Day 930 Two firsts in the 'jing

With the second semester well underway, and the onset of spring is at hand, it has become abundantly clear that I am in a season of firsts and lasts here in Beijing.  I want to savor these moments with my Chinese babies.  I want to enjoy 'my hometown' and all that it has to offer.  This has been a once in a lifetime opportunity, and I have been so richly blessed by it.  I have grown and changed in so many ways, by stretching out of my own comfort zones (my home, family, friends, and work in the US) these past three years.  It has been exhilarating, confusing, frustrating, challenging, inspiring, and one helluva an adventure, to say the very least.

With the weather breaking, and it being a 'good air' day, (I never would have imagined my daily activities would be dictated by whether it was a 'good air day' or a 'bad air day'- we take SO MUCH for granted back home) I decided to stretch my legs and wander around the HouHai lakes region. I sent out a wechat call to anyone who might care to join me, and I was so happy that Margaret, one of our new art teachers, took the bait!

Say 'ni hao' to Margaret from Chicago- one incredibly
talented artist and teacher, and just a really cool person!

Even in the most frustrating of times, I always
manage to come across something that makes me
smile.  China is so flippin' weird sometimes!
This shop owner laid a rug on the sidewalk for
his dog (not so weird), but he had a chick
clipped to his head, and eyeglass frames on his
face (beyond weird).  And if that don't beat all,
the dog basked in the sun like all was normal.
I felt embarrassed for him. Truly.

Our first stop was the Bell Tower.

Before my move to China, the concept of cities having Drum and Bell Towers was new to me, but most ancient cities have them.  These date back to Kublai Kahn, grandson to Genghis Kahn. He was an Emperor of China in the Yuan Dynasty around 1260.  The towers once stood at the northern edge of the city, but as Beijing's boundaries continue to expand, they are now near the city center and the second ring road.  While the original towers were wooden, and eventually destroyed by fire, the bell tower was reconstructed in 1747.  The drum tower, however, is largely intact from Emperor Yongle's time during the Ming Dynasty of the 1420's. The drum and bell towers played a significant role in the daily life of the Mongols.  

See the 'mao'? (cat in Mandarin)

The first order of business was to climb the
sixty-nine STEEP stairs to the top of the Bell Tower.

The day officially began, and the city's gates
were opened, when the bell was struck at 7:00am.
It can be heard from 20km (12 miles) away!

There was a series of beautiful wood carvings depicting the
building of the tower and the hanging of the bell.
The detail was incredible.

The bell 'marked time' from dusk to dawn-
including when  it was time to go to bed!

It was a gorgeous view of the city from up there, from the single story tiled roof hutongs of
yesteryear, to the high rises of today, all framed by the Westerlies mountains.

Next, we crossed the plaza to the Drum Tower.

I am a sucker for doors....I can only wonder
who all must have passed through these doors
the last several centuries.

I did not know that the Chinese were the inventors
of several different methods of time-keeping.
This is a Beilou; read below...

There are twenty four replica drums, and under the leadership
of one main watchman's drum, they would together mark
 time at various points throughout the day and evening hours.

This is the only original drum that remains, and it is
in quite a state of disrepair.  The drum head was cow hide.

And then a 'first' happened for me, out marched the time
keepers to give a demonstration!

The drum cadence got all the more intricate
and complicated, but not a one missed a beat.
The sound was deafening, but it was so cool!

We looked out of the Drum Tower to the HouHai
lakes area, and decided to make our way down
to the hutong for a late lunch/brunch.

No doubt it was steep, uneven stairs!

We went to Four Corners, one of my favorite hang outs.
They have a delicious menu with interesting names.,,
I did not order the lumbersexual!

They do strange things to waffles here in China, so I opted
for another 'first'; an egg, sweet potato mash and pulled pork
waffle with red cabbage slaw and syrup on the side.
It was surprisingly DELISH!

After all of that delicious food and a hot milk tea, it was a good thing I was wearing my fitbit.  Even with the subways rides, it was a 15,000+ steps kind of day; over 7 miles!  I will miss that about city life; exercise has never been so easy- it's just a part of your daily life of living in the 'jing!

G'nite, y'all!