This morning we woke up to cool weather that was fairly clear. We had breakfast and took a taxi to the Drum and Bell Towers. These towers lie just north of Bei Hai Park and Hou Hai Lake area. The first Tower we came to was the Drum Tower.
"The Drum Tower was first built in 1272 and marked the center of the old Mongol Capital. Originally constructed of wood, the structure went up in flames and was rebuilt in 1420. Stagger up the incredibly steep steps for wide-ranging views over Beijing's rooftops. The drums were beaten to mark the hours of the day--in effect the Big Ben of Beijing."
Here we are "staggering" up the steep steps. They weren't kidding! :
At the top of the steps is a large room filled with 25 drums. These drums are replicas as the originals were destroyed by soldiers of the imperial army after the boxer rebellion. Well, there are actually 2 or 3 of the originals still housed here and you can see them also.
We needed to wait at the top for about 20 minutes until some folks came out to do a 5 minute drum show.
The show was neat, but short. We descended the stairs and walked a very short distance to the Bell Tower. This is a shot of the outside of the Bell Tower:
We were struck by something unusual at the Bell Tower. They did a search and a metal detector wand over us before we could go up. I remembered why on our climb up: the Olympian's father was killed here by some random attacker in August. Remember? It's funny that they only installed security measures here and not universally at the tourist sites.
Anyway,
The Bell Tower (Zhong Lou) is an edifice from 1745, which replaced and earlier tower that had burnt down. Suspended within the tower is a 15 ft high and 42 ton bell that was cast in 1420.
The bell was pretty cool! And huge! There was an interesting story that went with the bell. The first attempt at casting this bell failed and the Emperor threatened that if the next one was not made perfectly all the bell makers would be executed. They set out to forge another bell, but they couldn't get the fire hot enough to cast the bronze. The daughter of the bell maker leapt into the molten bronze, leaving just her shoes behind and saving the day. The bell set.
Here is Joe near the bell:
The bell was rung at 7 pm up until 1924 when Emperor Puyi, the last Emperor, left the Forbidden City. Now it is rung only on Chinese New Year.
And here are the boys in the Bell Tower looking back over the Drum Tower:
We climbed down the Bell tower and had a great day after that. We just meandered through the Hou Hai Lake area. There are Hutongs in this area that have been transformed into stores and restaurants. It's a very charming area.
Here is Hou Hai Lake:
Here is the hutong area in front of a store that the boys enjoyed:
That night, we met up with the Cat family who had loaned us their driver off and on all week. We couldn't have had such a great week without their help! They took us to a really great Chinese restaurant( the Red Capitol Club) that was located in an old courtyard house. Sitting outside the house was Mao's wife's limosine and the inside of the restaurant was filled with all kinds of Chinese cultural items from Mao's day. The boys also got to climb down into a bomb shelter in the center of the courtyard. We really enjoyed our time with them, although it was short!
That ended our last night in China!
The next morning, using tips from the night before, we returned to the Pearl Market and had a successful and rewarding trip. :) We also made one last stop at the Toy market before heading to the airport.
Impressions:
1. I can see why the Drum and Bell Tower are skipped. We were so happy to have the extra time to see everything and I do recommend a visit here if you have the time. It doesn't require a full day, just approx. 2 hours at most.
2. Don't miss the Hou Hai Lake area! We fell in love with this area and could have enjoyed another afternoon here. It also looks like the spot for an evening out.
3. Don't miss the Red Capitol Club! Period.
4. If you're going to the Pearl Market, head up to the 4th floor to Miss Cathy's (or something like that). She is the reputable one who deals with folks from our company. She'll take the time to teach you what you need to know and give you a good deal.
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