A Hutong is a style of one-story structure built during the Yuan, Ming, and Qing Dynasties around the Forbidden City. The structures were typically quadrangles, with large courtyards, housing nobles and support for the Emperor. Typically, one family would occupy an entire quadrangle. Today six to eight families occupy the same space. Many of the courtyards have now been filled with additional structures, providing kitchens and outhouses for the additions families.
A large contributor to Beijing's famous air pollution is the burning of coal for heat and cooking fuel by tens of millions of families. Coal is taken from raw form and pressed into cylinders. After the fuel has been consumed the cylinder turns from black to a lighter gray, without losing shape. The good news is that with the coming Summer Olympics, this is the last winter that coal can legally be burned in Beijing. Massive hydro-electric projects under way are to generate enough electricity to replace coal burning in the future.
A great mode of transportation around the narrow Huton District streets is pedi-bike.
The 700 year old Huton District is now under cultural attack around Lake Shishahai. Old structures are being torn down and replaced with new historical replica's that will be bars for the Summer Olympics crowds.
After the Huton tour we headed to the former residence of the "Last Emperor's" uncle. A great irony of China is its inability to fully admit the massive flaws of Mao and his systematic destruction of their cultural artifacts and millions of people. The shattered remaining history has now been gobbled up by the state and put on display with pride. The cognitive dissonance is numbing. As beautiful as the house and grounds were, the irony is that the only reason why it is held up as a jewel today is that the house was considered too insignificant to destroy during the cultural revolution. Under hushed voice, the guide said that the official party line is now that Mao was 60% correct. They end the sentence there, skillfully ommiting the 40% wrong portion.
It was a very pleasant surprise to receive an energetic reception from a military choir waiting to perform for tourists. This was the response to just a casual wave.
To say that the tea is China was amazing would be unbelievably trite, but it was. To sit through the forty-five minute tea ceremony, trying five different styles of tea, was a relaxing pleasure.
One of the pleasures of travel is meeting many new people. Tonight that translated into a "traditional dinner", specifically designed for tourists, with some great Australians and the Chinese National Acrobats.
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