Forbidden City & The Paparazzi

Song and two other office mates (also interns: He and Wang Wei) offered to take Guillermo and I to the Forbidden City -- one of, if not the, main tourist attractions here. All in all I think it was a fitting way to spend our first weekend here. The sheer scale of the space and the temples is awe inspiring (somewhat indicative of the city itself), and it offered a brief history lesson of China's imperial past
Here are just a few photos of our day:


At the main entrance.



Nine dragon screen wall.



Fancy hat. Reminded me of outfits/costumes created by a friend of a friend for the Castro parade every year...



Just after we took the pictures at the Nine Dragon screen wall, someone came up and asked Guillermo and I to take a photo with them -- not of them -- but with them. With one of us on either side of him. We obliged, but we were definitely somewhat surprised and confused. I felt like a B-movie actor, "Who me? You want to take a picture with me?"

Even though a growing number of tourists flock to Beijing every year, there are still parts of the city (like the neighborhood where we live) that rarely see non-Chinese faces -- and the combination of Guillermo and I certainly causes a fair amount of curious and cautious stares. Just the other day we were on our way home in a taxi and caught a guy in a minivan peering in at us. We both smiled at him, and then he gleefully turned and announced our presence to the rest of his compatriots. Soon the entire minivan was leaning out of their windows, smiling and waving at us. I definitely feel welcomed, and I think I can handle the paparazzi for the next 2 months.