace, why would I pay 4 times more to get back. After laughing this off, we headed for the busses. Discovering the buses, we soon found bus 690 that would drop us off at Quinan subway station across from Tian' anmen Square.

Standing on the bus, someone got on at another stop and asked if the bus went to Xidan, the collector said yes and we changed our plans and got off at Xidan.

After an hour and a half bus ride, standing, we decided to have a seat before venturing in to the malls. As we were sitting there, bus 808 came by, and then a second one came by. Oh well, we were not meant to take this bus we were only meant to see it.

798 Art District

A month or so ago when Paul and I were planning what to do while we were in China, we decided that the 798 Art District is one of the areas we should check out while we are here. After our morning ritual of people watching while having a morning coffee, we decided to set out for the 798 Art District. 

Back in the 1990's a group of up-and-coming artists in Beijing took over an abandoned electronics factory and set up shop there. Over the last few years this area has seen a rise in popularity and now boasts a large number of art galleries, restaurants, and coffee shops. 

I thought the area would less trendy than it is. It is composed of a large number of small galleries; each of the galleries is fairly quick to look through. One of the galleries contained an exhibit of contemporary Chinese art that has a mix of paintings, videos, and sculptures. One of the videos was a series of three TVs, one of which contained an empty couch, one contained a woman and one contained a man. The woman and man were each smelling themselves continuously all over. I did not stay to see the complete video since I was finding it rather disconcerting, but Paul stayed and apparently in the end the man and woman left their respective TVs and wound up in the third TV and smelled each other. I don't completely understand it, but yet in the end it is the part of the exhibit that I remember most and wound up finding it fascinating in an odd way.

Another gallery contained a series of photos of the Birdsnest from June 2007. It showed the dwellings that the people who were constructing it stayed in, and it was very interesting to see what the area around the stadium looked like before it was landscaped and made presentable for the Olympics. 

The third exhibit I remember the most was a series of photographs of various huotongs from 1989. Most of these huotongs have since been torn down to make room for more modern buildings. My only regret is that I was unable to find a book that contained the photographs as it would have been a great souvenir.

Although the galleries were interesting, I actually found the buildings much more fascinating. At one point I asked Paul "I wonder if anyone who used to work here has come back to see what the area is like now" As I wandered through the complex, I kept imagining what it would have looked like when it was a fully functional factory. I could visualize the people who worked there. 

Whether you go there for the art, or go there for the architecture, the area is definitely worth a look. No matter what your interests and tastes are, there is so much to see that there is definitely something for everyone.

The ever elusive bus 808 and Tianjin

On Tuesday, Lori and I had the best of intentions to get out to the Summer Palace. David said we should get off the subway at Military Museum and go to the park and get a boa up the river to the Palace, one guide book said that there were a multitude of ways to get there and another book suggested tourist bus 808 (this bus was also mentioned in the Lonely Planet Beijing City Guide), so we decided to take the 808.

Off we went after breakfast to stop at Nanlishilu for Starbucks and an afternoon snack before heading for the bus.

After our much needed coffee, we headed back on the subway to Qinan on line 2 which is, supposed where the bus leaves from. Qinan is a very central station where there are many bus stops serving a multitude of busses and is located at the south end of Tian 'anmen square, so there is quite a bit of people traffic, not to mention vehicular traffic as well as Red Guard Soldiers.



We have been to this area a few times for different reasons, the first time we just happened upon it walking around Tian 'anmen square on the outside of the square, another time, we had to pass by it to get to a tourist street and yet another time we had to pass by it to get to the Canada party at the Beijing exposition hall where British Columbia had a show and hosted Canada parties every Tuesday and Thursday with free Canadian beer (Chinese beer is only 3.1 % alcohol volume) and Canadian food.

After checking out the various bus stops in the area with no success, we decided to ask at information. The people at the information booth are very helpful and try their best to be of as much help as possible, but as in many other cities around the world, there were differing opinions on where the bus stopped. Off we went to locate the bus. Lori thought she saw one so we watched to see where it went, only to discover that it was the 803 and not the 808.

