Beijing: Legacy of the Past

So it took me about two weeks to kind of finish talking about my latest trip to Beijing. This will kind of be my last published post on the matter. I don’t know how many avid readers I have (hopefully a handful), but I’ve been told, as has a fellow friend a blogger, that these (study abroad) blogs seem impersonal and all. I would like to say that, considering that a good chunk of the world could read this if they want to, I feel I’m being as personal as I can be without putting my public life (if such exists) on the burner. Like I’ve said before, I write first and foremost for myself. I care what other people think, and I have published it so that friends, family, and anyone interested can read about my adventures and comment, but I hold the reigns and I hold the pen, so some posts I write and put in the desk drawer. This is my open journal.

Beijing is undoubtedly a well-endowed city culturally. Similar to Italy, it has so much history in such an accessible area. Different from Italy, locals appreciate tourism and choose not to correct your English. In case you don’t remember, go back to my Roman Holiday. Unlike in Italy, where priceless paintings in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence were suffering from the same heat and humidity as outside, in China, they understand that they have stuff worth protecting and do so protecting it.

Take the Temple of Heaven. It’s an iconic symbol of Beijing. I actually bought a Temple of Heaven snow globe for a friend of mine--well actually I opted for the Great Wall snow globe, but you get the point. When I went there a few years ago, I didn’t realize that it was actually in the middle of a giant park of the same name. Not only do they keep the Temple of Heaven in tip top shape, the park is a local hotspot for everything Chinese. There were several erhu players, plenty of taichi practitioners, and some dancing going on. It was recreational area for the city with plenty of open space, creating a positive atmosphere for tourists and locals trying to unwind alike.

Even when it’s corny, it’s apparent that Beijing appreciates its tourism. We went to this “famous” production of “The History of Kung Fu” at Red Theater near the Temple of Heaven, which was really good. Though it was apparent the production was more about dancing and less about fighting, it was still really well coordinated and visually stimulating. The corny part was the fact that the dialogue was all in recorded English. The actors themselves mouthed along happily as the Chinese translation played along the caption screen above the stage. And though I didn’t follow some of the story line because about four actors played the main character, it was all good fun.

Lastly, to show that I did do something new in Beijing, I visited Lama Temple, which in Chinese is Yonghe Gong (雍和宮). It was touted as a compilation of Buddhist arches in Chinese, Tibetan, Mongolian, and Manchurian styles. It was nice looking, but for the size and because of the fact that we’d already seen so many temples, the impression was just average.

Sorry, not much of a conclusion to the Beijing posts! Onward and upward—Taipei’s coming up!

Copyright © 2009 James Philip Jee
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