Fireworks and Yellow Taxis

Just a couple of other follow up stories from trip to Beijing. First I'll talk about fireworks. I was watching CNN this afternoon, and saw that one of the hotels in Beijing went up in flames. The hotel itself was in the process of being constructed, but it sounds like the cause of the blaze was fireworks being set off by a neighboring company/building.

This was in connection with Lantern Festival, which is the last day of the Chinese New Year celebration. On this day (and to certain extent throughout Chinese New Year) fireworks are set off to scare away spirits, in hopes of improving the fortune and luck for a home or business. (I have had previous experience with Lantern Festival here in Taiwan that was wild, and probably one of the craziest sights I have seen in Taiwan. I could share more at some point if you are interested). Anyway, I guess the neighboring building had paid people to sit and set off fireworks, and some of these ignited that hotel.

This piece of news reminded me of my stay in Beijing, because during my stay I was continually hearing the sounds of fireworks. Most notably was outside of my hotel. Here the firworks were set off nearly every night. They were loud and located literally right outside of my window. The fireworks were like fireworks that one would see at a city show on the Fourth of July, except probably a little smaller. Either way, they were defnitely bigger than bottle rockets or sparklers. The fireworks were continually being shot one after another with only seconds in between explosions...and many times being shot without any break in between. This lasted hours, and even into the night past 10:00 pm. I am not exactly sure when they stopped because I usually fell asleep right away. I do know once I woke up at 4am, and they were not being shot then.

So nothing terribly profound from this story, but it is another memory from the trip.

The other part of this post is going to focus on mine and Kevin's rides to and from the High Speed Railway Station. We took the fast high-speed train to get to and from the airport. The station is about a half an hour from school and we took taxis to get there.

On the way to Beijing, we had a taxi driver who was playing English music. This is actually not too uncommon, as I have had cab drivers change the music to an English station or cd when I rode. I presume this is because I am an American. Either way, this man's cd had Amazing Grace on it. I asked him if he knew what the words were or if he knew the meaning of the song. He replied that he did not, as he can't really understand English. I proceeded to tell him that it is a song talking about God's grace and love in Jesus. We did not have time to get into a big conversation, but as Kevin and I left the taxi, we reminded him that Jesus loved him. Praise God for these simple ways to witness in every day life!

On the return trip, we got into a cab of a man who had previously driven our roommate, Michael Vogel. He obviously knew we were being dropped off at Concordia, and then asked if we knew someone named "Way Ming" (this is Michael's Chinese name). I responded that he was our roommate, and we all got a kick out of it. He had remembered Michael because Michael has the same last name as him...I suppose the fact that Micahel was an American speaking Chinese and heading to Concorida helped as well, but either way it made for a fun cabride.

When we got to campus the driver gave us door-to-door service, driving into campus and dropping us off right outside our house. He helped us get our bags out of the trunk and wished us a good day.

Two great cab rides to book-end a great trip!

The Forbidden City, Tiananmen, and Chairman Mao

As a history major, I always enjoy traveling to site of historical significance, and this trip to Beijing provided several chances to for me to do this. First, I spent about an hour and a half walking through The Forbidden City (now called the Palace Museum by the Chinese). This was the imperial palace for emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties. It was first started to be built in the 1400's, and was used by the dynasties for close to 500 years.

The thing that sticks out about this site is its size. The museum is enormous, and we spent an hour and a half there, walking mostly straight from the front to the back. We went to one side room, waited in line once to see an inner room, and took a couple of pictures. However for the most part it was just a straight shot back. Yet to both the left and the right, the city expanded into side rooms and pathways. Here's a picture of just a portion of the city, after we had already walked through three or four gates.


The architecture was really intersting, and is obviously in the traditional Chinese style. We also saw some traditional wedding clothes, and one of the room's where the emperor greeted guests.



I honestly don't have enough knowledge of Chinese dynastic history to truly appreciate this site, but given that it was once the seat of power for the Chinese government and off limits to the Chinese people, I count it as a worthwhile excursion.



Just south of the Forbidden City is Tiananmen Square. This of course is famous for the incident in which student lead protests ended in death and destruction, as the Chinese government brought out tanks to stop the protesters. Hundreds of people were killed.

Today it is an open area where people can walk around with their families and look at monuments dedicated to the Communist victory and in China’s Civil War. The square itself is enormous. During my days in Beijing, the square was always full of people who just seemed to be out enjoying the day. To get in the square, you do need to pass through security in which the guards scan any bags you are carrying. But these lines move along pretty quickly, in order to keep the traffic light.



