Beihai Park, July 11

At a certain point, you begin to run down. I spent an afternoon strolling Beihai Park, a string of man made lakes and surrounding parks originally intended as a pleasure ground for the Emperor. There are pavilions and temples and bell towers, each with its requisite souvenir shop and historical plaque.There are at least 4 kinds of boats available to rent: lotus boats, swan boats, boats for larger groups, and rowboats. There was a lovely garden which actually had more appeal than some of the real ones-- shows what a barbarian I am. There were snack bars and restaurants dotted around, arbors draped with wisteria, shady paths. Ducks and Beijingers swam placidly in one lake. There were vast rafts of lotus, blooming beautifully. I took a boat to the island in the center, bought a don't ask-don't tell hot dog on a stick, and walked up to the temple. There was a British couple who, every couple of years, spent 6 or more months traveling. This time, it was a long trip through Asia. He was in construction, and bemoaned the poor quality of new construction and the corruption: he claimed that real estate speculators got loans from the state to raze the hutongs and build new office highrises, moving the residents out to the suburbs. Then, they were unable to rent the office space, defaulted on their loans, and the state paid. The buildings remain empty.

The garden was lovely, and had many enclosed spaces, some with bamboos of different kinds, with doorways at the end calling to be peeked through. There was a teahouse over a pond; the several parts were separated enough to form separate, uncrowded spaces inviting lingering and seeing what was next simultaneously.Among the bamboo, I was the only example of graffiti I saw in China. 

One of the tourist attractions was a photographer setup: your child could really be a little Emperor.

 

Quianbai from Starbucks

And there was a strip of bars, quiet in the early afternoon, with a Starbucks at the end. I was weak, and bought a large brewed coffee, which they had to make to order. A fancy frappucino they could have provided at once! I found a table by the water and started drawing. I even managed to chase away some loud Brits: they were ragging about the outrages of Rupert Murdoch, sounding like a convention of crows. After awhile, I asked if I could practice my English with them and they cleared out within a few minutes largely in order to avoid doing so! Live and learn. It was dreamily peaceful sitting there painting. One girl stopped and watched me for awhile, and posed for a photo.  Overall, a lovely time.

The Swan Boats