On August 8, Vivie took us to the Summer Palace, Lama Temple, the Hutongs area and the Pearl Market. We ended the day with watching another show - The Legend of Kung Fu.
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| The view from our hotel room - a nice and clear (but hot) day |
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| The craziness of getting onto the subway during rush hour |
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| Paul drowning in a sea of Asians |
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| We made it to the Summer Palace |
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| And so did everyone else |
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| This market area (Suzhou Street) is fake - the Emperor created it so royalty could get a taste of everyday life |
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| Amazingly clear day |
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| Close up of the roof guardian riding a large chicken |
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| The outside wall of the Hall of the Buddha Confirming his Doctrine |
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| Close up shot |
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| View of Kunming Lake |
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| Another view of the Hall of the Buddha Confirming his Doctrine |
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| Close up of some roof guardians |
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| Kunming Lake |
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| Walking down steep steps |
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| Octagon Tower (Cloud Gathering Temple) on Longevity Hill |
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| Paiyunmen Gate (Gate of Dispelling Clouds) and Octagon Tower (Cloud Gathering Temple) |
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| The Long Corridor |
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| A different view of the Octagon Tower and the Hall of the Buddha Confirming his Doctrine |
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| One of the many paintings along the Long Corridor - this one tells the story of bridge of birds - look it up! |
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| This is a story of a strong warrior who claimed he could kill a tiger...so he did |
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| Looking up along the Long Corridor |
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| A cool door |
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| Walking around the Summer Palace was really peaceful |
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| The Garden of Harmonious Pleasures was quite pleasant - we love the willow trees |
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| Close up of some lotus flowers |
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| And a dragonfly |
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| Willow tree leaves |
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| This was my favorite area in the Summer Palace |
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| I like looking up |
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| The Bridge of Knowing the Fish |
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| Another shot of Kunming Lake but with Yu Feng Pagoda in the background |
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| More willow trees |
We headed to the Lama Temple after our stroll through the Summer Palace.
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| This is the path to the entrance |
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| Main entrance |
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| Zhaotai Gate |
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| More roof guardians |
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| Locals and tourists from afar come to pray here |
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| Burning incense |
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| You're not supposed to throw money at the incense burner shown here but nobody listens |
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| Maitreya is 26m tall (18m above and 8m under ground); this is the the tallest Buddha in the world carved from a single piece of wood (Tibetan white sandlwood to be exact) |
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| Wanfu Pavilion (Tower of Ten Thousand Happiness), home of Maitreya |
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| I think I heard her saying, "I want the knife, give me the knife..." |
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| Close up |
After a quick lunch, we headed to the Hutong area which is a small section of what's left of a traditional neighborhood in Beijing with narrow streets and original houses (well, remodeled).
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| Rickshaw ride |
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| Stuck in rickshaw traffic |
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| Touring the area |
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| We got to visit a traditional home - this is considered a hutong |
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| Xiaojinsi Hutong |
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| Entrance to the home we visited |
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| Inside the garden of the home we visited - 3 families live here |
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| Qianhai Lake |
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| Empty rickshaws |
Our day ended with a visit to the Pearl Market and then we watched The Legend of Kung Fu Show.
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| Flying a really long kite |
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| The kite looks like birds in the sky |
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| Sunset |
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| With Vivie, our tour guide, in front of the Pearl Market |
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| Theatre for The Legend of Kung Fu Show |
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| Outside the theatre entrance |
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| These pictures don't quite capture the show |
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| But trust me, it was quite entertaining...Paul hums the song from it all the time |
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