Tia'anmen Square measures 880m x500m, it's a huge area, you can well imagine how these parades work here. But first you have to get in, the controls are strict, everything is searched and scanned. In China, the passport is the entry ticket for everything, the tickets are registered on the passport.
Mao tse tung's mausoleum is also located here, but is currently being renovated.
In the centre stands the Monument to the People's Heroes, which is 38 metres high. It was built between 1952 and 1958.
Behind it is the congress building.
The flagpole in front of it weighs 7 tonnes, is 32.6 m high and consists of 4 parts.
There is a subway to Ti'anmen, the imperial palace, from the square you can see the red building, the imperial palace. The size of the complex is overwhelming, in the high season like today there are up to 80,000 visitors a day who are channelled through - in the end we had to scan our passports 3 times and our luggage too. Each time I had to unpack my tripod.
The picture of Mau tse tung that is emblazoned on the building weighs 1.5 tonnes, measures 6 m x 4.5 m and is renewed every year in September. This is because it was Mr Mau's birthday on 1 November.
You enter the Forbidden City through the red gate.
There are 9,999 buildings in the Forbidden City. Of course, we can't see them all. But there are also a lot of people queuing to get in.
The Forbidden City is huge and when you go through the next gate it gets even bigger and at the next gate even more and more, it takes 2 to 3 days to see the whole city. We have only scratched the surface.
A quick snack before heading to the Temple of Heaven. Peking noodles are a must. And a meat pie beforehand, again very tasty.
Temple of Heaven
Markus does not have to pay admission to the Temple of Heaven, it is free from 60.
Here, too, there is endless space. But no house in the vicinity of the Temple of Heaven may be higher than the temple itself.
Here, sacrificial rituals were performed for good harvests and order and harmony on earth. It was about the connection between heaven and earth.
Now we need a little break, we rest in the hotel and try to upload pictures again.
In the evening we go to the shopping centre, the variety of restaurants is enormous and we have delicious food again. Kung bao chicken, pork with maronni and fried rice.