Our next plan was to sit down on the west side of Tian 'anmen square and see if we could spot the bus. We saw the bus (Nessie we called it) only once and still could not figure out where the bus stop was.

After sitting for a while and watching this adorable baby boy play with his grandmother at the fence by the road, we decided to go shopping.



Shopping in Beijing is very odd in that there are name brand items and stores (Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Dolce Gabana, Armani etc...) and right accross the street are the bargain stores where you can offer a price and bargain with them. I find the most effective method is to walk away after a few back and forth sessions. This way you manage to get your price.

One of the best shopping streets in Beijing is Wangfujin, full of discounts, Department Stores and a few malls. The malls are not the best place to shop as the prices are generally fixed.

On our journey, we managed to see a stand outside that was a replica of the Water Cube.



Further up the street, we saw a very interesting sight for Beijing, we happened upon St. Stephens Catholic Church, quite the oddity in China one would assume.



We knew we had to make it an early night so that we could meet David at 8:30 the next morning to go to Tianjin.

On Wednesday we woke up at 4:30/5:00 and got ready and were at Starbucks by 7:00 (we are staying in the far west end of the city and everything is a minimum half hour subway ride away).

Once we were on Line 1, I called David to express my concern that he instructed us to meet him at the second last subway station on Line 5 but the name did not match.

Every time Lori and I have met David, we have always been late, usually because David has chosen a spot that not somewhere we know and is not directly served by a subway station. This time however, we were early, a good half hour early. Luckily, City TV Beijing has the television screens in the subway stations just like CITY TV.

David asked the transit worker where we would catch the bus to Beijing South Railway station so we could take the fast train to Tianjin. After receiving and following the instructions provided, we could not see the bus, so David asked again and we were pointed in another direction. This time it was correct.

Once on the bus, David asked the collector (busses have a driver and a collector), just to confirm, if the bus went to the Beijing South Railway Station The response was that you had to transfer to another bus. So off we went, the route was rather circuitious and seemed to go in a circle before dropping us off at this mad house of a bus station with about 30 different busses and about 1,000 people. However; Dvid managed to lead us directly to the transfer bus and we were on our way to the railway station.

Beijing South Railway Station is a brand new station that is the central point for the fast trains to Tianjin and other trains to some other cities. Once the line is completed, it will also be the home of the fast train to Shanghai.





By this time it was 9:00 am and we went to get our tickets. Even though the trains leave every 15 minutes, the next available train was not until 10:30. So we had a little time to kill.

As they announced our train, you had to queue up and put your ticket into a slot that sucked it through, validated it and ejected it for you securing your assigned seat on the train. The train is made up of 3 classes, Superior Special Class, First Class and Second Class. On the way to Tianjin, we had second class seats, however, these are better than VIA 1 class.



Arrival in Tianjin was a mere 30 minutes after departure with the train traveling at 331 km/hr. The normal ride is almost 2 hours and everything is always on time in China.

Through a friend, David had arranged for someone to meet us at the Tianjin train station and show us around. When we finally met the fellow, we went off to buy our return ticket, we bought a Superior Class ticket back to Beijing for the 5:45 train, which meant that we had a god 6 hours in Tianjin.

The first stop was an amazing and famous restaurant for Tianjin dumplings, the dish of Tianjin, lunch was delicious and so much food. We ended lunch with a bowl of congee after consuming about 10 dumplings each.



David's friend drove us all over Tianjin and stopped on the highway so we could take pictures of the Football (soccer) stadium that was built for the Olympics.



The most interesting part of Tianjin is that is was a colonial port city so a lot of the old buildings are very western style with some Chinese buildings around them.



We also managed to get to the Tianjin Cultural Street, a new build that looks like a traditional Chinese neighbourhood in the city.

All in all, we had a great day and are looking forward to the Summer Palace on Thursday (we will take a taxi LOL).

Beihai Park and Houhai Lake

I am not sure how much the travel books say about these two places, since Paul was the one who studied most of the travel books, so I am going to talk about them. If you are ever in Beijing, you must go to these two places.

