We had an extra day in Beijing today, before we leave for Hong Kong, so I did some research and found a really cool Temple we haven't seen yet (since we saw all the major attractions). It's called the Lama Temple. "Lama" is Tibetan for "chief" or "high priest" (hence: The Dalai Lama). It's a temple for Buddhism (Lamasery) and some monks still use it. It was built in 1694 during Qing dynasty and is the best preserved and biggest lamasery in Beijing. It was originally built as a living place for the Prince (3rd Emperor of Qing), until 1744 when it was converted fully into a lamasery (Buddhist temple). I think it was my favorite temple so far because I really love Tibetan culture and this temple was the closest thing to real Tibetan culture. There were actual Buddhist monks inside, most of them there to guard and make sure people didn't take pictures inside any of the temples. But monks actually use the temple today too. There were many different temples, all filled with Buddha statues, a math/astronomy room, a room of treasures, and more temples filled with Buddha statues!
We also met a nice Canadian couple who travel China here too. The wife used to live in Munich, so she was telling me all about the different districts. And we swapped stories about different Chinese cities and fun things to do since they've already been through Hong Kong and Shanghai, and Jie and I already went to Suzhou and Nanjing.
The Tibetan colors were seen all around the temples. They didn't have any prayer flags but Tibetan Buddhists have planted these outside their homes and spiritual places for thousands of years and they usually have symbols, prayers, or mantras written on them. They're said to bring luck, happiness, and long life to the planters around the area.
After lunch, I found out we were right next to the Temple of Earth. Similar to the Temple of Heaven, but most people see the Temple of Heaven because its bigger, and is more intact. There are actually four of these temples in Beijing - The Temple of Heaven, The Temple of Earth, The Temple of Moon, and The Temple of Sun. The last two however, have been lost to time and are no longer there, so I'm told. The foundations may still be there but there's no park or temples left. The Temple of Earth is still here though and we went inside to have a look. All you need to get in is 2 Yuan (about 28 cents), so we weren't expecting much (no park we've been in so far was less than 25 Yuan), but it was actually pretty cool. With a throne and two Chinese drum sets (different sized bells) and some other information about the temple.
Overall, today was a good sightseeing day. I'm glad I got to see some more of Beijing's traditional history before we leave tomorrow. We're staying in Kowloon District of
Dragon Turtle
Hong Kong (Bruce Lee's childhood home was here) and it should be a pretty great part of the trip. I've really been looking forward to seeing Hong Kong, and we're also seeing Macau. Macau is the oldest European settlement in the Far East, the Portuguese were the first to settle it, and so both Hong Kong and Macau will have some European like customs. Macau is known for it's gambling and is reputed to be the "Las Vegas" of the East.
We also met a nice Canadian couple who travel China here too. The wife used to live in Munich, so she was telling me all about the different districts. And we swapped stories about different Chinese cities and fun things to do since they've already been through Hong Kong and Shanghai, and Jie and I already went to Suzhou and Nanjing.
The Tibetan colors were seen all around the temples. They didn't have any prayer flags but Tibetan Buddhists have planted these outside their homes and spiritual places for thousands of years and they usually have symbols, prayers, or mantras written on them. They're said to bring luck, happiness, and long life to the planters around the area.
After lunch, I found out we were right next to the Temple of Earth. Similar to the Temple of Heaven, but most people see the Temple of Heaven because its bigger, and is more intact. There are actually four of these temples in Beijing - The Temple of Heaven, The Temple of Earth, The Temple of Moon, and The Temple of Sun. The last two however, have been lost to time and are no longer there, so I'm told. The foundations may still be there but there's no park or temples left. The Temple of Earth is still here though and we went inside to have a look. All you need to get in is 2 Yuan (about 28 cents), so we weren't expecting much (no park we've been in so far was less than 25 Yuan), but it was actually pretty cool. With a throne and two Chinese drum sets (different sized bells) and some other information about the temple.
Overall, today was a good sightseeing day. I'm glad I got to see some more of Beijing's traditional history before we leave tomorrow. We're staying in Kowloon District of
Dragon Turtle
Hong Kong (Bruce Lee's childhood home was here) and it should be a pretty great part of the trip. I've really been looking forward to seeing Hong Kong, and we're also seeing Macau. Macau is the oldest European settlement in the Far East, the Portuguese were the first to settle it, and so both Hong Kong and Macau will have some European like customs. Macau is known for it's gambling and is reputed to be the "Las Vegas" of the East.
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