Tiananmen Square at night. It closes to the public in the early evening, but is beautifully lit up at night.

In the square are several monuments, including one dedicated to The People’s Heroes.


One that commemorates the Communist victory in their civil war.


And Chairman Moa Memorial Hall.



Inside Chairman Mao Memorial Hall is the body of Mao Zedong, preserved and on display. Before coming to Beijing, I decided that this was a must to go see this historical figure, knowing we would have to wait in line to see him. This proved to be true.

On Thursday morning we got in a line that wrapped all the way around the Memorial Hall. We had to pay to leave cameras and bags in nearby lockers, and had to show our passports as a form of ID. We went through security checks and ended up waiting close to an hour.

Once inside the hall, there was a giant display of Mao’s picture and many flowers below it. There was a reverent feel and people who talked were told to hush up. The line then broke into two parts, as we entered the room containing Mao’s body.

At this point the atmosphere seemed to change a little bit. There was a guard who spoke loudly and told the people to keep moving. The room was no longer silent, but rather people mumbled and murmured a bit as they walked by the body.
There was a glass top covering the casket, allowing the curious crowds to see the body of this Chinese leader. His skin looked rather fake and like plastic, no doubt due to efforts to preserve his body. The lower half of his body had a Communist flag laying over it like a blanket.

This is the second body of a world leader that I have seen. Last year in Vietnam I gazed upon the body of Uncle Ho, the Communist leader of that country. As I recall, both men had skin that looked fake and were sitting in caskets with glass covering, allowing the public to see them. However, Uncle Ho’s room was much quieter. There were at least four guards surrounding his body and the room was silent when we walked through. I was surprised at the contrasting feel at Mao’s Memorial Hall.

A Little Cooler

The trip to Beijing brought the chance to experience some cooler temperatures that I have not experienced in awhile. During the winter Beijing dips below freezing, getting snow and ice. When I first realized this, I was excited for the chance to see snow, as it is something that I have not experienced in over 4 years.

Much to my disappointment, it is also true that Beijing is a dry climate, thus not as much precipitation equates to less snow. So when we got to Beijing, there was no snow on the ground, and the forecast did not call for any during our visit.

While there was not a big blanket of white flaky goodness, I did have other sensations that go along with being a colder environment. Most of these occured as we walked around the city to our various destinations.

On our first full day, we decided to find the Olympic stadium. According to our map it did not seem too far, so we decided to walk it. Along the way, we made several stops.

Upon coming to Beijing, we were a little concerned that some of sites would be closed for the holiday. So our first stop was to Tiananmen Square, to see if it and the Forbidden City would be open in the coming days. Thankfully, the square was full of people, assuring us that we would not have to juggle our schedule around the holiday.

After passing through this area, we continued toward the Olympic stadium. We pressed on, enjoying the excerise in the cool air. Eventually we got hungary and decided to find a place to eat. We stopped at a Chinese restaurant where we order, lamb, sweet potatoe fries, broccoli (which was excellent), and roasted duck. Beijing is known for its duck (Peking duck), so it was a must that we order this. It proved to be a little disappointing though, as we had to wait 40 minutes for it and it was rather expensive compared to all of the other dishes we had. The taste was ok, but not spectacular.


Another place we stopped was a lake that had frozen over. This was a pleasant surprise. There were many people walking out on the ice, a fisherman, some hockey players, and a man jumping into the lake in his speedo...crazy!

Kevin, Michelle, and I walked out on the lake and had fun sliding around on the surface. I remember walking on lakes up at Okoboji and Center Lake, in Iowa, but it had been awhile since I had been on one. There's nothing like side excerusions on a journey, and walking on the lake brought a simple and unexpected pleasure.


As the walk continued into the afternoon, I began to feel the bite and nip against my exposed skin. My inner thighs began to get chilly and I had to keep my hands in my pockets to prevent them from getting too cold. My lips began to get chapped, which proved to be a problem throughout the week, forcing me to apply some chapstick.

The walk proved to be a little longer than we expected and we did not arrive at the park until late afternoon. We walked around and looked at the "Nest" and the aquatic center. By the time we got there, they had stopped selling tickets to enter the stadium, so we had to gaze from the outside.

At this point of the journey, we were all a little cold, and ready to get some place warm. We ended up finding a German restaurant where I was able to warm up with some bread, German sausages, and beer.

This day did not bring any snow, but there was one point in which I experienced snow. This was up on the Great Wall. Granted there were just a few patches of snow here and there, but I was able to pick some up and throw a snowball of sorts at both Kevin and Michelle.

