Forbidden City (Zijin Cheng – Purple Forbidden City or Gu Gong = old palace), Beijing, China

forbidden city china Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties in Beijing and Shenyang

Gu Gong (old palace)

Located in the middle of Beijing the capital of China; this ‘once forbidden city’ remains not just as a mere complex of several palaces but as a symbol of Chinese sovereignty and pride. The image of this city depicted on China’s National Seal itself is ample proof of the importance China attributes to this complex. The Forbidden City is a gigantic complex of palaces that lie spread in 720,000 sq meter area in the western side of the well known Tiananmen Square. For Chinese it is either Zijin Cheng (purple city) or ‘Gu Gong’ meaning old palace.

In the heart of old Beijing (Peking)

This palace complex has world’s largest collection of preserved ancient wooden monuments with finger print of various emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. In 1900 the Ming Emperor Yong Le moved the capital of China to Beijing and he started construction of a fresh city (a walled and secure one; forbidden one for ordinary people) in the middle of old Beijing in 1906. After Yong le 24 generations of emperors resided in this complex and it remained as the center of power of the Chinese Empire for more than five hundred years.

Largest by any means

forbidden city china The northwest corner tower

It is also the largest palace complex in the world and was home to 24 emperors for a span of 5 long centuries. The Forbidden City houses 800 buildings with altogether 9000 rooms and corridors. Each emperor who used to reside has done something in the way of modifications or alterations thereby making his foot print in history. Even the Communist regime has not lagged behind in transforming this ancient palace complex in to a museum of magnificent collection of monuments and adding to its beauty and grandeur to this complex by renovating and beautifying it spending millions.

Intriguing and forbidden and a World Heritage Site

Forbidden City China Map

Its unfriendly name the Forbidden City has its origin in the early rule that entry in to it and exit required permission of the highest authority; hence this territory practically remained inaccessible for ordinary mortals. First people called it by that name and as the name got established even authorities called began to mention it as ‘The Forbidden City’! The abundant complexes in this city remained as the most intriguing place for the outside world. At present this palace complex is a World Heritage Site listed by the UNESCO (since 1987) and functions as a Palace Museum; still retaining some of the intrigue with so many articles collected and used by 24 generations of emperors.

China; the land of innovation

China is the third largest country in the world with the largest population and an ancient culture that flourished with the back support of ancient science and wisdom. Gun powder, paper, printing, abacus (the front-runner of computer), mariner’s compass, steel forging, copper, gun-powder, coins, tooth-brush all are just one of the Chinese innovations! They excelled in the construction of large structures like The Great Wall of China, the Temple of Heaven, Yuyuan Garden etc forgotten world wonders like the Porcelain Pagoda of Nanjing (that eventually got destroyed), all were proofs for Chinese skill in innovations. The Forbidden City is built in customary Chinese style and it is in no way less in magnificence and grandeur than these ancient structures Chinese have built.

The city wall

The Nine Dragons Screen in front of the Palace of Tranquil Longevity forbidden city

This ‘city’ was built to stand any threat; its walls are 7.9 meters high; 8.62 meters wide at the base and 6.6 at the top; built of rammed mud as the core and an outer layer of baked bricks; and the gap filled with mortar. A six meter deep and 52 meter wide moat adds perfection to its invincibility. On the four corners there are observation towers with intricate built roofs; for one who view from outside (so far it could be viewed from outside only; because it was forbidden) these towers were the most visible and prominent sights.

Gates

The walls have four gates on each direction of which the most important one is the Meridian Gate (WuMen meaning front door) with a large portrait of Mao Zedong at its top; it is reachable from the Tiananmen Gate (TianMen Gate).

The Meridian Gate (Wu Feng Lou meaning Five Phoenix Tower) is on the south which is the largest gate of this complex. It is 35.6 meters high and has five openings surrounded by phoenix looking pavilions (five is a sacred number for the Chinese as the Confucian teachings are based of five principles).

