Spring is here!

Over the last couple weeks, the weather as turned from fresh (around 2-3 degrees in the night, 8 in the days) to warm (25 degrees yesterday!). What a nice change! I have been a little doubtful, as the last warm spell we had did not last. Indeed, mid-March brought us a long weekend of spring-like weather, only to turn again to cold wind and automnal weather. But now, it feels real. The trees have blossomed, flowers are budding, the wind is warm, it feels good.
So Saturday, we set out to catch the spring. Beijing, with its concrete and greyness, does not always feel as the best place to witness the delicate action of nature. We headed to XiangShang, Frangrant Hills.
With only 20 km out of Beijing, we expected a few Beijingers to be there, as it is tradition for them to go enjoy the nature. A traffic jam at the highway exit got us worried that the crowd would outdo the landscape, but once there, we were free to enjoy the park.
The entrances of the park are lined with small shops, restaurants, teahouses and eateries, complete with loud music blasting for every stall (off course each of them listening to their own selection!). Families are slowly strolling to the park, arriving by buses that are well deserving the area.

The park itself is a pleasantly arranged at the bottom of the hill, with a few lakes, various species of trees, picnic areas and pleasant paths. Of course, a few temples and a museum are also part of the scenery. A cable car can help the crowds reach the top of the hill. We chose to stroll around the bottom of the hill and to lay and smell the fresh grass while Noam was napping in his stroller.


Xiangshang dates from the Jin dynasty, with the original temple built in 1186. In the Yuan and Ming dynasty the hills were used are Imperial hunting grounds. In the Qing dynasty (1711-1799) the emperor initiated a large scale construction, leading to 28 scenic spots and a wall to keep the deers he imported from Manchuria, as most game was hunted by previous emperors. Today, after been ransacked by the French and the English at the beginning of century, the park is a mix of replicas, restorations, and foundations of the structures that have grace the park over the last 800 years.

Today, no longer privilege of the emperor and its suite, Beijingers come in numbers to enjoy the natural beauty of the park.

The highlight of our visit was the Biyunsi, the Azure Cloud temple, a beautiful set of constructions, part temple, part shrine, part exhibit to the history of Sun-Yet-sen.








And of course, a surprise that is not one: we are being watched the whole time!