The Summer Palace [颐和园 - Yiheyuan] - Absolutely Not The Full Guide @ Beijing, China

I have a thought - i should put "not a full guide" as part of the blog heading for most of the attractions covered during my recent China trip! The first post to be tagged with it shall be the one on summer palace today.

The simple outlook does not seem befitting for a royal palace but as the saying goes, looks aren't everything.

What lies beyond that simplicity is a humongous man-made scenic lake that covers 75% of the summer palace! To put it in easy perspective, the summer palace has an area of 2.9 square kilometers which means that if it is square shaped, the length and width would be 1.7 kilometers each!

In the beginning, i thought the guide was bringing us to Yuanmingyuan (圆明园), another nearby summer palace that is now known as the old summer palace even though in terms of history, Yiheyuan was older by a few centuries!

Honestly, i could not recall which gate i entered from although i am sure the 150 meters long, seventeen-arch bridge was behind us.

Our destination was supposedly right ahead; where the chubby yet beautiful Tower of the Fragrance of the Buddha (Chinese is an incredible language; seven words can be shortened into just three characters; 佛香阁) beckoned to us!

Another long walk that was in fact welcomed as i came to realise that whenever i visit China, i would lose weight (for this trip, i am lighter by around two kilograms).

The forever flower addict and she was not the only one in our tour group! The whole group was delayed by 10 minutes as all the ladies were scrambling to take pictures with these flowers that could be as big as your face!

Yu Feng pagoda (玉峰塔) in the far distance - contrary to Wikipedia's entry, this pagoda is not part of the summer palace! It is stationed on Jade Spring Mountain that has a spring supplying drinking water for the imperial palace in the past.

Boat cruise to enjoy the scenic view of the summer palace! The water might appear deep but this man-made Kunming lake has an average depth of only 1.5 meters!

Walking towards Wenchang Tower (文昌阁) - which is the largest gate in the summer palace. To put it bluntly, this gate looked more impressive than the entrance we came in from.

The weeping willows painted a wondrous picture of simple relaxation; the kind of life i envisioned to have. The small island houses a pavilion known as 知春亭 (heralding spring pavilion) and was said to be the best place to take in the sights of both kunming lake and longevity hill (where 佛香阁 is located).

That golden-topped arch was where our guide wanted to bring us and i was so hyped up as i assume he would bring us to 佛香阁; the fat building to the left.

I was wrong of course! Climbing up to that building would take too much time (this was confirmed by a student from China whom i spoke to today); an ill afford factor for guided tours. 

For Empress Dowager Cixi, this narrow walkway towards the golden topped arch was sufficient in the days when commoners were disallowed to enter its premises. 

However, the heavier human traffic we see now made it really frustrating to go from one end to another and to add on to the frustration, someone was actually pushing a baby tram that took up more than half the width!!

View from the base of the golden topped arch; that small island is the heralding spring pavilion. 

Known as the Long Corridor, this is way longer than the one at the Temple of Heaven at 728 meters long! I guess Cixi would need a sedan chair to cover the entire length!

It is also given the title longest painted gallery in the world with over 14,000 pictures painted on the sides of the roof beams! The one above shows a scene from Journey of the West where the mischievous Monkey God was battling the Princess of Metal Fan.

Hall of Joyful Longevity - residence of Cixi when she stayed in the summer palace during the hot and humid summer (you do realise it is called Summer Palace for a reason right)!

A pair of bronze cranes would not have attracted much attention except that in this case, the cranes fronting the hall had something really weird.

Their thin, slender legs were chained up!! I know the reason must be structural in nature although for a moment, i was feeling sad for them; thinking along the line of the movie Toy Story, they are basically stuck there permanently!

This hall (Hall of Jade Ripples) is famous for being the prison of Emperor Guangxu for ten years.

Anyone care to explain what is the purpose of this stone?

Along the walls that faced Kunming Lake, you can find a number of such glass covered openings that could do without the poorly painted pictures of trees and plants and butterflies etc.

People who would like to borrow inspiration to build a Chinese style garden should visit the Summer Palace which is considered to be the mother of all Chinese gardens in the world! 

Main governmental building for the Qing Dynasty when the emperor moved to the Summer Palace from the Forbidden City to hide from the summer, the Qilin stationed in front of the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity had a look of a cute puppy anticipating a tennis ball! 

Exiting the place. The areas we covered constitute only a tiny proportion on what the Summer Palace has to offer and this is a terrible disappointment for me! 

A map (and other information) for your easy reference.

The Temple of Heaven [天坛] - The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿) @ Beijing, China

I am aware that the Temple of Heaven rests on a big piece of land but never did i expect it to be 1,700 meters from East to West and 1,600 meters from North to South; an area that is bigger than the Forbidden City! 

Should i be travelling free and easy, i would be scratching my head just like the man in front of the temple map. There is a difference though; i am good with maps and it wouldn't take me long to figure out the navigation! 

We entered via the West Gate where we were greeted with a big vase of nicely arranged flowers. Mom just could not resist taking a few pictures (psst, i think it is a generation thing).

This iconic structure at the horizon, although hazy, still succeeded in staking its absolute authority in the skyline. 

The temple ground was in reality a huge park and the main pathways were filled with locals doing all kinds of leisure activities at 10am! At least i got the feeling that this was definitely much more realistic than the wayang show staged for Prince William and Kate Middleton in Singapore. 

There were people belting out songs in such melodious voices that i wanted so much to stop just to hear them! This didn't happen as i am supposed to keep up with the pace of my guide.

