ABC in the PRC

Beijing is massive. At the risk of sounding like some lowbrow country
pleb who's largest metropolitan experience is West Lafeyette, IN, I
must confess that I am utterly overwhelmed by the sheer size of
Beijing. I haven't looked up the "technical specs" on Beijing (i.e.
area, population, etc), but I can say that I have never been in a city
this large, or at least one that feels this large. I do know that the
layout of the roads is roughly the following: there are six concentric
rings that make up the major infrastructure of the city with many
connecting streets. After hours of wading through literally millions
of cars, people, bicycles, buses, mopeds, you name it, I noticed that
the majority of the streets are all four lanes in each direction.
Crossing the street is reminiscent of Frogger, and as such, it doesn't
really matter where you cross since it seems people just do whatever
they please and it's up to you to not die in the aftermath. No one
here seems to subscribe to the school of defensive driving. In fact,
if you're not an offensive, downright dangerous, driver, you'll never
make it out of the parking lot. Street signs, lanes, and lights are
more of guidelines than anything else, and as long as no one gets
hurt, no one seems to mind what you do.

Driving aside, there are a few interesting places that I have had a
chance to visit. Everyone's heard of famous Chinese landmarks such as
Tiananmen, the Forbidden Palace, the Great Wall, and as you can
probably guess, no description or picture could ever do these places
justice. As I was walking through the Forbidden Palace, I couldn't
help but think about what it must have been like to live here as the
emperor or any of his subjects. Life in total seclusion from the rest
of the world along with centuries of history and customs surrounding
you is just unfathomable to me. Today, it would be doubly strange
because as you look around the palace, the walls no longer block out
the rest of the world from entering. Above the palace looms the
characteristic Beijing skyline where skyscrapers can be seen in every
direction. So even as one stands in the centuries old forbidden
palace, constant reminders of the ever advancing Chinese society are
present. Speaking of which, all of the buildings in downtown Beijing
are enormous. Cities like New York and Chicago hardly compare to the
megastructures that seem to go on forever. An hour and a half of
driving later (albeit through horrendous traffic) there seemed to be
no end to the rows of skyscrapers that lined the streets. I know a
lot of this may sound pretty superficial, but I'll try to get some
pictures up later that may or may not be worth several thousand words.