From irresistible tea pets to beautiful postcard perfect picturesque sceneries, I have so much more to reminiscent back about this breathtaking, awe-inspiring vacation. I must admit that it's a pretty rush and short trip, but the days were activities-packed. Not a minute or second is wasted there, as we really gained so much of enjoyment, understanding and insights of the life of people there.
The condition of the road in Beijing.
I doubted that I could stand the temperature over there, so I make sure that I stocked up the basics and essentials and make sure I'm well-insulated before I ever dare to step onto the ground of Beijing by putting on layers of clothing. So yeah, warm and comfy as you explore but the price to pay for it is that you will look plump and heavy in pictures :(
Delicacies at one of the restaurant near our hotel.
Just as we step out from the airport, we started to notice that we can see our breath, it's really that cold. During this visit to Beijing, the air quality was quite low during that time. The whole city looks so hazy and the morning sunlight looks much more like the glow of sunset. The whole place was basked in a dull sunlight in the morning.
But it still worth it all. We paid a visit to the the Forbidden City (故宫 or also known as 紫禁城 ), a huge and labyrinth-like ancient Chinese imperial palace flooded with mainly the locals of China where we actually almost lost trail of the group a number of times there and luckily we still managed to follow back. As we were on a tight traveling schedule, we just briefly explored the palace and resume our journey to visit the Temple of Heaven (天坛). The weather over there was still cold and breezy, with big and small distributed ice patches all over the place. It would have been even more perfect if the ice weren't polluted. The ice were formed from the melting of snow which had fallen a few days ago before we arrive at this place. This is the temple where the ancient emperors worship the heaven. We visited the temple and the the Echo Wall.
The compound in the forbidden city.
One of the incense burner.
Scattered crowd at the palace.
The huge compound of the divine palace.
Lovely details and artwork.
The sundial which tells you the time of the day in the olden days.
The walkway for the emperors in the ancient times with intricate designs of dragons, mountains and clouds.
Ice can be seen all over the place.
Beautiful imperial garden.
The impressive rockwork at the garden.
There is also Carrefour in China, where it is more well known as 家乐福. Stocks were stacked up sky high in the mall. They offer a wide variety of groceries, clothing and etcetera. Right after we are done with a little shopping, we went to Hou Hai (后海) for a walk. This place is a PARADISE, well maybe just for me. The name is irony to the place, cause obviously there is no sea over there but only lakes. Since it was winter, the water had already frozen and were made as ice-skating rinks over there. I would have actually skated there if it wasn't because of the freezing weather! It was so freezy that I didn't want to take off my hands from the pocket. But I was totally mesmerized of the beauty of Hou Hai. Basically, this place is a heaven for die-hard clubbing people.
There are also pubs, bars and a lot more shops of similar. Eventhough clubbing may not be your thing, you should come here and feast your eyes on the beautiful designs of the shops! It's truly amazing. Especially the far view of the buildings lined with beautiful neon lights on the edges of the whole building. <3
We dined in Home Pizza that night. Placed in front of the shop is a huge teddy bear to welcome us in. It's so darn cute. Just as we entered the restaurant, we feel an immediate coziness around us. They have candle-lit tables and a very warm ambience. Some teddy bears are also placed randomly at the sitting areas. It really oozes a fairytale feeling. And I was especially gravitated to the pizza oven they have also there. It's so cutee and charming! And guess what, they actually just need barely a minute for the pizza to be baked in that cute pizza oven using a pizza peel! Besides pizzas, we ordered spaghetti, salad and some other dishes as well.
At the streets of Hou Hai, I tried their 酸奶 (Sour milk) drink. And also something which attacks my olfactory system so greatly, the mighty 臭豆腐 (Stinky Tofu). Just like durian, some people couldn't accept the smell but some people like it very much. For me, I still couldn't accept it after trying one piece offered by a friend. It was, still, a good experience, I guess T.T
The next day, we visited the Great Wall of China. I was overwhelmed by the beauty of naked branches of old trees coated with snow. You just definitely need to be extra careful when looking down from the walkway of the Great Wall to have a good look of the scenery below. You should also come here and climb the Great Wall of China by yourself. The pavements were actually slippery as the ground was covered by a very thin layer of ice that makes you skate down the slope (We didn't wear proper shoes there so yeah). We actually also faced some difficulty to climb up at some level where there is no stairs but slopes. Descending from a slope might not be as challenging as having to climb up a slope.
Was totally overwhelmed by the beauty of the landscape at the Great Wall.
So pretty I was at loss for words.
The crowd at the Great Wall.
The magnificent scenery over there.
I'm still composing my next part of my travel experince to Beijing. Do stay tune. Hope you enjoyed reading this. xx