Summer Palace, Lao Beijing

Last weekend we went to the Summer Palace, one of the most famous imperial gardens in China. It's lake was made to imitate the West Lake in Hangzhou. From the lake you could get a pretty clear view of all the buildings and there is also a really pretty mountain backdrop on one side of the palace, so we pedaled a boat around the lake to see all the buildings. Established around the 1750's, the Summer Palace it was used as a summer hangout for emperors. I still can't imagine having such a huge beautiful garden all to myself! The buildings there look very similar to other historical buildings around Beijing - for example, the buildings at Beihai, Song Qing Ling's gardens, and even the Forbidden City. The architecture and design of these buildings all have common characteristics. There is also a garden called the Old Summer Palace but it was burned down by the British in the 1860's during the Second Opium War; it is still just ruins.

Our school treated us to a Lao Beijing performance, which is basically a group that gives traditional Chinese performances. We saw everything from a magician to kungfu to a man that put swords down his throat (see picture). There was also a lady that expertly played Chinese hackeysack and could even jump rope at the same time! There was Jingju, which is a Beijing form of drama and traditional performers with masks that they would quickly change. Another girl spun plates while doing acrobatic moves and another played the guzheng, a traditional Chinese instrument similar to a zither. Finally, there was a guy that played Edelweiss on the saw and another guy that kept a rythm with clappers while saying tongue twisters. It kind of reminded me of a Chinese version of the Renaissance festival.

On Sunday (7/20), a driving policy went into effect in Beijing (effective until September I believe). Basically, the policy says all license plates that end in an odd number can only drive on odd numbered days and license plates that end in an even number can only drive on even numbered days. I personally think the odd numbered cars get the longer end of the stick because both July and August have 31 days. Between the hours of 1 am and 3 am everyone can drive. Party! This policy is to 1) try and reduce pollution before and during the Olympics as well as 2) reduce transportation problems. Taxis, government approved vehicles, Olympic vehicles, and all other public transportation are exempt from the policy. We'll see how well it works!

Vocab word of the day: 单双号 (Dan Shuang Hao) - Odd Even Number Transportation policy

CHINGLISH ALERT:
(I found this on a trash can at Huaqing Hot Springs in Xi'an)
Protect circumstance begin with me