Third day of the BOCOG tour. Today we took in the Summer and Winter Palaces. Both were beautifully landscaped and included different and unique sights. The Summer Palace sits on the Kunming Lake, an idyllic setting for retreat and respite. The emperor and his wife would visit this "home away from home" to get away from the busy schedule of the Forbidden City. We took a tour of the accommodations and were able to take one of the dragon boats across the lake. It was really nice to sit on the boat - three days of intense sightseeing was taking its toll.
The Summer Palace also is home to the world's longest corridor - an interesting and random fact.
After lunch we switched seasons and toured the Winter Palace. My Renmin friend, Shawna, said this was the place of Chinese humiliation. Stone rubble stood where a beautiful palace once stood. It was destroyed in the late 1800s during the first war. There used to be a system of fountains that were controlled by a large basin in the center of the complex.
Later, we ate dinner and went to
see a performance by the Peking Opera entitled "The Marriage of the Dragon and Phoenix". It was very different than any musical performance I have ever seen. The costumes and colors were amazing and the singing and dancing gave me the sense I was experiencing a taste of traditional and authentic Chinese culture. The opera was subtitled, but the text would move so fast sometimes it was too hard to read. A band playing traditional instruments were stage left. It was equally fun to watch them play as well. Exhausted, we returned to the hotel and said goodbye to our BOCOG friends. It will be nice to have a day off Monday!
Ted
No comments:
Post a Comment