The Summer Palace and the old Beijing Hutong

Wednesday October 9, 2013
This morning we visited the Hutong which is an old neighbourhood of Beijing.

 The weather was overcast and a bit cooler but not too bad.

 It was 10 yuan each (about $2) for a 20 minute rickshaw ride. There are hundreds of rickshaws and drivers waiting to take tourists around the old streets.

 In the afternoon we went to the Summer Palace where the emperor and his entourage vacationed. The building on the hill is just one of many. The hill is manmade as is a huge lake.

Along the edge of the lake there is a covered walkway that stretches for a kilometre or two. The concubines could not walk fast due to their bound feet. Instead of possibly getting caught out in the rain or too much sun, they could walk along this covered walkway with elaborate paintings on the beams and ceiling. There are 14,000 paintings (I think).
It's no wonder that the Chinese have modernized their infrastructure so fast. They are used to doing things in a big way.

 If you want a lake, just get some of the help to dig one. That's what the emperor did.

 This is a stone building in the shape of a boat on the Summer Palace lake.

 There are a few bridges like this around the Summer Palace grounds.

 Our last stop for the day was at the Olympic site. The Bird's Nest stadium is incredible.

Luckily, we got there just as the evening lights went on. After another sumptuous dinner, we dragged ourselves back to our hotel. Every day is filled with seeing incredible sites. By the end of each day, everyone is very tired.