Of the five openings the central one was exclusively reserved for the emperor; the empress was allowed only once in her life time immediately after her wedding! The eastern entrance was exclusively and strictly for the ministers whereas the western entrance for the royal family. Other two were for officials and none for the ordinary people because they were forbidden in the Forbidden City!

Other Gates

The other gates that pierce the outer wall are namely the Gate of the Devine Might on the north, East Glorious Gate on the east and West Glorious Gate on the west. All these gates have doors with golden nails to add grandeur. The Northern Glorious Gate faces the Jingshen Park. The whole city within the walls can be divided in to two as the Outer Court and the Inner Court. The naming of the structures of this complex is done in a poetic way and they can ring bell in to the ears of one who hear it.

The Gate of Supreme Harmony (TaiHe Men) that is located after the Meridian Gate and the following five bridges leads to the proper Outer Court which consists of three main halls located on a raised white marble platform. Across another courtyard is the Hall of Supreme Harmony (TaiHe Dian) which is the largest courtyard in the Forbidden City as well as the largest surviving wooden structure in China. It has a height of 30 meters and an area of 30,000 sq meters; this hall was used as the Ceremonial Center of the Imperial like coronations, investiture and royal weddings.

The next one is the Hall of Preserving Harmony (a slightly smaller structure was the rehearsing center for the ceremonial parades).

Forbidden city china The Hall of Central Harmony (foreground) and the Hall of Preserving Harmony

The Hall of Central Harmony (Hall of Complete Harmony) is comparatively smaller and was intended for the emperor to take rest before and between ceremonies. There is a beautiful throne with Unicorns (Luduan a Chinese mythological beast that could travel 9000 miles a day and that could speak 9000 languages) placed on both sides as a mark of the abilities of the emperor. Also on display are two exquisite sedan chairs in which the emperor was made to sit and was carried around the city. In the southeastern part of the Outer Court are the Halls of military Eminence (where the emperor held court of ministers) and the Hall of Literary (the royal press as well as venue for ceremonial lectures held by Confucian Scholars of high esteem).

The giant ramp

There are ramps flanked by stairs to ascend and descend the raised marble platform; these ramps are real works of art depicting dragons, emperors and other images; the emperor makes his ascend sitting in his sedan. At the center of the ramps leading to the terraces are the ceremonial ramps with carvings of symbolic bas reliefs; of which that behind the Hall of Preserving Harmony there is the largest carving in China a monolith ramp weighing 200 tons that is 16.57 meters long 3.07 meters wide and 1.7 meters thick; a real ceremonial ramp indeed!

The Inner Court; Yin, Yang and the holy union

The Forbidden City as depicted in a Ming Dynasty painting

While the Outer Court was intended for royal ceremonies the Inner Court; which has been separated from it by a long courtyard was more private in its function. There are three halls namely Palace of Heavenly Purity, Hall of Earthly Tranquility and Hall of Union.

Holy Unions

Here emperor is ‘yang’ representing the heavenly purity; living in the Palace of Heavenly Purity; whereas the empress is ‘Yin’ representing the earthly tranquility living in Hall of Earthly Tranquility.

The Hall of Celestial and Terrestrial Union (Diao TaiDian) is the place where the empress receives her birthday greeting. It is intended for the auspicious marital life of royal couple.

On the left side of the throne there is a chime clock that is 210 years old and still working smooth and in the right side a water-pot clock older than the chime clock with a technology more than 25 centuries old. Both of these items are enough to herald the expertise of Chinese skill in innovation. Many items belonging to the Qing dynasty are on display like the imperial seals other ceremonial items.

The Imperial Garden

The Gate of Terrestrial Tranquility (KunNing Men) leads the visitor to the Imperial Garden (YuHua Yuan); it is the last spectacle to be seen in the city. It was a private space for the royal families and was built in 1417 by the Ming dynasties. This garden is not as elaborate as one may presume (12,000 sq meters in area) but there are very beautiful landscapes made in typical Chinese style to be seen.

The selling point

The selling point of the Forbidden City is its well preserved condition and the largesse of the items displayed in it more over the buildings, courtyards, and ramps all are made in such large scale that visitors never feel crowded like other palaces.

