Where in the World?

Today started with a slight change of plans. The Beijing Capitol Museum was closed so we went right to the National Art Museum of China. It was a fabulous place with some fantastic exhibits. The website is mostly in Chinese, but you can navigate okay enough to see some of the exhibits that are showing now.The piece to the left called “Enjoy a Life of Ease and Comfort” is by Pan Lusheng. He is a contemporary Chinese artist with some extraordinary work currently showing on the first floor.

This is not a painting but more like a weaving. There are literally thousands of colored strings used in making this image. It was quite large, over five feet in height, maybe more. Pan Lusheng’s art was so intricate that it was difficult for me to imagine how long one piece took to create and there were dozens in the exhibit hall.

Numerous other contemporary artists were on display including photographers. I typically don’t enjoy abstract art, but I was uncharacteristically drawn to numerous works in this genre.

I found the most of the artwork to be quite different than anything I had seen before. It was a fantastic experience. Overall, I highly recommend this art museum to anyone visiting Beijing.

After a western buffet lunch (Chinese style), our group split up. Five of us went to visit Yong He Gong, The Lama Temple. I was so happy to visit this working lamasery. It was heavily commercialized in several sections, but numerous historical relics, art and history could be found in every building.

Built in 1694, Yong He Gong was converted to a temple in 1744 when Yongzheng became the emperor. This temple follows the yellow hat sect of Buddhism which is the dominant school now. We started our journey through the temple complex and grounds by lighting three sticks of incense at the entrance. As we slowly meandered around, exploring each building, I found myself becoming increasingly relaxed. The smell of incense was strong in the air and viewing all of the different Buddha statues was amazing.

Our journey took us to the last of the five central buildings called Wanfu Ge (Tower of Ten Thousand Happinesses). Housed here is the statue of Maitreya (the future Buddha). The Maitreya statue stands 18 meters (59 feet) above ground with another 8 meters (26.5 feet) underground. It was carved from a single piece of white sandalwood and is the largest (confirmed by Guinness) of its kind in the world. It was stunning to see up close and personal.

After another wonderful dinner, we went to see the production, The Legend of Kungfu. It was an outstanding show that combined dance, martial arts, recitation, song and acting in a whirlwind of action, drama and art. We were mesmerized for the entire 80 minute production. The basic storyline was about a little boy who starts out as a monk and through many trials and tribulations becomes the Abbot of the monastery. Some of the acts were in the audience which really helped to bring us into the story. I loved it.

Tomorrow is the fantastic 800 year old Summer Palace and a Hutong tour in Beijing.

Michael