all Chinese want to visit here at least once in their lifetime. Outside China, the square is infamous as the horrific site of the 1989 government protests, where hundreds, and likely thousands, of unarmed civilians were savagely murdered. However, within China’s own borders, continued government censoring has virtually erased the event from Chinese history. Throughout the square, lampposts are fitted with video cameras, and both uniformed and plainclothes policemen eavesdrop on tour groups. Several guides who “veered off script” have disappeared and never been heard from since. Across the street stands the famed Forbidden City, where China’s lavished-in-luxury emperors reigned for five hundred years. We entered through the Tiananmen Gate, where late Chairman Mao Zedong’s huge portrait remains. The thirteenthcentury palace comprises nine imperial complexes, each containing an elaborate gate, a vast courtyard, and exquisitely detailed wood buildings. The sheer magnitude of just one of these palatial compounds was staggering, but nine was absolutely mind-blowing! The structures grew closer and more intricate in detail the farther we advanced. On the ends of the rectangular yellow-and-red-tiled rooftops are ornate carvings featuring dragons and other mythical animals associated with water, which were supposed to protect the rulers from fire. Underneath, intricate designs painted in jewel-tones embellish the eaves and often feature dragons, China’s mightiest animal and symbolic of the emperor and good luck. Regal palace doors painted red, yellow, and green with a lucky number of iron pegs adorn many buildings. Statues of animals and urns for burning incense are abundant, but surprisingly, no trees grace the Forbidden City grounds. According to feng shui, trees represent prison and interfere with qi (“chee”), or energy flow. Before departing this enthralling city that exceeded all my expectations, we relished our last hours by slurping homemade noodles served in ceramic bowls as big as sinks and toasting “Ganbei” (“gon-bay”) to a wonderful introduction to China. Good luck was abundant during my visit because the skies above Beijing couldn’t have been sunnier or clearer. Unfortunately, China’s cities continue to grapple with significant smog problems. In fact, Beijing almost had to cancel its centuries-old tradition of fireworks when it recently rang in the Year of the Horse. Hopefully, this incredible superpower, equipped with deep pockets and centuries of ingenuity, will step up their pollution-fighting efforts and heed the sage advice of their fourth-century philosopher, Lao Tzu, who said, “If you don’t change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”
Kim Duke-Layden is an international adventurer whose motto is “I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my bucket list!” She lives at Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort in Miramar Beach, Florida, with her husband, John, and in between adventures, she writes for VIE. You can drop her a line at Kim@viezine.com.
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