There is enough space for every body for sight seeing and for taking some rest in a shade. The woodworks are such that they smell fresh and brand new even after standing there for the last several centuries.

The ‘Un forbidden’ City

The throne in the Palace of Heavenly Purity forbidden city china

After all it is no small thing to see the works and royal possessions belonged to 24 generations of monarchs who lived under one roof a very rare thing that no other palaces can take claim of. Come to the hospitable palace complex (please excuse for an inhospitable name; the Forbidden City) and smell a rich history of a rich and innovative nation.

Banff National Park, Calgary Alberta Canada

Moraine Lake, and the Valley of the Ten Peaks

The oldest national park in Canada – pronounced as baemf

A change of role

The ascent of Homo sapiens (human species) as a super power among animals did much damage to ecology, by 18^th century there was a shift in his role he changed role from a terminator to a preserver. The national parks that dot all around are the symbols of that change. Yellowstone, Yosemite are all examples for that and Banff (one of the earliest) is no exception. The Banff National Park located in scenic sets of the Canadian Rockies. It is 80 miles from Calgary town of Alberta province Canada. The Banff Park was established in 1885 with an area of 2564 sq miles (6641 sq km) as the first of its kind in Canada and the third in the world.

Dug for a rail found a park!

Lake Minnewanka

In 1885 laborers who were working for a rail company at the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains noticed a hollow cave; their curiosity led them in the cave where they saw hot springs and many other wonderful things. At present the Banff is a full fledged national park with wonderful rock formations, peaks, waterfalls, glaciers, ice-fields, hot springs, pristine coniferous forests, rivers, lakes and almost all sorts of natural phenomena. This place is also a home to rare and exotic animals and plants that are not found anywhere else in the world. Visitors to the park exceed 4 million a year; it is the first national park of Canada; part of the World Heritage Site; a complex of about four parks sites (Yoho, Kootenai, Jasper and Banff.

Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR)

CPR works first found the existence of this site; it was CPR was Canada’s first transcontinental railway; which brought the site to the notice of the world and it was the same company that brought to this site initially. The company with a beaver as its mascot rose to be a symbol of Canadian national pride. For years the CPR remained as the only means of transport to the entire locations.

Early history

Lake Louise

There are archaeological evidences for human inhabitation in the Banff area since 8500 BC. The remains recovered from around the Vermilion Lakes (a series of lakes located between Canadian Pacific Railway and Trans Canadian Highway in the foot of Mount Norquay) prove that tribes like, Stoneys (also known as Nakodas), Paigans, Tsuu T’ina, Kootenai etc lived here. The discovery of hot springs and construction of the railway made the site popular and in 1885 only 10 sq miles of land was allotted to the park by Canadian PM John A McDonald; this was later expanded to 260 sq miles in 1887. There after the park got more and more area under its care the present size was reached in 1949 (2564 sq miles).

How to get there

Banff National Park is in the Canadian Rockies about 80 miles from town Calgary; by air one can fly from Vancouver to Calgary; both cities have international airports; distance only 500 miles. The Trans-Canada Highway leads to the park from Calgary via Banff and Lake Louis. Train facility is limited to minimum site seeing schedules.

A park cluster

Peyto Lake

The Banff is one among the four national parks located in the Canadian Rockies lying interlocked each other. They are Jasper, Kootenai, Yoho and Banff; there is one park of the same status that is separately located in the farther south; the Waterton National Park. The first four interlinked parks including the Banff have the status of World Heritage Site awarded by the UNESCO.

Castle Mountain

The group of mounts looks exactly like a castle from a distance hence named so by James Hector. This massif is located between Banff and British Columbia and can be seen from the Trans Canada Highway. The Castle Mountain acted as a prison for the internees of the 1^st World War and accommodated prisoners from Germany, Austria and Hungary etc. This mount was first ascended by Arthur Coleman in 1884 through the Rockbound Lake Trail. Its prominent mounts are Helena Ridge, Stuart Knob, and Television Peak etc. It is a favorite destination for hiking and mountaineering enthusiasts.

