Beijing Part 3: Forbidden City

Joanne and I also went to the Forbidden City the first day in Beijing. It was massive! It took us about 3 hours to walk through, and that wasn't a leisurely walk! There were so many parts we didn't even see.

Here's the map. We basically followed that red line straight through the middle.

 This is one of many entrances to the palace.

 Notice the large portrait of Mao Zedong on the side. They even sold little pins with his face.

Inside the Forbidden City. I found the following picture on a website and thought it did more justice to the size of the city.

I read that the Imperial Palace Museum (Forbidden City) has 980 buildings and is over 7.8 million square feet.

 I told Joanne that these pots were used to make meals for the soldiers who guarded the palace... :)

 I like a good, ornate ceiling.

 We thought the cartoon in the back was kind of funny.

 Notice there aren't that many people today. Joanne and I were like a side attraction at the Palace. On our way up to look inside this building, a group of tourists stopped us to take pictures. Of us, with them. First it was the older men, then the women, then the kids, then everyone. Once one small group saw them taking pictures, another small group came over and also asked.

 I think all the detail work is wonderful.

So on the way out, we were approached by a man who wanted to give us a ride in his rickshaw. Remember, it was about 10 degrees outside. We politely said no, and he followed us. I then made the mistake of saying "too cold!" and he replied "not cold, very good, rickshaw". I just kept shaking my head no, and he kept repeating that same phrase. Then, he grabbed me in a bear hug, picked me up, and said "very good, no cold!" Still, we kept walking. He then took his coat off and tried to give it to me. He started saying "Rickshaw, round and round, very good". Finally, some police officers were walking down the street and when the rickshaw man saw the police, he went the other way.
Oh, China.