We set off to explore the Temple of Heaven, which is an example of Ming architecture. The drive through Beijing was congested! So many cars whizzed by; and please don't forget all the scooters, bicycles, buses, taxis, vans and commercial trucks on the road too. Our driver was excellent as he swiftly changed lanes, beeping his horn of course!
Temple of Heaven: I knew little about this tourist attraction but we were very pleased we managed to spend some time here. Sam purchased the tickets while we photographed the interesting looking trees. Some of them had 'knotted' portions on the trunks. Make for great photographs.
Right away at the Temple of Heaven we saw tai chi being practised by the locals.
This other gentleman also visited daily to write poetry. Each morning, depending on his mood, he used his brush, some water, and wrote the poem on the sidewalk blocks. Of course, by the next day, all was gone so he would begin anew.
We continued walking until we saw this amazing building, the actual Temple where the Emperor prayed for a good crop. In the fall he thanked the gods for the plentiful harvest.
The stairs leading to the Temple.
The Temple itself
There were many other buildings on this expanse of land. Below the beautifully painted interior of one of the other buildings.
Love this cast iron (?)urn Notice the blue sky.
This park is very well used by the Chinese locals. Each morning it is jammed with people, mainly seniors, who use this locale for their knitting projects, card playing or chess games.
After spending time walking about the grassy acres, we continued on our way to the next stop, Tian'anmen Square.
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