"Enroute to the airport we ran into some terrible traffic and we came very near missing our flight. We were all relieved when we finally got to the boarding gate as the last of the passengers were loading onto a shuttle that took us to the airplane. I don't know how we would have managed without John and his expertise with the language. He was amazing! Everywhere we went he paved the way and secured what we needed. It was fun to watch the Chinese clerks when John addressed them in Chinese and to see the surprise and respect in their faces.
We spent Tuesday touring in Beijing with a driver and guide who John arranged for in advance. Some of the places we visited included Tienien Square, the Forbidden City, Jing Shan Park, Summer Palace, "Birds Nest" Olympic stadum, the night market, and the Beijing Opera. It was fascinating to visit all the emperor's palaces, temples, and summer palace. To say they were elaborate is an understatement. I kept thinking about the counsel in the Book of Mormon against the people having kings and how an unrighteous king would cause much iniquity and misery among the people he governed. What a confirmation of that we witnessed as we saw the lavish way the emperor and his family lived at the expense of the people. Another interesting fact was the oppression of the women in the royal household. The bride of the emperor only crossed the palace threshold once, on the day of her marriage, and then she was never permitted to ever be in public or out of the palace again. The only males inside the palace were the emperor, small boy children, and the thousands of eunichs who served the royal family. Each emperor had hundreds of concubines and they lived out their lives inside the Forbidden City, never being permitted to see their families again. It put me in mind of the story of Esther and her life as a part of the royal family.
It was believed that the Chinese emperor was part deity and most of the dynasties lasted for several hundred years until the peasantry rose up in rebellion and joined with the military leaders to usurp the royal family's power. There were lots of stories of court intrigue and again it reminded me of the Jaredite account in the Book of Mormon and their ruling families and the murder and intrigue that were part and parcel of being ruled by a king. It was awe-inspiring to realize that the Chinese nation has existed probably since the flood and has never been entirely wiped out like so many of the other famous civilizations throughout history.
Probably my least favorite event of the trip was attending the Beijing Opera. I have always wanted to attend an opera and SaraKay and I were so excited about it but it wasn't what we had expected. The way the opera star sings is so different from anything I have ever heard before and it wasn't at all a pleasant sound. Before the performers came on stage, the most tinney sounding music began and I leaned over to SaraKay and whispered that it sounded like the opera company had saved money by using the kitchen help for the music instead of a regular band. We had a good laugh about it since it really did sound like someone trying to make music with several pots and pans and a wooden spoon. There were only four actors in the entire production and although they were dressed in the traditional Chinese costume, it was rather boring and not at all what we had expected. But, we now can say that we did it and that was one more cultural experience that we were able to have."
