I managed a 7 hour layover in Beijing so I just drove in an out of its major tourist trap.

Tienanmen Square is a huge empty expanse of flat stones. Mao used to stand a million people in there just to have a chuckle at being leader of all China. Its surrounded by soviet inspired architecture and sitting in the middle of it is Mao’s reliquary hall containing his remains preserved in stasis.

The forbidden city really is a small town within Beijing. Huge halls that now contain museums surround even larger ornate buildings and vast empty plazas. The city gives echos of its past power, but denuded of the live processes that would surely have filled it while it was active. It might be cheesy, but I think historical re-enactors would help fill the vast and dead feeling courtyards in the forbidden city.

I was reminded I was in Asia on the way back to catch my plane when my taxi driver pulled off the highway to urinate against a tree.

I only managed a couple snapshots of Beijing.