Day 2, 9th May 2010, in Beijing, China
Arrived at 6.10am, after all the standard procedures; One thing Malaysia fail to have and China is lucky to have is the super cool crisp clear wind on a sunny day... A great day to kick-start our holiday experience in Beijing, China!
On the way to breakfast in the coach bus, I was fascinated by the scenery's and the cool vehicles that you rarely see anywhere else in the world! The streets has lots of "pollen" floating around the air & it was near Xiao Jie bridge that I took picture of these bicycles (New & Old)...
After breakfast, we were supposed to check-in, however, due to the delay in our flight the local travel guide, Mr. Yan aka Xiao Yan, took us to the "Back Gate" of the Palace Museum or better still, the "Back Gate of The Imperial Palace" and right opposite of the "Back Gate" is a man-made mountain!
Inside the "Imperial Palace" we entered a gate that is famous for it's name and historical beliefs called "The Lucky Gate" (The name explains it all... lolx). We even browsed through the window of where the Emperor (King) sleeps and surrounding his room are other rooms where his concubines sleep.
At the exit of the Emperor's chamber, there's a big "Jade" resembling something like a "Yin & Yang" shape that represents peace and great luck! Soon after we took a stroll at the "Forbidden City" just outside the "Imperial Palace"... It seems that of all the tour group that Xiao Yan took (all from Malaysia) we broke the record for walking at "The Forbidden City" for up to 3 hours and 15 minutes all the way.
Soon after the "Forbidden City" visit, we ventured to the "Temple of Heaven". Over there we were told that there used to be a "Ginseng" tree near the premises. However, after the "Temple of Heaven" was opened to the public, it disappeared without a trace! Weird?! But it was written in the historical relics that the "Temple of Heaven" forbids female to enter because female is "Yin" and male is "Yang". Also "Yin" is like the moon, is represents "cold" and "Yang" is like the sun/earth, it represents "life & warmth"... (Or something like that hehe)
Wanna know MORE about the "Temple Of Heaven", Click HERE!
After that, Xiao Yan took us to watch an acrobatic variety show! It was a 1 hour live performances from 5.30pm - 6.30pm that ended with a blast! What I mean to say was, the had a cage the shape of a ball and first a motorbike went in and went round and round in it... But it ended with a blast when 5 motorbikes went in and they switched off the lights! It was like a super huge disco ball!! And it was amazing! Never seen before in life! Not even in Europe! A MUST-WATCH performance! Everyone was awed by their spectacular performance!
After dinner, we went back to check-in to our hotel and ended the day with laughter's and smile! (Ps. Xiao Yan can really make you laugh... hehe)