Monday, August 28, 2017

Emerging China - III. BEIJING'S TOP TEMPLES



Day 4 Most Famous Temples in Beijing

We did not have breakfast included in the hotel, and on this day we woke up with so much need of a coffee, so on our way walking to the Lamas Temple we were lucky to find a Starbucks (it is a pleasure to eat occidental food for once), seating there in the terrace we could stare at the business people entering a tower next to the temple; in that moment I first saw how stylish Chinese women can be. They are particularly elegant, wearing plain soft structured clothes as if they had bought all those looks in COS.
The Lamas Temple was inspiring, relaxing. It was my first time in a buddhist temple. We saw many locals praying, old and young, performing a kind of prayer holding incense sticks. This, together with the giant Buddhas and colourful interiors, contributed to provide us a whole peaceful experience.
Our following stop was Temple of Heaven, a Chinese holly place located in a huge garden in south-east center of Beijing. The corridors with decorated roofs were infinite and gave us shadow in a burning day. We could sit there with the green garden behind us, staring at the elder locals gambling with cards. The main pavilion of the Temple is on the top of a hill from which you can enjoy the nice views of the city. Remember that you'll have to pay twice to enter the proper temple.

That evening we decided to walk direction to Sanlitun (area known for its active nightlife) but the rain caught us and we aborted the plan halfway.

On our way to Lamas Temple we got lost intentionally through a Hutong





























Temple of Heaven













Dongzhimen District





Emerging China - II. GREAT WALL

Day 3 The Great Wall

We hadn't booked the trip to the Great Wall in advance but this time we were lucky. The day before we came across a vendor of excursions to The Great Wall and we booked the trip right away in his shop next to the Forbidden City. We bargained the price like locals do 😎 and we got the pack of Jade Museum + Ming Tombs + Lunch + Great Wall + Tea Ceremony for 175Y/person, great deal huh?!
In fact we were only interested in the Great Wall excursion, but the rest ended up to be interesting to know more about the Chinese culture and thanks to it we made some friends that were part of the group as well.
The bus took us at our hotel at 7.15am and left us again to our hotel at 6pm, thing that was comfortable and fast.
PS. Wearing sporty clothes to the trip is recommended.














Ming Tombs





Mutianyu, Great Wall










me trying to have a nice shot with the wall... lol 😅😂







Traditional Tea Ceremony




Back to Beijing