Cave and Basin

The presence of thermal springs in the Banff Park was first recorded by James Hector in 1859. It is the site with natural thermal springs with dissolved sulfur content; its water has medicinal properties and can cure skin ailments. It was this spring the first Banff National Park was established with an area of 10 sq miles. These springs are habitat for a very much endangered species of snail called Banff Spring Snail.

The Columbian Ice field

Skiing on Parker Ridge, near the Columbia Icefield

An ice field is a medium sized frozen water body with less than sq feet in area; it is comparatively larger than the Alpine Glaciers and smaller than an ice sheet. The Columbian Icefield is in the Canadian Rockies astride the Continental Divide of North America; it is 325 sq km in area and between 300 and 1200 feet in depth. The ice field receives about 23 feet of snow fall and feeds about eight glaciers like Athabasca, Castleguard and Columbia etc. Wapta and Wapotik icefields are also of considerable size but all in the receding stage due to warming. Peyto, Bow and Vulture glaciers originate from the Wapta Icefield.

Animals of Banff

Elk in Banff

The plant and animal varieties found at this park is wonderfully diverse; about 53 species of mammals live here along with many endemic. The bird population of this park is about 280 species including red tailed hawk, golden eagles, bald eagles etc. There insects and reptiles (reptiles are comparatively rare); a good number of them are endangered. It is the vide range of climate, altitude as well as plant varieties that enabled the park to host so many varieties of mammals. Porcupine, Hoary marmot (a burrowing rodent living in flocks; inhabitant of North America), Pika (a small rabbit like animal), Beaver etc are of small mammals. There are larger animals like Moose, elk, Mule deer, caribou (reindeer), Bison, several types of goats and sheep etc. There is no dearth for carnivorous animals also; coyote (a wolf like wild dog also known as brush wolf or prairie wolf; native to North America), grizzled bear, wolf, black bear etc.

A multibillion affair

The Banff is part of a complex of national parks and a visit to all these parks take its own time and guided tours, hiking, packaged tours and all paraphernalia associated with tourism is available here also. In fact the excessive commercialized tourism operations itself have of late become a problem.

The Upper Hot Springs for example is a natural hot water spring that has been commercially developed to ensure good spa experience to the visitors with a view of the of the Valley of Mount Rundle. All luxuries that a tourist can dream of in natural surroundings have been provided in the most user friendly way in the typical western concept. Tourism at Banff is no small thing as it caters to the needs of more than five million visitors annually and makes billions of dollars on exchange of sheer pleasure and enjoyment.

A tall order

Two Jack Lake Banff National Park

The Banff National Park is an asset of humanity and to see it is a right that cannot be denied; same time the ecology of its exclusive surroundings and the biosphere have to be protected; a balancing game between business and ethics; a tall order indeed; hope the National Park Agency will manage it most responsibly!

Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, US

Yellowstone National Park in Winter

A natural museum of geographical features

The Yellowstone is the first designated national park in the United States; established in March 1, 1872; it has an area of 8987 sq miles. This park is mainly located in Wyoming State with some of the portions come under Idaho and Montana. The Yellowstone Lake, volcanic caldera, endemic wildlife, famous geysers like the Old Faithful, strange volcanic stone formations are its main attractions. It may seem strange that this whole area remained unknown to the outside world till 1860. The place was home to the native Indians since 9000 BC; people known as the ‘Mountain Men’ were the only visitors from the civilized society to this area, they were set to forest to hunt beavers for their fur.

Hallucination

The Yellowstone Region is extremely rich in history; it was home to the Paleo Indians who belonged to the ‘Clovis’ culture (ancient American of the 9500 BC period); these people used the obsidian that is abundant in this region to make weapons like spear and arrow heads, knife etc. They built houses and temples with the stone; there are still more than one thousand remnants belonging to this culture in the Yellowstone. In 1806 John Colter happened to reach there by an accident; he told about the strange phenomena existing at Yellowstone; but Colter’s -he was a member of the Lewis Clark Expedition- stories were taken as mere hallucination and called this unknown area as Colter’s hell by the modern world.

