Tienanmen Tourists

Yesterday, we decided to catch the bus into central Beijing and do a little exploring. It was touch-and-go whether we’d get out at the right bus stop, it seems that in Beijing, all the streets in the neighborhood are variations on the same name. We found ourselves at what seems to be the intersection of Fuxingmennan Dajie, Fuxingmennei Dajie, and Fuxingmenwei Dajie, but fortunately there’s a giant rainbow bridge at the intersection. I recognized that bridge from the last time I was in Beijing, but that doesn’t mean I knew where we were. It just means I can get back to the hostel where I stayed with my sister when she visited. Not exactly a major attraction.

We were told to take the subway but we decided to walk to Tienanmen from there. It’s a bit of a hike, but we discovered the giant Beijing Bookstore and learned some new landmarks for our next adventure.

The flower displays for National Day were being built in Tienanmen. I saw them last year in their completed state, and they looked amazing. When you see the giant completed project, with all the flowers, and pools of water, it’s hard to believe it’s just a temporary installation. It’s even more impressive to see the amount of work that goes into the flower displays. This is the frame for this year’s Great Wall flower installation.

Working on the flowers.

I had a good time with the Tienanmen vendors, too. They can be pushy sometimes, but I feel like it’s a bargaining game with them. I got some Fuwa charms, and I tried to help Christina bargain for a map, but the vendor accused me of learning Chinese to cheat her! (zuan… rip off, right?) Anyway, then a cop came by so the vendor quickly finished the transaction and disappeared into the crowd!