One of the things I’ve observed during our short time in Beijing is the vertical nature of cities. The most obvious things are the high rise apartment buildings we see every direction we look. We live in one of those, so any time we want to go anywhere we get into an elevator. On our walk yesterday we observed that this verticality extends below ground.
We got out for a walk yesterday afternoon and went to a different and smaller park than the ones we have been walking through. The park was filled with flat open places and even in the cold people were out dancing to music. There was a leader and it looked like anyone could join in. It was a beautiful place to walk. Grandma observed that one of the signs depicted a tent. Our son told us that this identifies an area where a family can pitch a tent in the summer to provide a place of shade while their child plays.
In the middle of the park is an amusement area with trains, carousels, and other typical rides for children. It was so cold I thought for sure this are would be closed, but the train was running. As we walked by we noticed that there was a chicken coop inside the amusement area. It would seem that the person operating the amusement park lives there and these were probably his chickens.
This isn’t a great picture, but it illustrates all the different things you see everywhere you walk. The orange band in the middle of the picture is the sign over one of our son’s favorite noodle restaurants. I’m looking forward to feeling better and being able to get out and experience the local food.
Can you find the movie theater? Look for the vertical stripes in the picture. These identify the above ground portion of the movie theater. Below ground are other shops. I’m looking forward to going to the theater to see the latest Star Wars movie. Cars are everywhere and one of the learned skills is learning to weave in and out of traffic when crossing the street. In some cases there are lights to help, but much of the time timing is everything when moving from one side of the street to the other.
Remember the noodle restaurant. It is off to the left in this picture. Down below are grocery stores, shops, and restaurants. Can you find an U.S. favorite?
I would never have recognized what this store was if our son hadn’t told us. It is the local hardware store. One of our grandsons is continually building something so this is a familiar place to go to get supplies. I look forward to going back to see what it looks like inside.
We’ve almost complete our walk around the block. The peaked roofs of our apartment complex are visible. This build right next to the complex is a preschool. Preschools must be in high demand because there is another one inside the apartment complex.
I was very glad to get back inside. This had been the coldest walk we have had while we’ve been here and my fingers were in need of thawing out.
