Our final flight inside China was from Xian to Beijing, a city of 14 million, the third largest in the country. The bus trip from Beijing to Badaling is a link to China’s past and , of course, no trip to China would be complete without a visit to The Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, and the Forbidden City. Like so many things in China, you have to see it to believe it. The main purpose of the wall was military — to protect the kingdom. The 3,720 mile wall was built over a period of hundreds of years and involved many thousands of people. Many died from the project and were buried in the wall. Walking to the high point of the wall near Badaling is strenuous but you can only imagine how hard it was to build the wall with no machinery. The wall is wide enough for four horsemen to ride side by side. It is also hard to imagine that the wall extends a greater distance than America is wide. Some say it is the only man-made object that can be seen from outer space with the naked eye, others say that there are many man-made structures visible from space, and still others say Earth looks like a blue marble and there are no structures visible.
Most everything in China is on a massive scale and that is certainly true of Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. Tiananmen, perhaps best known for the protests in 1989, is the world’s largest public square and was initially the "front door" of the Forbidden City. Completed in 1420, the Forbidden City is the world’s largest palace complex and home to 9,999 buildings. You could spend all day there and only see a fraction of it. The Forbidden City was the imperial palace during the Ming and Qing Dynasties where outside visitors were forbidden for five centuries. Every aspect of the Forbidden City is impressive but in particular to me was the Large Stone Carving that was 50 feet long and 10 feet wide, 5 feet thick, and weighing more than 200 tons. The designs and carvings were amazing including waves, nine dragons playing in the clouds and interlocking lotus flowers. It is hard to imagine how it was moved from the quarry west of Beijing.
The final night included Beijing Opera and Peking Duck. Beijing opera includes elaborate and colorful costumes. The performers have painted faces and their beauty dominates the stage. The plot is not easy on the mind and the sounds are not easy on the ears. Unfortunately, I would have to describe it as screeching. Fortunately, it was an abbreviated performance. Peking Duck, on the other hand, was excellent. I had last enjoyed this preparation in Singapore ten years ago. The dish is distinguished by the thin, crispy skin. The skin is rolled up with a touch of sweet noodle sauce and scallions in a lotus leaf pancake and eaten. The duck itself is used for other dishes. There is a lot to know about this dish, which goes back to the 13th century.