In retrospect, the weather was definetly colder than Taiwan, but not approaching Iowa winters. Like America, though, Beijing was equipped with heaters, so I was able to warm up after a day of travel in the cold weather. I still maintain that the coldest I have ever been was last year in Vietnam, where we had no heat and it rained frequently.

The Great Wall of China

The highlight of last week's trip to Beijing was most definitely the Great Wall of China. Kevin, Michelle, and I went on a 10km hike across a portion of the wall. The history, the adventure and the enormity of this wall made it the most storied part of my excursions in China.

The morning started by taking the subway to the bus station. As we got off the subway there was friendly lady who helped us get from the subway to the bus station. She worked for the bus station and was paid to go to the subway and surrounding area to find help people get to the station. We told her that we wanted to go climb the Great Wall out in Jing Shan Ling, and she helped us get on Bus #980, which would take us to where we needed to go.

The bus was pretty full and we had to split up and share seats with Chinese people. I sat next to a college student, who I was able to converse with and practice a little bit of my Chinese. She was heading home from nursing school to celebrate the new year with her familiy. After a little over an hour, the bus reached our stop. When the bus pulled up to our stop, I said good-bye to the college student and the three of us set out to find a taxi.

We had not even gotten off the bus when a driver yelled up and told us that he would take us to the Jing Shan Ling trail. I figure the lady at the bus station called ahead and told him that three foreigners were coming to climb the wall. He was a really nice man, and we rented his cab services for the afternoon. He drove us out to our portion of the wall, and helped us find the where the trail began. He also agreed to meet us in four hours at the parking lot of the end of our trail in Simatai.

We set out on the path, and were soon joined by three local Chinese people. The started to make small talk, and asked us if we wanted to buy any books or t-shirts from them. We politely said no, and they replied, "not now, maybe later." And continued to walk with us on the trail. They guided us to the stairs that brought us up onto the wall, and set on our journey with us.

The initial views of the Great Wall were magnificant. The wall runs for miles in each direction, and overlooks open valleys and mountains. Parts of it have been redone, to make it a little safer, and other parts are old and crumbly. Standing on it, I knew I was on a part history and I was excited for the hike that was about to come.


As we hiked, the wall continued on and on, being interupted by towers. Our hike included over 20 towers, connecting the 10km of wall. As we continued to travel, our three Chinese friends provided information about the towers and the walls. They showed places where battles might have been fought. They also showed us unique features of the wall, such the ducts where the Chinese would dowse their enemies with water mixed with wood, nails, and rocks.

These friendly people even provided support as we climbed steep portions of the wall. They were older than us, but were very strong and steady handed. I asked the man how often he climbed this trail, and he responded that he usually did it twice a day. They also were most helpful in taking pictures of the three of us over scenic spots on the wall. In addition to all of this hospitality, I enjoyed the chance to practice my Chinese conversation. It will probably be the only time I have free Chinese lesson at such a historic site.


Meanwhile we all hiked along laughing, looking at the wall, the towers, and the beauty of God's great earth. There was one opportunity were we could take a short cut across a path, in order to avoid a really steep section of the wall. However, we felt good and decided to press on with the more challenging section.



When we got to the 12th tower, our guides informed us that they had to leave. But again, before they left, they asked if we would buy any t-shirts or books from them. We were really appreciative of their help and company, so we wanted to do something to thank them. So we took a look at their books and t-shirts, and decided to buy something, or at least give them some cash for helping us. Each of the three had their own things to sell, but they had seemed to be traveling and interacting as one group. We decided to buy a book of pictures taken of the Great Wall, which cost about $20.00. But they pressured us to buy more, and now brought out post cards and smaller pictures which were cheaper. I asked them if they shared the money together, or if each of them were individual sellers.

It was at this point I realized it was all about business. The lady wearing red spoke up and said that the were all separate, and that we should buy from all of them. I said that I would be happy to if, I could have my money back and disperse it evenly and buy from all of them. She then turned to the lady in green (who had sold the book) and in Chinese specifically told her not to let me have my money back. I asked the lady in green and again and she refused. The lady in red then started to pressure me to buy from her and told me how she had kids and not a lot of money. She said that we should buy from all of them and not just one. I got very frustrated and told her that I would be happy to if I could exchange the book, but that I did not want to spend anymore money. She just continued to beg, until I said I could not buy anymore and decided to leave.

