Summer Palace

Yesterday I got up. Ok, so I actually get up every day, but yesteray I got up with a plan.

I had breakfast. I will admit it was Western, but I really cannot stand Chinese breakfast and I needed the food. I waited for rush hour to pass and at 8 am I headed out and towards the bus. I had to wait fifteen minutes and then I was able to get on one of those nice long articulated busses. No air conditioning. I paid my 2 yuan to one of the three attendants in the bus and I was on my way.

Traffic was good. It still took forever to get where I was going, but because I had waited till rush hour was over it was quite bearable. Thank you to the girl at the hostel who told me when I would be in the clear to go. I was on the bus for one and a half hoursish. It was hot, but I had a window and it was open.

At a student price I found my way in the Summer Palace, and with some extreme haggling I found a very decent map in my hand for 5 yuan. I wanted the map because, like with the Forbidden City, there is a list of sights and in a specific order that a traveller can see them in one day.

I began wandering about and wanted to walk aroud the lake but it was blocked by construction. I changed my plans and started to follow my map. The Summer Palace just seems to me to be one big vacation property. It is nice, but not for me. There are a few too many altars and temples to pray for rain or good harvests, that seems a little unecessary, but, I guess they thought they needed them at the time. It is a beautiful location, and beautiful construction.

I was again confronted with the issue of seeing a site that is not real. It has been rebuilt time and again because of the wars that have destroyed it. At least this time I was rebuilt (in most cases) in the 1800's or early 1900's, but with the construction that blocked my path around the lake you can still see that it is ongoing and it is not being preserved as its original structure.

The other interesting thing is that there is a plaque in front of every building or structure. The plaque reads something like this:

"This [Insert Attraction Name Here] was originally called [Insert Original Name Here] and was used for [Insert Original Purpose Here]. The name was changed when the [Insert Attraction Name Here] was rebuilt after it was destroyed by the Allied Forces in 1860."

For those of you who have not been taught too much about Chinese history (I only know this because I took a course on it a month ago), in the Opium Wars in the 1800's China was a closed place. They believed they were still the strongest empire in the world (which was true at one point) and when the other countries wanted to trade and be diplomatic China would not play ball. It was then that the Western Powers made China realize that in its time from being cut off from the world it had lost its military power. It was in these Wars and these engagements that the Allied Forces (mainly Britain, France, and Germany I believe) destroyed the Summer Palace, and many other things.

Now here is where I stand.

Do I feel proud, because it was my ancestors that brought one of the greatest civilizations down to its knees?

Or, do I feel ashamed and sad because of the pain and destruction brought upon the Chinese people by my ancestors?

I do not have an answer, but it is interesting to think about.

Yesterday was the hottest day I have experienced in China. There is open water and shade at the Summer Palace which helped a great deal, but even with the constant drinking of cold water and with the eating of two ice cream cones my temperature was skyrocketing.

In the early afternoon I had seen all I wanted to (which was everything I could, just about) and I hopped back on the bus. On the bus I faded in and out of consciousness in that sleepy type way that can be found when you are trying to stay awake but can't. In that furnace I resolved to take a nap to try and cool down and catch up on lost sleep.

I got home. I stripped down. I hopped onto bed and... well... water was pouring off of me. The bed was getting wet, and there was no chance that I would find sleep.

At this point it was becoming evident that I had already been in the heat too long. I was feeling very weak and quite ill, this is on top of my sore throat and overproduction of mucus. I do not like staying inside, but I stayed in and watched a movie with some other travellers. In that way I was able to avoid the heat, but when it was over I decided to go back out.

The heat had not diminished.

My eyes burned. My lungs burned, and yet, I kept going. I walked to the snack street and ordered some snake, some sparrow, and some cat. They were all pretty gross. After I ordered some sugar coated strawberries. They were ok, but I was already sick.

I took a rickshaw home and hid until the sun was down.

Later I went out for supper with a traveller and ordered Peking Duck. Lots of it. It was good.

Home, late, I tried to sleep. I fear I kept up all of the eleven other people in my room. I was coughing, rolling, fevering, and I did not get even a hint of sleep until after I saw the sun rise.

That brings us pretty close to now. My throat is not sore but I am very very ill.

No matter.

Tonight I sleep on the Great Wall.

Nothing will stop me.