Scorpions and the Forbidden City

It is hard to know if the weather was unusual or not during our visit.  One thing is for sure and that is that we were often in a humid cloud, sort of drizzling and hot.  It made the granite pavement in the heart of town look rich and elegant.

We were surprised to see only a few bike carts in town.. It turned out that bikes were restricted and couldn't go in to the center of the city during most hours of the day.

Rickshaws

We had been walking by this little entry for a couple of days before we decided to see what was here.  This was right in the middle of the city coming off the main street of the upscale shopping district of Wangfujin.

Entrance to street food alley off Wangfujin

Upon entering this little alley we were overwhelmed by the sights and smells of different foods.  Some were enticing others revolting.  Hardest to resist were the bugs on a stick, not to mention the live scorpions.  Skewered on a slender stick, their legs and tails were still wiggling wildly. Who wouldn't want to have them deep fried nice and fresh?  How could anybody think of having stale scorpions anyway?  I am sure it makes all the difference in the world to have them fresh cooked.  Because the alley was crowded and there was not a place to sit down and enjoy a snack, we were disappointed as we passed by without indulging. 

What a perfect way to show off the car and bike parts--all cleaned up and presented on a lace table cloth.  It kind of makes you want to become a mechanic and wear white gloves as you work.

The proper way to display hardware

Our favorite store on Wangfujin

Toys, toys and more toys.  There was an assortment from high tech to ancient traditional toys.  We had a ball trying to figure out some of the Chinese puzzles.  Even Craig was stumped on occasion.

The entrance to the Forbidden City, oddly enough, featured a large picture of Mao.

It was not unusual for people to see Craig and want to have their picture taken with him.  As any kind-hearted celebrity, Craig accommodated their dream and posed smiling as if they were long time friends.

Craig and Bruce comply with fan photo request

Another fan request

Photo op in the heart of the main entrance to the Forbidden City

The ornamentation and decoration was quite amazing. Everything  made by hand, every stone hand placed, the terrain hand smoothed, portrayed a thousand life-times of work to make this place happen.  Amazing.  Once constructed only few were allowed to enter and even fewer to come into the very center palaces and temples.  The Chinese have literally thousands of gods--each having some particular specialty.  The visitors would purchase little sticks of incense which they would place burning at the base of the sculpted gods.  They would then kneel and worship quietly appealing for help with their needs.

You can see that it was hard to distinguish us from the local people.  We blended right in.

Security forces marching in formation keep a watchful eye.

The grass surrounding the moat surrounding the Forbidden City created a peaceful place to take a break.