Beijing Metro and Summer Palace

Beijing Metro

Walked down the street our Joy City Hotel was on, and walked and walked. Finally, we found the subway entrance, marked with a big blue D. The Beijing Metro runs well, even when crowded, as it was during morning rush hour when we used it. People didn't exactly queue but rather bunched up near the train doors and only sort of let passengers off before trying to board. People mostly exited through the center of the train doors, while new passengers streamed in on both sides of those exiting. There was some pushing but not excessive.

Took the metro to a transfer to the circle line, then came up near three tall buildings (the 3^rd is still under construction) that look like modern versions of Cambodia's Ankor Wat. From there, we accidentally went the wrong way on the boulevard and didn't notice until we had walked quite a ways. No harm-- we got to see parts of town off the tourist track, places where regular people are busy living and working. We turned back, found the Zoo, which was our landmark, and then proceeded. We passed Beijing Botanical Gardens and looked in at the huge collection of bamboo. According to Lonely Planet, the gardens have over 3000 types of plants and a rainforest house. We finally reached the canal where we took a boat up to the far end of the Old Summer Palace grounds on a lake. Disembarking,we walked the length of one side of Kunming Lake, which covers ¾ of the park, and is overlooked by Longevity Hill, where Emperor Qianlong used to watch navy drills on the lake... a very pleasant and scenic walk.

Old Summer Palace = Yuanming Yuan

Lonely Planet--> One of Beijing's most visited sights, the immense park of the summer palace requires at least half a day to tour. The opulent palace temples, gardens, pavilions, lakes, and covered corridors were once the playground of the imperial court. Royalty took refuge here from the insufferable summer heat that roasted the Forbidden City. The site had long been a royal garden and was considerably enlarged in the 18th c. by Emperor Qianlong, whose 100,000 laborers deepened and expanded Kunming Lake/Kunming Hu.

Anglo-French troops damaged the buildings during the second Opium War (1856-60). Empress Dowager Cixi commenced a refit in 1888 with money earmarked to modernize the navy, the fallout from which eventually ended her rule; the Marble Boat at the northern edge of the lake was the only "ship" she had built—although unsinkable, it didn't exactly please the navy. The halls all have poetic names: Buddhist Fragrance Pavilion, Cloud Dispelling Hall, Temple of the Sea 0f Wisdom, Dragon King Temple. The Hall of Benevolence and Longivity has a hardwood throne decorated with bronze animals, including a qilin, a mythical hybrid animal that only appears in times of harmony, which apparently explains why no one has actually seen a qilin.

Foreign troops, incensed by the Boxer Rebellion, burned the Summer Palace in 1900, prompting further restoration work. By 1949,the palace had again fallen into disrepair, prompting more restoration after Mao's death.