Day 3: Temple of Heaven

(By Luke this time - Day four was the 19th if you're keeping track)

We are all still dealing with a bit of jet lag, Nisha most of all with her PST inner clock rousing her at 3:30 pm. The rest of the group was not far behind, though, and Ethan and Luke were out of the apartment at around 6:30 in search of some Chinese breakfast items. They came back with some fresh sweetened soymilk, baozi (steamed dumplings filled with egg or meat and chopped vegetables), and rice porridge (an acquired taste, but Luke loves it).

We were out the door by 8:15, and flagged two cabs. Beijing is an enormous city of around 20 million people, divided into different administrative districts and encircled by five “ring roads.” Each of these quarters is probably bigger than most U.S. cities, and the roads are typically jammed with cars. Getting anywhere thus usually requires budgeting a generous portion of time. Today was no different. By the time we got to the Temple of Heaven it was almost 9:30, though the journey was slightly delayed when one of our cabs got in a slight fender bender. We survived!

The Temple of Heaven is a complex of buildings situated in a huge park to the south and east of the Forbidden City. Emperors from the Ming and Qing Dynasties would go there to perform various rites (for the harvest, ancestors, etc). The buildings are some of the best preserved examples of Ming architecture in the city, and have been beautifully restored over the last few years (presumably in preparation for the Olympics).

We took a break afterwards at Ritan (“Temple to the Sun”) Park, enjoying a drink and peanuts at the Stone Boat Bar, a lovely little spot situated right on the lake in the park. Ritan Park actually pairs nicely with the Temple of Heaven, since the two, along with the Temple of Earth Park and Temple of Moon Park, are situated at the four cardinal directions on the edge of the city. The design of much of traditional Beijing followed cosmological principles, with the Forbidden City in the center being the most important site of all. We are heading there tomorrow, so there will be much to report!