Day 9 and 10, Last full day in Beijing, and then return to Toronto

 The first stop of the day was at a Jade Emporium where we saw distinctly different colors of Jade, red, yellow, lilac and the familiar green.  Expensive pieces of jade sculptures and art greeted us as we walked into the emporium. 

Although there were many jewellery items for sale in the Emporium which people were buying indiscriminately, I was drawn to the section of the simple looking Jade Bangle. We were told the significance of this bangle by several Beijing girls and somehow the story resonated with me.  The bracelet is a simple piece of jade, quite thick and made out of one piece of jade.  The darker the color the more valuable the piece. The pieces ranged from hundreds of dollars to thousands.  I bought a pale bangle that had hues of green and lilac for 500 dollars.  The vendor told me that over time with my body heat and energy the deep colors of green and violet would emerge, thus increasing the value of the piece with age.  The idea is that the bangle is never removed from my wrist and that it will someday carry an essence of me which has passed on to the stone.  Chinese women pass their personal bangle on to their daughter-in-law or daughter at marriage.This website gives a simple explanation https://jadeheaven.com/blogs/all-about-jade-jade-information/17910116-what-does-my-jade-mean-what-is-the-meaning-of-a-jade-bangle.

Well all I know for sure is that my bangle will be passed on by me to someone else later and I like that idea.

After Jewellery shopping we went on to see the Great Wall of China- another UNESCO World Heritage Center.  The wall is 2300 years old and is  the world's longest wall and biggest ancient architecture. Although there are several passes in Beijing we stopped at the Juyongguan Wall fort, which has 1700 steps.
We were all ready to hike up to the top of our destination, wrapped in warm clothing and feeling energetic.  We soon got a reality check, because not only were the steps steep, they were also of all varying heights, some appeared to be more than a foot high while others were 6 inches....we were soon straining to complete the upward move.

Don't look down - this is how far up we made it

After we met up with every one and shared our achievements and compared notes, we sat together sipping hot chocolate and coffee and tried to warm up

 We got on our coach and went on to a Cloisonne Factory where we were once again amazed at the skilled craftsmen of China.  These vases and artifacts look like porcelain but are actually metallic.  Thin metal wires are bent into shape to form the outlines of the intricate details of the design. Later  many coats of finely ground glass enamel are fired into them creating a smooth porcelain like finish after the process is finished

Lunch was a welcome break after our climb and educational trips , and we were served lunch at the Cloisonne Factory and then given more time to do some shopping..

 On to shopping with a full belly!

Here we catch Mario watching with intensity..

From the Cloisonne Factory we made our way to the Ming Tombs.  A scenic Walkway with many large stone sculptures of animals flanking the pathway.  We soon noticed that some of the men had stayed behind to enjoy beer on the bus, while their wives stoically moved on without them ....

It soon got dark and 6 of us opted to go to a theatrical show " The Golden Mask Dynasty"in Beijing which came highly recommended. The drama tells a mythical story of the Traditional dynasties in Chinese history through music and dance.  The highlights included a dance with live White peacocks that sat poised on the dancers heads, and then on cue flew off to the right.  At one point we were overwhelmed with the use of water that flowed down the stage to form rapids and waterfalls as we sat enraptured in our seats as tons of water gushed on to the stage and around the side of the theater.

Posing outside the theater

 Some Glimpses of the Show....

Live Peacocks on the Dancer's heads

The stage with dancers amidst tons of actual water flowing down with force around them!!

 Our group of 6 was tired and hungry after the show, and our guide Velma very sweetly met us after the show to accompany us to dinner.  The rest of the group had been seen safely back to the hotel after they were fed.  Our final meal was so extravagant and plentiful that it was a nice intimate touch to our final night in China.

Day 10 was a lazy day at the Hotel since we did not have to check out till 2 pm.  Our coach was ready to take us to the airport at 2:30 pm and Velma was there to coddle us and see us through the final gates of Beijing Airport as we said Goodbye to her and China and made our way back to Toronto.

Goodbye China

Day 8 - Beijing

The Forbidden Palace with surrounding Moat

This morning started with a nice breakfast at the hotel, and a 9:30 am meetup in the lobby for  today's excursions.

Waiting to get on our coach in front of the Hotel

Monument to the People's Hero ( behind)

The first stop of the morning was Tienanmen Square.  As we got off the bus, even though we were dressed for cold weather, we began to feel the chill of the cold winds and Kevin and myself were quickly drawn to the local vendors on the street.  We were soon enchanted by the warm Panda hats and bought two.  Our bargaining skills were minimal and even though we appeared to have started a Panda trend, the other negotiators in our group did much better.

Our guide told us that in order to imagine how big the area was, consider that if people stood shoulder to shoulder in the square, you would be able to hold 1 million people in that space- impressive, but it appeared much bigger than that.

Tienanmen Square

National Museum of China

Tienanmen Tower

From Tienanmen Square we walked across to The Forbidden Palace through Tienanmen Gate.

Soon all our cameras were going wild....there was so much beauty around us.  The Forbidden Palace  is recognized as one of the most important five palaces in the world, and in 1987 it was nominated as World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO.  The Palace lies right in the heart of Beijing, and is home to the Palace Museum holding many valuable artifacts and collections from past Imperial dynasties of Ming and Qing

The second Courtyard

One of many large Bronze vats

The Palace of Terrestrial Tranquility (Kunninggong) in the Forbidden City.

The large stone sculpture between the 2 stairs was not permitted to anyone.  Only the Emperor could move above it as he was carried in his sedan up or down, while the carriers used the steps on either side to support his Sedan.

Below is a picture of our guide Velma who took patience to a different level with our group.  It was difficult to manage our group of 21, as we ambled off to take pictures, or fall behind as we chatted - we will never forget her words as she marched ahead " Now make like sticky rice and follow me- not like noodles"

Make like Sticky Rice and not noodles

The palace gardens

2 Nice Palace ornaments

We headed out from the exit that illuminated the extensive Moat around the Palace

Across the street was a vendor with skewered candy coated fresh fruit...yummy

The afternoon was dedicated to a rickshaw ride and a tour of the Hutong. Hutongs are familiar to Beijing and refer to alleys and small streets that showcase the old way of life in traditional Beijing.  This was a paid excursion that I had most looked forward to, after seeing the cities and modern living areas of China.  The afternoon included a home-cooked meal by a Chinese housewife in the Hutong and a scenic Rickshaw Ride.

Our lunch host and home

The dining area set up for us

Our hostess welcoming us and telling us a little about her history

Posing with our hostess outside her home

After the delightful ride in the Rickshaw and our private lunch we were ready to go back to the Hotel to rest and find a place to dine on our own.

Since the Posh Hotel was in an industrial area there were no restaurants close by so we decided to eat in the Hotel which boasted 6 dining areas.  After investigating the various options, Emmy our daughter convinced us all to have a Japanese meal.  The best part of the meal was seeing Emmy have a love-fest with her choice of food!

After dinner we had a chance to do a quick look-over of the Hotel's lobby and common areas, which were magnificent and overwhelming in size and beauty.

Off to bed after our Japanese meal to dream about The Great Wall of China ......