Our first travels on this day were to the Tianamin Square. There were hundreds of people just meandering through the square. After strolling around, we went into the Palace Museum -- The Forbidden City. This was a lot larger than it seems from the outside. The forbidden City was the place that the Emperor, his family and the Palace workers lived. Eunuchs were the only men allowed to care for the Emperors family. The City ends in
the Palace Garden. We had lunch at the Beijing Historical Museum. After lunch we went to the Temple of Heaven where the Emperor would go twice a year to pay his respects to the heavens and pray for good harvest etc.. The temple is in the shape of a circle and the surrounding buildings in the shape of a square representing heaven and earth. Earth is square and Heaven is a circle. We then went to the Emerald Factory and saw how the beautiful ceramic vases are made. After dinner we saw an Acrobatic Show. It was amazing how the performers could move and bend the way they do. Later that night some of us relaxed around the outside cafe at the college and met some of the students. It was very interesting learning about Chinese culture with them and helping them out with their English lessons. The contacts we made with these students many of us will cherish forever.