Bridges Spinning Yarn!

Morning Glory Pool at the Yellowstone National Park

In 1856; fifty years after Colter’s ‘hallucination’; John Bridges reported about the ‘boiling springs and the spouting water’ of this land; that too was taken for ‘spinning of yarn’! It was Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden went to explore but the weather did not let it to complete. Folsom Expedition in 1869 alone could convince the doubting toms of that time; it surveyed the entire area from Yellowstone River to Yellowstone Lake. At this time the world was really amazed and clamor for establishing a national park for the protection of the ecosystem was arose from all corners. Bowing to the public demand the area was notified as a National Park in March 1, 1872 with Nathaniel P Longford as its first Superintendent.

Nathaniel P. Langford, the first superintendent of yellowstone national park.

Geysers

Though there are many things in this park quite exclusive; the geysers may perhaps the most attractive and a natural feature that made this park so famous. Yellowstone is one of the earth’s volcanic hot spots with a long history of violent eruptions. The present activity of the volcano is heating up the ground water and emitting it violently to the air; there are geysers (that works under pressure as a hot water fountain), hot springs (pressure is lower and hence water flows), fumaroles (extreme temperature sends only steam out – there are gaseous fumaroles also) and mud-pots (this is a strange feature where muddy water in a pit bubbles with hot steam). Altogether there are about 10,000 geothermal sites in this park.

Old and Faithful

Historical poster of Yellowstone National Park from 1938

The Yellowstone Park has more than 300 geysers and all these features like mud-pots and fumaroles but the ‘Old Faithful’ is the most famous among its geysers. It was Old Faithful that got a name first among the numerous geysers (named by Washburn-Longford - Daone Expedition). This was the first comprehensive expedition by a team of three who explorers to the Yellowstone region in 1870. They did extensive mapping of its wildlife, geyser basins, mountains, lakes etc; they named the geyser so as to express its regularity of its eruption.

Marvelous timing!

The Old Faithful geyser’s eruption is intermittent erupts for a while then pause for few minutes and repeat the process. The water jet may shoot up 3700 to 8400 gallons of boiling water to a height of 180 feet. It erupts in every 90 minutes apart and each eruption can last up to 100 minutes. Researchers who have made observations about its timing have found for the last 150 years there have been little change in the timing of its eruption.

In quantity of water discharged and the height of water jet there is one who can excel the Old Faithful; the Steam-Boat Geyser located in the Yellowstone itself; although a bit remotely placed; the Steam Boat is the biggest geyser in North America.

Yellowstone Lake

The Yellowstone Lake that lies centered on Yellowstone Caldera is the biggest one among high altitude lakes (7732 feet above sea-level); it is 136 sq miles in area with a shoreline of 110 miles. Its deepest portion measures 390 feet. This lake is home to Trumpeter Swans –the largest among swans in size (6 feet long with 10 feet wing span). The trout fish of the lake is immensely tasty and hence expensive. During winter (December to May) this lake gets covered under 3 feet thick snow excluding the areas where there are hot springs.

Geography

Castle Geyser eruption at the yellowstone national park

The Yellowstone is a plateau about 8000 feet above sea-level and 80% of its area is forests, 5% lakes and rivers and the rest grasslands. It is highly mountainous and more than five mountain ranges stand in guard of the area like, Gallatin, Bear tooth, Madison, Teton, Absaroka etc; its highest mount is Mount Washburn which is 10,243 feet high. Its water is mainly drained by the Yellowstone and the Snake River; while Yellowstone River falls in to the Atlantic the Snake River flows in to the Pacific.

The Grand Canyons and Yellowstone

The Yellowstone Park has two Grand Canyons of its own! (The real Grand Canyon is at Arizona; what Yellowstone has is its pocket edition) Formed by the erosion activities of the rivers; they are with classic ‘V’ shaped banks. The bigger one made by the Yellowstone River is 900 feet deep and half a mile wide. Its steep cliff has exposed rocks with iron compounds that give the rocks a characteristic yellow color; these rocks must be the reason for the place to be called Yellowstone.

