Yichun Curling: goodbye Beijing

by Molly Bonner [click on images to view larger]

BEIJING – Is it time to curl yet?! Tomorrow morning we rise at 4:00 AM to head to Yichun, and the main purpose of our trip to China.

Of the people we’ve interacted with over the past couple of days who have heard we are going to Yichun, most of them have similar responses:

“Northeastern China is very country, very traditional.”
”Did you bring warm clothes?”
“You can see Russia from Yichun!”
“Did I mention, did you bring warm clothes?”
“I saw the Reindeer Races in Yichun on the television yesterday.”

Really? Sign me up for that one!

In fact, some of people of Beijing have even laughed when we told them what city our final destination is. Have they no faith?!

The craze of Beijing roadways is truly indescribable and you must experience it for yourself (really, you must!). There are only centimetres between another car, pedestrian, or bicyclist while weaving in and out of traffic, running through red lights and making turns that only the Chinese must understand.

Meanwhile, the history of this city is complex, rare, and very interesting. We spent our last day in Beijing taking in as much of that history and culture as possible before we head north to Yichun which, by the sounds of it, will seem like a new country in many ways.

This morning began at 4:00 AM for Cait and I... time change not fully registering. We met our wonderful travel guides downstairs and the seven of us took off in the Honda hybrid for Tien An Men Square (most westerners spell it as Tiananmen; however, proper Chinese is to separate the consonants into three words).

Tien An Men Square is the enormous square in the city center of Beijing, and it received its name from the Tien An Men Gate (Gate of Heavenly Peace), located to the north of the square separating it only from the Forbidden City.

Although it is best known to the majority of the world for the protests in 1989, it has great cultural significance for the people of China. One that we discovered the Chinese people are mainly proud of, and rightfully so, is the proclamation of the People’s Republic of China, which took place at the Square.

On to the Forbidden City, which is truly incredible. It took 100,000 people 15 years to fully complete. In viewing the ornate architecture and design, it is impressive to believe that this was even possible.

The Forbidden City covers 178 acres, nearly 8 million square feet, making it the largest surviving palace complex in the world. How many curling sheets would it take to fill that? Someone do the math...

While walking through and exploring the City, you cannot help but try to envision what it must have been like when the Ming and Qing Dynasties occupied it for government, religious, and living purposes.

There are many specific Halls, Courts, and Palaces throughout the City, all of which are there to serve a specific purpose. Those purposes very greatly from just about everything you can imagine. Furthermore, there are certain areas of the City in which women were not allowed (raw deal for the Empress, if you ask me!)... typically these areas dealt with “important” government dealings, or were Palaces and Halls specifically for the Emperor.

Late Tuesday morning brought our sightseeing to the Summer Palace – very fitting as this is where the Emperor and his family (wives may be plural) reside during the summer months, and we had just come from the Forbidden City – where they reside for the rest of the year.

Just when we thought the City was the largest community imaginable, we discovered out that the Summer Palace is, in fact, three times as large! This is mostly because of Kunming Lake, the focal point of the residence that spans just over 2.2. kilometers. Even more impressive, this lake is entirely man-made... how’s that for some hard labor?

(Note: unfortunately the air pollution was so strong today that there was a constant haze in the air, making all the Summer Palace photos a bit less than ideal.)

The main purpose of the Summer Palace was to have a retreat that would focus on increasing the wellness of the Emperor’s family, in turn promoting longevity. Indeed, the major hill on the residence is named Longevity Hill, and it houses both the actual palace where the family resided along with the Buddhist Temple, which is the main focal point atop the hill.

This amazing area is truly a great spot for tourists to spend an entire day to explore during the summer months. You can enjoy a traditional Chinese tea on the Marble Boat, take a paddle boat or dragon boat to the island, and explore the gardens and wildlife. This, however, was not in the cards for us in these winter months.

Speaking of winter... as I type this (10:00 PM on Tuesday evening in China) it is apparently -17 degrees Fahrenheit in Yichun! I think I’ll be taking the long underwear in my carry-on, for quick access.

Tomorrow, we fly Beijing-Harbin-Yichun: Domestic airport travel in China, this will be an adventure all its own! Until next time... please eat some peanut butter for me (my daily staple is unheard of in China)?