26 to 30 July – Beijing (China)

Now that I am an independent traveller, and with a room to myself, I can come and go as I wish which has been a much better prospect during the past few days.

I have spoken to the travel agent for Tibet who is here in Beijing and I am to be picked up at 5pm on the 30 July (today now), taken to the West Railway Station (there are at least four mainline stations here), and met by someone else who has my tickets and permits for Tibet. There are language problems in understanding what is going on but it looks aright at the moment. A lot of websites indicate that people should take their own food on the train but there is a restaurant car and snacks so I shall not bother as I have enough to carry as it is. I also started to take diamox two days ago which are pills I took last time I went to Tibet and are supposed to help with being in a high altitude.

After spending nine hours over two days looking for the museum I did eventually find the site (it’s easy enough really, and hour and a bit out of the centre of Beijing and one bus ride). It really was something different, steam, diesel and electric engines with some carriages not quite squashed into one huge shed. It was really impressive though I doubt that anything actually worked. I spent ages walking round the steam part and also went into the carriages. These had been joined together so it was possible to walk from one to another with plastic overshoes having to be worn so as not to dirty the carpets. No struggling here to get the horrible things on, foot down in a machine and the plastic overshoes are automatically fitted. The Chinese do know how to do some things properly! There were a lot of children in the museum and should they get bored or tired there was a video playing of Thomas the tank Engine, in Chinese.

Class 0, Built in the UK 1881. Now oldest in China.

Built by the Osaka Locomotive Company in 1939

Built by the Construction Belgie Works in 1922

Built by the Taiyuan Locomotive Company in 1959

Built by the Jiefang Locomotive Company, Japan, in 1942.  I find it strange to remember that I was in China during the mid 60's when Mao was in complete power here. 

Mao Zedong Carriage Day Room

Mao Zedong Carriage Office

Mao Zedong Carriage End Wall

Built in 1942 and names Zhu De (the left hand one)

Non-steam engines

Non-steam engines

Thomas the Tank Engine in Chinese

No information. Seen outside.

Another day was spent visiting the Temple of Heaven. The temple complex was constructed from 1406 to 1420 during the reign of the Yongle Emporer, who was also responsible for the construction of the Forbidden City. Originally the temple was used for giving offerings to the gods for a good harvest.

I liked the gleam in his eye

A photo-shoot for something or other

Mother was taking the same photo. A real person in other words.

Then there was the Summer Palace, for me to find out that there are actually two Summer Palaces, one consisting of mainly gardens and lakes as the buildings had been burnt down by a combined British and French Expeditionary Force in 1900 during the Second Opium War with the only items remaining being the original architects drawings which are now in the China Museum.

Roof decorations

One evening I went to an acrobatic show, The Legend of Jinsha. It only lasted just over an hour but it seemed that so much was packed into the show. The people walking and juggling on the rotating arm both inside and outside the ends while the show ended with five motorbike riders seemingly inside a very small ball. That I would not have believed but it was so as it was not a magic show.

The stage

Five motor cyclists (note the size of the ball)

Inside the ball

The last evening in Beijing I went to Dong Huamen Street, a food street market, but only for a look.

Dong Huamen Street

Fruit for a change

He's enjoying it!

At the moment I am trying to finish two blogs before being picked up to go to Tibet. The hostel charges £1 per hour to keep the room until 4pm from the midday check-out so that is what I am doing. Should I get to Tibet I will be out of touch for two days at the least, the time the train takes to travel from Beijing to Lhasa and then I do not know what will happen about access to the internet in Tibet. I’m not due in Kathmandu until 16 August so the next couple of weeks could be interesting, contact wise. It’s been raining in Beijing since early last night and it looks miserable outside. Pot noodles for lunch I guess!