Beijing, Baby . . .

I'm in Beijing for 12 days.  Because this city has so many historical tourist sights, and because I'm pretty sure that I will set my movie here, I need the longest amount of time in this city to explore and get a real feel of everyday life.   

Hey Beijing Taxi Man, no texting and driving! He was calling and texting and telling jokes to other taxi drivers.  They were all on a group chat/FaceTime call.

Beijing is the capital of China.  The name means "Northern Capital” and was applied in 1403 during the Ming Dynasty to distinguish it from Nanjing (the "Southern Capital”).  

In the 2013 census, there were 21 million people living here, and that number is only getting higher.  This is the third largest city in the world.

Map of Beijing, 1904.

Map of Being today.

It is 100 degrees here.  Extreme dry heat.  Think July in Vegas, Texas and Oklahoma, all rolled into one.  And the summer tourists are in overdrive.  Long lines everywhere, for everything. 

The biggest surprise is that pedestrians cannot cross the streets.  You have to go underground via tunnels.  

I went to Tiananmen Square.  But came out of the subway to this.  Oh, it's OVER there. On that side of the street!

Made it!  Tiananmen means “Gate of Heavenly Peace”.   

Important political (and bloody) events have taken place here.

Which is why the site is heavily guarded by police, military and cameras everywhere.

Upclose.

These statues that bookend the site were built in 1420.

Two lions guard the grounds.

One day, I tracked down the editor of my last film.  She's not from Beijing, but went here for college and was stopping through for a short visit, on her way to visit her mother in Thailand.

We picked a lot of things off the menu in this cute restaurant.  There was even a live band playing traditional Chinese music.  And you guessed it, no napkins!!

St. Joseph's Catholic Cathedral, built 1904. I was born on St. Joseph Day, so this was a nice treat to find. Plus, I know my Mom will be impressed :-)

This is one of four Catholic Churches in Beijing.

Man, how I love stained glass windows.

The internet in Beijing is really bad.  Very slow.  Some days non-existent.  Hubby is very grouchy about this.

My hotel upgraded me to the top floor because I complained about the wifi.  It really is hard to plan my days if I don't have wifi to do research and map out my routes.  Plus, I gotta Skype with my hubby.  On this baller floor, I get access to a very nice sitting lounge that has free computers, free food and free drinks 24/7. "Thank you.  Don't mind if I do!"

This was on the cover of the newspaper yesterday -  lifestyle section. Very interesting.

I took a taxi to an artist colony called 798 Art District, located about 30 minutes away from my hotel. Taxis are super cheap here.  The ride was $6 USD.

The artist colony looks like a sprawling college campus and is a series of art galleries and artist studios.  If you get invited to show work here, or a residency, it is a very big deal.  

This one gallery was a great looking space.  Tibetan art.  But I got turned around in the dark and couldn't find my way out.  Scary!

This means "The old falling away for the new."  I like it. 

Really cool chairs.

This bust is copper.

Call me a snob, but I thought the best art was the graffiti art on the walls.

This was all throughout the colony.

In addition to Tiananmen Square, Forbidden City, Lama Temple and the Great Wall, I want to try vegan restaurants, hear live jazz music, and get a massage by a blind person (this is HUGE!).  I may also take another cooking class to learn more about Northern Eastern Chinese dishes.

And maybe I will eat something from this bakery next to my hotel.  I pass it everyday.  What is up with all the swans?!?

Oh yeah -- getting to the Great Wall is no easy fete.  It is 3 hours away.  You have to take a city metro (1 hour), a bullet train (1 hour), and then a bus (1 hour).  I tried to go today, but my hotel told me leaving at 11:30am was too late.  Once you make it to the special bullet trains,  the tickets are sold first-come first served.  

They say I need to leave at 7am.  Get to the rail station by 8am.  And even so,  I may not be able to get on a bullet train until 1:30pm.  Sigh.  Sound like…. fun.

More to come later!  I'm off to go to the movies.

~SS