Today we went to the Forbidden City, which is next to Tian'anmen Square in the center of the city. It is an extremely large complex of buildings built in the 1400's, in the center of modern Beijing. It was the home of the Emperor during the Ming and Qing Dynasties and consists of nearly 1000 different buildings. The buildings are all very ornately decorated and very beautiful. From the center of the city, the temple like buildings in Jingshan Park can be seen. Even though the day was extremely cold and the air was very hazy, there were many, many people there. I heard people speaking english for the first time since coming here.
Even though there were many foreigners at the Forbidden City, people came and asked to have their picture taken with us at least a few times. Once, an entire group of small school children wanted their picture taken with us (there were seven of us). They got very excited and their parents were very eager to take their picture with us. Quite strange.
Photos: http://s591.photobucket.com/albums/ss353/klebling/