I could hardly wait to spend my first day in Beijing at the largest and best preserved palace complex in the world -- the Forbidden City. This is right up my alley!
The Forbidden City got its name because common folks were not allowed to enter unless they had special permission from the Emperor. The Imperial palace was built between 1406-1420 and was home to 24 Emperors from the Ming and Qing Dynasties for almost 500 years. It has a moat, fabulous gates to enter the complex, an inner and outer court and almost 9,000 rooms. The place is huge! I spent 4 hours in the 1000 degree heat to see it all!
The Chinese call the Forbidden City the "Palace Museum," because today it's home to nearly a million cultural relics. I liked seeing the jewelry, clocks, etc., but I loved seeing the little secluded gardens, temples and places to "just relax." The names of the rooms were the Hall of Preserving Harmony, the Palace of Earthly Tranquility, the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Palace of Tranquil Longevity, the Tower of Pleasant Sound... It's easy to see how the Emperors, Empresses, Concubines, Eunuchs and Maids lived in this amazing complex. However, I was viewing it with another billion tourists, so I had to really focus to picture their tranquil Imperial life!
I had a book called "Tales of the Forbidden City" and enjoyed reading about all the Imperial intrigue as I toured the rooms. The things people do for love and power are amazing no matter what the century!
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