Normally, I would not have minded paying a little extra to help the people, or having to spend more money on a souveniour from a historic site, but here I felt robbed. I was upset because I was genuinely happy for their help along the way, and wanted to thank them. But they made it out to be simply business and in the process I realized that I could have gotten by much cheaper if I was smarter about it. I should have tried to negotiate or bargain right off the bat, or asked to see other things. I was silly not to have tried to negotiate or get bye cheaper. I should have known the score and been on my toes. I have been in these situations many times in my travels throughout Asia. But I trusted them, not expecting the previous hour and a half of hiking and laughs to end in this tense business situation. I felt taken for a ride.

As they turned around to go back, Michelle, Kevin, and I continued on the hike. We discussed how it was too bad the situation ended like that, and I felt a dampening of the mood. It was in this context where we approached tower #13.

We walked into the tower and as we came to the exit door, there was a sudden drop. The stairs were gone, and below us was a hill. Straight below, the ground was close to six feet from the ledge, getting steeper and steeper going down hill to the left. To the right was the path, that was nearly five feet below us, but connected to the wall.

A couple who was hiking in front of us had just passed through the tower. They showed us a couple of footholds in the wall that we might use to climb down, and then went on their way. As we appraised the situation, we all realized we were a little scared. The footholds were in positions that were difficult to reach and they were not too sturdy. It seemed like we might have to take a bit of a leap and hope to land on the solid ground. Now, I don't want to be overdramatic and tell you that I felt I was heading for my certain death...however, I could foresee a missed step resulting in a slide down the hill and the need to grab onto the surrounding trees as a slid. This no doubt would have brought some bumps, bruises and scrapes.

As we examined the situation, Kevin reminded us of the importance of prayer. We took a moment to lift it up and give it to God. Asking for His guidance and protection. What a gift we have that we can go to Him whenever we need him. His strength and His love are ever present.

After the prayer, we made a plan. Michelle and Kevin held my arms as I slid down the wall and swung myself onto the higher ground. Once I was down below, I got solid footing and helped Kevin as he came down. Michelle held his arms from the tower, and I pushed his legs, so he too could land on the higher ground. Finally, we were both down there to catch Michelle and push her toward the solid ground.





We made it, thankful to God that we done so without scrapes or injuries. We could continue on our hike. As we moved toward the next towers, I remembered my thought process over previous half an hour. Not too long ago, I had been upset and frustrated about being ripped off. Now I remembered that money wasn't all that important in the grand scheme of things. I thought of how eager God must have been to re-teach me that lesson. How silly the book, money, and tension seemed after swinging to safety on tower #13. Praise God that His love and faithfulness are always there, even when we stumble in sin.

The rest of the hike went off without a hitch. The three of us enjoyed each other's company and sang praise songs as we hiked. We stopped and had a picnic lunch on the wall. It composed of sandwhiches of left-over Beijing roasted duck, canned fruit (I had mandarin oranges), and plenty of water.

The second half of the hike included older sections of the wall that were more rocky and not redone (although still safe). At one point, we had to walk beside the wall because the top was closed off. Here, I saw just how big the wall is. I could not imagine any enemy coming and trying to actually penetrate this line of defense.

As the hike finished up, we made our down the wall and back over toward the parking lot. There our cab driver was waiting for us with a big smile on his face. He was very friendly and helped us make our way back to the bus stop, to head to Beijing. It was the end to an amazing adventure!

Back From Beijing

Well, I just returned from my vacation to Beijing. It is Chinese New Year break out here in Taiwan and we had a week and a half off of school. Tomorrow we start up with classes again, for four days, and then have a four day weekend before getting fully back into the saddle next week.


I was in Beijing from Sunday January 25th until Friday the 30th, and it was a great chance to get away, relax and take in some historic sites. Here's a quick overview of the trip. I went with my friends Kevin and Michelle. We stayed at hotel that was located in the heart of the city. Honestly the location could not have been much better as we were within walking distance of nearly every place we went, whether it be sites, shopping, or restaurants. That being said, we did a ton of walking, more than I have done in a long time. However this made for great exercise and a cheaper trip.

One we frequented was Tiananmen Square. This wide open area had several monuments and museums, including a Memorial to Mao Tse Dong, and is across the street from the Forbidden City.


Another highlight of the trip was a hike along the Great Wall. We took a combination of subway, bus, and taxi to travel about an hour and a half out of Beijing. There we went on a 10km hike on the Great Wall. The view was breathtaking and the hike was a good work out, complete with a couple of stories and some good Chinese practice.


In addition, we also saw the Olypmic complex were the 2008 games were held, went to a Chinese teahouse to watch Beijing style Chinese opera, and ate at several good restaurants. We sampled the Beijing Roasted Duck, ate at a German restaurant, a TGI Friday's, and an oustanding Thai-Indiand Restaurant.

That's a quick overview and I hope to write in more detail as time allows.