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Visit the house of the emperors in the Ming and Qing Dynasties

Visit the house of the emperors in the Ming and Qing Dynasties

May 2020 · 3 min read · Beijing

Being an emperor is not the same with normal people, at least their house is more large, although it is not as big as expected. In Beijing, it must very rich to have such a large house!

As long as it is not a holiday, there will not too many tourists to visit the Forbidden City in Beijing. You can savor the long history of the Forbidden City and the stories behind it!

However, the security check into the Forbidden City is really very strict. From underground tunnels to Tiananmen, there are numbers of security checks. After all, the Forbidden City is the most important historical relic of China. If someone brings dangerous goods into some consequences, it will be unimaginable. The strict security check is understandable!

As soon as you enter the Forbidden City, you will come to this place-“Meridian Gate(午門)”. All Chinese are familiar with this name .When we watched TV at our childhood, we always heard the emperor annoyed and said, “Drag out the Meridian Gate and kill !” But many people should misunderstand the emperor’s mean , we general thought that the emperor’s mean is kill at the Meridian Gate. But , actually the emperor means “drag outside the Meridian Gate and kill, don’t dirty my house!”

Because the Meridian Gate is at the periphery of the Forbidden City, once walk out the Meridian Gate is not belongs to the emperor’s house. Normally , “Drag out the Meridian Gate and kill !” means “Drag to the firewood market and kill”!

The Forbidden City in winter feels particularly deserted, there are not many tourists, and a layer of ice has formed on the moat! Who broke a hole in the ice? It seems to be broken from underwater, which should be a good thing done by fishes.

I don’t like places with a lot of tourists, I always look for somewhere quiet without tourists! To visit the Forbidden City, you need to visit along the central axis on one way, you can not go back, so tourists will concentrate on the central axis, there will be fewer people on the left and right sides.

In addition, there are many places in the Forbidden City that have not yet been opened, and there are still many secret places. What kind of world is behind these closed doors? I was more interested in them. For those who have been renovated, they have been not telling the old story, they are new. But the world behind the door can truly probe the true old story!

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If you travel in South Korea, ancient palaces such as Gyeongbokgung Palace and Changdeokgung Palace will be open to visitors at night. But the Forbidden City in Beijing will become a restricted area at night and you can never enter it!

It is said that after the Forbidden City is closed, these corridors will repeat the story of the old time, souls of eunuchs and maid of the palace will float in the Forbidden City as usual and keep serving for their master ~

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