This time, the weather was decidedly inclement, in the sense of being cloudy and overcast. Yet, the magic remained.
The Forbidden City was built between 1406-1420. The first Ming emperor had moved the capital to Nanjing, and then it was moved back to Beijing by the second Ming Emperor.
Beijing, in many ways, has been the seat of power since the Yuan Dynast, which was the Mongol Dynasty founded by Kublai Khan. Some people believe that the boundaries of modern China was drawn by the Mongols in the 1250-1400 era. The Forbidden City is built on the foundation of the Mongol Dynasty palaces. The central North-South axis remains the central axis of Beijing, though again, some people believe that the slight tilt away from the North was made, to align the Forbidden City with Xanadu.
The Legend of Xanadu, is all about the central seat of Kublai Khan's kingdom. Both, Genghis Khan and Kublai Khan were buried in Mongolia.
I always found it difficult to imagine how they fit 980 buildings, with over 8,700 rooms into the Forbidden City in such a harmonious manner.
I've been there some 5/6 times, and I don't think that I have seen even a quarter of the Forbidden City. I gave up trying to memorise the names of the various halls, though I have determined that, the next time I go to the Forbidden City, I will take notes.
Beijing is, in many ways, like Delhi. Both are huge, ancient cities. Both have been the seat of power for several centuries. Both have hot and dry summers, with cold (cool, in Delhi) winters. Both are situated near deserts, and get dust storms in summer.
In the case of both cities, there is simply too much too see in one visit.
Of course, Delhi does not have The Great Wall, and Beijing is not on the banks of a river, the way Delhi is. Sadly, in Delhi, we have made a complete mess of, what was once a great river - the Yamuna.
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