The Yellowstone Caldera

The Yellowstone is the largest volcanic caldera in this continent with 40 miles diameter; often called a super volcano because of the intensity of its eruption (one eruption occurred 64,000 years back released 240 cubic miles of ash, stones and pyroclastic materials! A caldera is formed when the pressure under the ground of a volcano intensifies and bursts swallowing the entire volcanic cone making a circular pit like that of Ngorongoro in Africa famous for the Serengeti Migration.

Ecology

Bison graze near a hot spring at the yellowstone national park

The Yellowstone National Park is at the center of the Greater Yellowstone Eco-System which includes the Greater Teton National Park which is the largest continuous reserve in the US after Alaska. The wild life protection has been so serious that almost all the animal species that were eliminated by rampant poaching have been reintroduced successfully and they all thrive in this park. The Trumpeter Swan itself is an example the population that dwindled to about 100 have been revived and at present there are more than 5000 swans at the Yellowstone Lake and its surroundings.

Water falls of Yellowstone

The Yellowstone is famous for its numerous waterfalls; there are more than a hundred fall of substantial heights. Most of them are accessible by roads and some of them only visible only after hiking,

Fairy Falls is located in Midway Geyser Basin and it is one of the tallest of the falls from a height of 197 feet; the fall plunges in to a shallow pool down with a thunder.

Kepler Cascades is named after Kepler Hoyt the son of Wyoming’s Territorial Governor. The Boy happened to tour this park with his father John Hoyt. The fall is located about two miles from the Old Faithful Village and it can be seen form the roadside. The Kepler Falls fall to 50 feet depth in three stages.

Gibbon Falls is located between Norris Geyser Basin and Madison Junction in the Gibbon River. It is accessible and offers great vantage points to view the falls; parking spaces are also available to visitors.

Fire Hole Falls is along the Fire Hole Canyon Road about one and a half mile from Madison Junction. It is a forty feet high fall and offers great sight during spring and early summer seasons.

Tower Falls is one of the most beautiful sites of this park; the volcanic pillar like formations which abound the area is reason for getting the falls the name ‘Tower Fall’. In winter the entire fall gets frozen like an ice pillar and the area can be accessed by skiing; there by offering a great opportunity for skiing enthusiasts. The fall is 132 feet in height and located seventeen miles from North Canyon near Roosevelt.

The Upper Falls located south of Canyon Village can be reached via Uncle Tom’s Parking area to its trail head. It is 109 feet long and one of the most exquisite falls of the park. The Lower Falls, Mystic Falls, Lewis Falls, Undine Falls, Virginia Falls and Union Falls etc are all locations of Yellowstone National Park area visited by tourists.

A virtual Garden of Eden

The Yellowstone is not a cluster of hills, spring or waterfalls; it is a very much living environment; hundreds of mammals, birds, fish, reptiles thrive there as if in a mega garden of Eden. Its grizzly bears (that has a coat of mixed black and grey fur), wolves (Mackenzie Valley Wolves) Elks, bisons were all threatened at a time have been successfully rehabilitated and they have started multiplying to their original strength. This park is home to numerous endemic plants like Douglas fir, White bark pine etc; altogether there are 1700 types of plants in these forests of the Yellowstone.

Preserved wilderness

What the park authority first did was to repair the damages; they brought back many threatened and endangered animals back to its previous strength that is before the arrival of ‘civilized’ men and guns. When at the park one can feel the difference thousands of sq kms of land are left for wilderness itself and no ‘development’ of any sort is allowed as whole the area land is entirely allocated to its original inhabitants –its animals.

Tourist friendly

A reintroduced gray wolf in Yellowstone National Park

For tourists this wilderness coupled with numerous natural wonders offer a life-time experience; there are all sorts of packages offered by tour companies just a phone-call away, packaged tour for one week, one day, half day, guided tours on horse back, on sledges etc are all available along with lodging, spa, restaurants etc.