Forbidden City and Tinanamen Square

It is now Wednesday and today was a bit cooler. A few flakes of snow were flying around as we finished our tour. This was the day for the Forbidden City and Tinanamen Square. The square itself is huge and soldiers still roam around as throngs of people make their way to the Forbidden City. Forbidden of course because only the royal family was allowed inside. No commoners allowed. The square is almost a kilometer long and 550 metres wide. Under Chairman Mao's picture is the first gate to the Forbidden City. There are 2 courtyards before you actually get to the city. The city itself has 9999 1/2 rooms. Supposedly if you stayed a night in each room it would take 27 years. The architecture itself is very unique and the buildings are designed to create numerous courtyards. In one of the very large courtyards the original stones have been left, dating them back 600years. One the interesting facts the guide told us was that the emperor was so afraid of someone tunneling in that the stones are actually 15 layers thick. The garden is made of very neat stone structures and some of the trees are 300 years old. It must be incredible in the spring. Walking through the Square. Pots of water left around to be used in case of fire, also older stones with grass.

300 year old trees