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On our last day in Beijing we had a free day. So Lauren (see picture) and I decided to go to the Summer Palace.
The Summer Palace was the palace the emperor and his family and some other high ranking officials went to during the Summer.
It is currently the tail end of Winter so we didn't get to see it in its full glory, but that is not to say in any way that it wasn't absolutely stunning.
It's the sort of place where you can point your camera pretty much anywhere and click and get a beautiful photo.
And the benefit of going in Winter/Spring time is that there aren't the crowds you get during the high season so you can actually walk at your own pace comfortably.
But what might come as a bit of a shock is the size of the place- especially if you're using the highly inaccurate map you can buy.
Lauren and I only got through about 75%, and not in any real detail, but it took us at least 4 hours.
I loved imagining the emperor or the empress walking around in the Summer in these beautiful gardens accompanied by a whole entourage of servants to carry some seats and a packed lunch. Or taking a boat ride along the magnificent lake.
The scope of it all just boggles the mind, as does so much in China.
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