Grand Walls with Pickled Mao

Clinton said, "This wall is grand, this wall is beautiful. It is more grand and more beautiful then I imagined". Well, that's what the Chinese said he said, anyway, but it doesn't sound very eloquent. I rode up to The Wall in the same cart as Bill. Me and Monica from Spain. We had the place to ourselves for almost an hour. Who would have thought in the most populated country at the most popular tourist attraction in the world, one could be alone. Just goes to show that maybe this planet is a little bigger than originally believed. Or, it's just the off season.


There are a few other places in Beijing you can get some peace and quiet, too. One is in the back alleys of the Forbidden City. It's amazing that outside those walls the traffic is piling up, but inside, you hear footsteps echo and crows flying overhead. The other place with quiet is the Maosoleum - where Chairman Mao or his wax double take turns being on display for the thousands that visit every day. The line is six wide and wraps around Tienanmen Square, though it moves somewhat quickly. After 2 metal detectors and and shop to purchase flowers,you are led past his marble statue and instructed to "step in order". Then, under the glass case, with his face lit up orange like a jack-O-lantern, is his body and it is at that moment you hope today they picked the wax Mao, because pickled Mao isn't something you wanted to see after all.
Outside The Maosoleum