B is for Beijing

  is for Beijing

As the aircraft landed, and I looked out of the windows, a big storm appeared to be rolling in. The sky was dark and heavy. As we walked out the door of the aircraft onto the tarmac, the stewardess said, “Welcome to Beijing’s smoke.”

Smoke, eh? More like thick suffocating layer of goo wafting in the air. When we got to the hotel, I called Tom, sobbing, “I can’t stand it. I want to go home where I can breathe!”

But the next day, as lucky fate would have it, the air cleared. Sonia (be sure to check out her blog for more thoughts on Beijing) told me the air quality was much better and that, indeed, yesterday had been at the hazardous level. Today was to be more manageable. I decided I would not buy a mask. Not yet.  And off we went.

Beijing is noisy, busy, with lots of shops and malls and restaurants, and people - old, new, fast, friendly, unfriendly, fashionable, unfashionable. In short, Beijing reminds me of my hometown, New York City. With air quality at a more breathable level, I was eager to explore.  And Sonia, my intrepid guide, had places to show me.

Some of the sights to see:  the Temple of Heaven (a enormous beautiful acreage of sacred buildings and the Imperial Sacrificial Altar), The Hutong which is located in the middle of hutongs (lanes or alleys) near the center of the city close by the Forbidden City, traffic that terrified even me a scarred New Yorker survivor, a clean and fast subway system, cranes rising over tall new buildings, the Tomb of Mao, Tiananmen Square.

I took a delicious cooking class which has encouraged me to try some Chinese recipes when I get home, taught a workshop for parents and kids, went to some wonderful schools, and met both Chinese people and expatriates (expats) who teach and take classes and work in Beijing.  I made some new young storytelling friends who obtained a car and driver and took me out to the wild part of the Great Wall. Sonia and I were driven out to a lovely school in the suburbs of Beijing which featured gated neighborhood after gated neighborhood after gated neighborhood.

Views of hutongs.

       

The Temple of Heaven

   

Buses parked outside the big art museums at Tiananmen Square.

A free rural library, built of steel and glass and sticks, was designed by a renowned architect  in China. The sticks are from local trees.

 

The outside squatting toilet up the hill from the library. There were three concrete holes in the ground. I tried it out. You have to squat, which means one must have strong leg and knee muscles. It was very cold.

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Me, on the Great Wall of China.  Cool, eh?