And there was an elderly man showing off his Chinese calligraphy skills using a custom made brush and the bare floor! Darn, i could barely write Chinese characters illegibly, even with a simple ballpoint pen! 

Walking across the West Heavenly Gate.

More locals doing morning exercises; this man was trying his best to keep the feather duster like stick off the ground. This is similar to the 扯鈴 in Singapore where eye-hand coordination is very important. 

This was both interesting and funny as i could not help comparing it to the game for dogs; fetch the tennis balls! A person would throw a hoop and the other person must catch it using his/her head! 

A clearer picture of the main temple structure known as The Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests (祈年殿).

Entrance to the Hall - do note that many such places in China adopt a multiple tickets system where you pay entrance fee for only a specific section. In the case of the Temple of Heaven, there are admission fees for three different sections! If time permits, you can also opt for the cheaper combination fee where you would be granted entry for all sections. 

Remember this? Known as jiaotu, it is not a lion like many believe it to be! 

Finally - 祈年殿! This building was the place where emperors from the Ming and Qing dynasties prayed to heaven for a good harvest in the coming year. 

China is traditionally an agricultural country and a bad harvest usually resulted in unrest among its massive peasant population. Hence, Emperors in the past treated the ceremony really seriously; even a slight mistake can be read as a bad omen.

Mum attempting to pick up the temple. Failed attempt - look to her fingers for more details. 

At 38 meters tall and 36 meters wide, the cone-shaped exterior was imposing and the architecture was made in such a way to make it seems like it is reaching towards heaven. 

Interior of the hall; there was a throne although this time, it was reserved for the Emperor of Heaven (according to that tablet with both Chinese and Manchurian inscriptions).

One of twelve outer pillars supporting the first level of the blue tiled roof. In addition to these pillars, there are twelve inner and four center pillars. 

No nail was used in the construction of this hall and it was entirely made of wood! A lightning in 1889 almost destroyed the building and what we see now was built a few years after the incident. 

Known as the West Annex Hall, i have no idea what it was originally used for. However, it is now designated as a museum that showcases the tradition of praying to heaven in China and the history of this temple. 

Again, it was too crowded and the descriptions were in Chinese which means i would take a longer time to read, provided i can even recognise the more difficult characters in the text!

The weather was getting warm and i happily hopped over to the building that had a shop selling ice cream! My blissful face must have shown that i really enjoyed it as a Caucasian man walked to me and asked where i got it.

Besides the Hall of Prayer for Good Harvests, there are numerous attractions located within the compound like The Imperial Vault of Heaven, The Circular Mound Altar, Three Echo Stones and Seven Star Rocks; all of which were not covered due to... you got it right, lack of time! 

A final look.

These big urns were supposedly used for animal sacrifices but i noticed them too late as we were quickly ushered out of the place towards our next destination. 

The long corridor which was honestly not very long as far as China's standard is concerned. Having said that, there were loads to see! 

A boy competing in a chess-like game with his father (my assumption). 

Two friends (my assumption again) playing a game of Chinese chess. 

Scrabble using mahjong tiles laid out in mahjong style!

Such activities do exist in Singapore even though they are limited to areas that have a higher ratio of elderly persons. Another reason impeding the popularity is the bloody weather in Singapore! 

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Visitors' map and the comparatively short route (in red) that we took.

Old Street Bak Kut Teh [老街肉骨茶] @ 129 Upper Paya Lebar Road

My take on local bak ku teh (BKT) has always been less than positive and this has to do with the low tolerance for spicy, peppery food in my childhood. 

Okay, i am more or less a chilli convert now but it doesn't hide the fact that my personally preferred BKT version remains to be the herbal one available right across the causeway (in Malaysia that is). This explains why i am never that keen when it comes to having BKT in Singapore. 

Old Street Bak Kut Teh - this shop was recently featured in the newspaper and came strongly recommended by Alex one rainy afternoon when i was simply too full to force him to have Kay Lee Char Siew (which was two shops away) instead!

You are neither king nor the queen here and no one will take any order for you! So please utilise the yellow order list, pen your order, pay at the cashier, take the number standee and wait for your food to be delivered to your table; Cafe Cartel style if you know what i mean. 

Alex's order - one bowl of premium pork loin ribs soup and a serving of Chinese crullers popularly known as You Tiao in Singapore! 

I would first comment on the loin ribs that commanded a price tag that was S$3 more expensive than normal pork ribs; the thick layer of fats was an immediate turn-off, the meat was too tough and i had difficulties trying to clean the meat off the bone! 

Yes, you may blame the last part on age.

On the cloudy broth; i kind of enjoyed it despite the hot and zesty sensation on my tongue. For one, it had that very light, subtle herbal taste to it and was not entirely peppery like many others in the market. And let's not forget the thick and chunky you tiao! Soak them in the soup for a few seconds and they turned out to be incredibly delicious with surprises of occasional soupy bursts as we slowly chewed them! 

Can i just order the soup and you tiao please?

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Location

129 Upper Paya Lebar Road. Turn into Little Road from Upper Paya Lebar Road. The first corner shop to your left is Old Street Bak Ku Teh. 

Map

As above.

Price

Premium Loin Ribs - S$8.50

You Tiao - S$1.00

[No GST. No Service Charge]

Menu

As Above [and below]

Additional Information

Their signature dish, besides the premium loin ribs soup, was this dry bak ku teh. Sounds interesting and i might just be back to try for the sake of having something unique.