2015 China

9 April, Beijing
Shindom Inn 199CNY

So here we are in Beijing, formerly Peking, capital of the People’s Republic of China, home to 20 million. “Apart from the first 53 years of the Ming dynasty and 21 years of Nationalist rule in the 20th century”, Beijing has been a capital city since it was razed by the Mongol warrior Ghengis Khan in 1215.  By 1279, under the rule of grandson Kublai Khan, it was “the capital of the largest empire the world has ever known”. (Lonely Planet)    

Today we took a walk through some of the city’s remaining hutong (alleyways and courtyards). Over four million square metres of hutong have been demolished in the name of progress; some of those that remain have had trendy makeovers and are now popular tourist destinations. We lunched well in one pretty courtyard, stopped in for a drink at another, and wandered past the former home of Wan Rong who, when both were aged just 17, married China’s last emperor, Puyi. 

Like Big Ben, Beijing’s Drum and Bell towers were the official time-keepers for the city.

The Bell Tower was originally constructed in 1272 and, following two fires, rebuilt in 1420 and again in 1745. Inside the tower, constructed to amplify sound, hangs a bronze bell whose sound can be heard over five kms away. The bell is over 7 metres in height and weighs 63 tons. It is the biggest and heaviest ancient bell in China.

Known originally as the Tower of Orderly Administration, the Drum Tower was also constructed in 1272 and rebuilt in 1420. It was equipped with bronze clepsydras (water clocks) and drums that were beaten to mark the hours. Nowadays, visitors are treated to a small drum-beating display at set hours. On display on the balcony is information about 24 astronomical seasons, with names from the mundane (“Beginning of Spring” and “Summer Solstice”) through the delightful (“Awakening of Insects”, “Grain Rain”, “Grain in Ear” and “White Dew”).