Day 1 in Beijing

 I woke up 5:30 am to leave 6:30 am for the Temple of Heaven (天坛) which is a complex of imperial religious buildings (for annual ceremonies of prayer to Heaven for a good harvest) surrounded by a lively park packed with hordes of local elders practicing calligraphy or tai-chi. I was early enough to stay away the crowds until 9 am. It wasn’t s an UNESCO site. It was cool and pleasant in the morning. 

Then I was too starved to continue and got three small meat bumps for breakfast. However, I saw a haircut chain and paid only 10 RMB ($1.4) haircut that was nicer than the $25 I got in USA. It was hot when I toured the Summer Palace (颐和园). It is an UNESCO site with vast ensemble of lakes, gardens and palaces during the Qing dynasty. Inside includes Longevity Hill (万寿山; 萬壽山; Wànshòu Shān) Kunming Lake and Seventeen Hole Bridge. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometres (1.1 sq mi). 

I skipped the ruins of the Old Summer Palace (圆明园) at the advice of friends since not much left there, and I ran out of energy anyway. 

My last sightseeing spot was Tsing Hua University which shared the origin as my college in Taiwan. 

Tsinghua University was Founded in 1911, on the site of Tsinghua Garden in Beijing, the former residence of Prince Yinzhi, the third son of the Kangxi Emperor of the Qing dynasty. The campus was beautiful and huge (better biking than walking) and has many lilies gardens. I was so exhausted after a long day and decided to head back to hostel with takeout food and groceries.