David took us first to Beihai Park during the day. The scenery is gorgeous, and the place is not crawling with tourists. As we wandered through the park we happened upon a man playing traditional Chinese music on a flute while looking out over the lake so we decided to stop to look out over the lake and listen to him. I did not want to leave. I must say, though, that after getting up and walking away, I was the most relaxed I have been in years. 

When you exit the park, you will find yourself in an area called Houhai Lake. This area has a superb and bustling nightlife. There are a lot of patios to sit on to have anything from tea, to supper, to a few drinks. There is even a bar called Sex and the City.

At the end of the path we happened upon a little square where people gather. There was a group of people line dancing to various songs and anyone is welcome to join in. As we watched the dancers, something happened to the sound system and there was no more music. A young man was selling these things that operate like hackey sacs, only they are discs with feathers sticking out of them. Paul purchased one and he and David went off to play with it. As they were playing, another fellow asked to join in, then a couple of his friends joined in. Soon we had a circle of no less than 6 people at any given time, and as one person left, another person would come in to take the empty place. I think what I enjoyed most was the sense of togetherness and community that I have not been able to find since I moved to Toronto so many years ago. 

Much as though we both wanted to stay and play, it was getting late and we had to return to the guesthouse to get some sleep. I hope very much to return to Beijing some day, and this will be one of the spots I will definitely come back to again. And now for some of my favourite photos of Beihai Park and Houhai Lake.

Now that the primary reason for the trip is over, we can really start to tour around Beijing and do some more touring in Beijing. I have discovered that two weeks is not enough to see Beijing let alone China, I will definitely be back.

On Sunday we had our big day with the closing ceremonies. Lori and I got to wear our Canada t-shirts with Canada printed on the front in English and Chinese and the lucky 888 on the back.

As usual, we went for Starbucks at our usual spot and I finally had the opportunity to capture a shot of soldiers in semi formal dress uniform marching down the street. This was not an every day occurrence but rather a special day as the Olympics were coming to a close.



After coffee, our first stop was Yonghegong subway station on our way to the Buddhist Temple.



We didn't want to spend the entire on Olympic Green so we decided that it would be opportune to visit a Buddhist Temple, the Temple at Yonghegong. This Temple was originally a palace but one of the Emperors chose to turn it into a Lamasery (Tibetan Buddhism). The Lamasery has been standing for about 600 years and has always been an important part of life in Beijing. Today it is still a working Temple and people do go there to pray and offer incense to the various Buddhas in the Temple.



I could go on forever about the beauty of style, architecture and function of the Temple, but there is too much to write today.

After the Temple, I realized that the battery on my camera was running out and I needed to save the power for the closing ceremonies.

As I opened my camera in the Birdsnest, it seem to have re-charged itself.

In keeping with tradition, the ceremony opened with fireworks, traditional dance and the gathering of the athletes on the floor of the stadium.







In our bag of goodies was a fan, our instructions were to use the fan when the athletes entered the stadium to show them our appreciation for the efforts. The fan was an orange and red multi-hued fan that resembled a flame. The effect of 91,000 people waving this fan was rather breath taking.

After a few more performances for the athletes, came the time to pass the Olympic Flag to the next host country, city, London, England.

In honour of this event, a double decker bus, as a symbol of London, was brought into the stadium to begin the handover of the flag and the extinguishing of the torch.





The ceremony to extinguish the torch was nothing but spectacular with a countdown of the days past until the last day and the torch was extinguished. At this moment, we were instructed to light our fake torches to symbolize the torch never dying and the friendship we have experienced continuing forever.



Now for an equally fun activity, the logistics of exiting 91,000 people from Olympic Green onto the subways and busses, cars were not allowed within a 2km radius except official BOCOG vehicles.

I did not think we would get back to the guest house before 2 a.m. but the human traffic control the Chinese instituted for this event was the most effective and efficient control I have ever seen. Everyone went in different lanes and onto their mode of transport as quickly and efficiently as possible even though the crowds were incredible.


We got back to the guest house in record time, I guess that is in keeping with these amazing games.

After seeing these games, I know, there is not a chance in hades that Toronto could have done anything nearly as well as Beijing. Thank you IOC for picking the best city to host these games. Now the bar has been set to a standard that will keep the games as a showcase for a country beyond any level they have seen in the past.