After taking another overnight train, we arrived in Beijing. It was a bustling town with thousands of people on the streets at any given time. The main streets were very wide, but automobile congestion was pretty bad.

New construction was everywhere, and often right next to historical sites. Relatively young buildings were being torn down to build soaring high rise apartment buildings and office complexes. There was a lot of talk about the Summer Olympics slated for 2008 in Beijing, and the town wants to make a good impression. All efforts are being made to build a modern city for the world to see in 2008!

Transportation is still primarily by bicycle, but things are changing. With the prosperity of Beijing, the people are beginning to afford cars. Many European companies have built plants in China to manufacture cars domestically, and the explosion is about to begin. Without a transit system, I fear what the traffic will be in the future!

I was hard pressed to find some of the old dwellings in Beijing, but I found this community hidden away in a back alley. I often wonder where these people will go when the new construction comes to take over this neighborhood. Will they be able to afford the higher rents?

I wasn't very good at taking notes on where exactly I went in Beijing. We met some family friends in town who offered to take us around, so keeping up with them, while deciphering the guidebooks was a daunting task. I was too busy taking pictures in film, digital, and video to do much reading. When I get some time, I'll figure out what it was I saw!

The hand craft was pretty nice in every place I looked. Here is a detail of a door in one of the imperial palaces.

Chinese hold Calligraphers with high regard. This gentleman has been writing since the age of 10, and for 60 years he's been honing his craft. He has reached a point in his career where he is honored to use the royal seal to sign his work.

We wanted to commission him to do some writing for us, but couldn't think of what to do. Born in America, I never learned how to read or write Chinese, but our parents at least taught us how to write our names. Not needing a reason to write our names very often in America, we decided to have our names written by this master calligrapher. It was nice to see how much care was taken with the selection of paper, the composition of the symbols, and the consideration of the work. Watching him work was well worth the price of his art!

When he finished, we discussed having them mounted like the Chinese scrolls. It would be far cheaper than having it done here in the U.S., so they delivered them mounted a couple of days later.

Upon receiving them, I realized how silly we might have been!  These scrolls usually say something like "Luck and Joy," or "Eternal Happiness," not what basically reads, "THOMAS YANG!" If anyone who comes to my house that can read Chinese will probably say to themselves, "Why on earth would you hang a large poster of your name in your living room?" They'll think I'm retarded!

It's nice to know that universally, the women's toilet always has the longest lines!

Here are some pictures inside the Forbidden City.

These large kettles sat outside one of the palaces. We were told they held water for fire fighting. In the winter, fires were constantly tended under these kettles to keep the water from freezing. Considering all the palaces were constructed of wood, I could see why they were afraid of fire.

From the walls outside, you can see why this was called the "Forbidden City."

Temple of Heaven.

Onto the Great Wall!