Qing Dynasty Sight-Seeing

Tomb of the first Emperor of the Qing Dynasty

Part of the fun of living in a foreign land is checking out all the historical sites.  Daniel said they wanted to go to the fun Ocean Park in Fushun, China one day, but the traffic was so bad they ended up stopping half-way to Fushun and visited some ancient Tombs of the Qing Dynasty instead.

These are three Imperial Mausoleums located in Liaoning province, outside of Shenyang where Daniel and his family live, which were added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage sites in 2004.

I'm glad they took this side trip.  The pictures Daniel took were rather beautiful.

One of the fun things Daniel and Holly did while visiting the Qing Dynasty Tomb complex, was to purchase traditional Chinese costumes for the kids.  They look adorable, don't they?

Penny!  Penny!  Penny!

Fred attracts females wherever he goes!  This is a picture (above) of Fred and his "girlfriend" Penny.  She thought he looked pretty good in his traditional dress.  Ah, the allure of a man in uniform!

Livia got this cute outfit while visiting

Think pink!

This looks like an interior shot

I wish I knew more about this to post about it!  It looks like the first emperor was pretty well set up for his trip to the afterlife!  Or this may be a spot to offer sacrifices.  I tried looking it up, but didn't find anything conclusive.

Tomb Marker

I love all this spectacular architecture (see below)!  And the delicate stonework is just wonderful.  Can you imagine how long things like this would take to create?  The artistry and patience of ancient craftsmen always blows me away.

In contrast, we live in a plastic, throw-away, society.

This looks pretty formidable a structure (below).  This is how I used to think everything looked in China.  I'm glad Daniel is educating me!

The Fancheng, Square Castle

The Qing Dynasty was established in 1644 A.D.  To compare and contrast, the Pilgrims just set sail for the New World in 1620 A.D.  In England there was civil war during the 1640s, and then the rule of Cromwell until the Restoration of the Monarchy with King Charles II in 1660.  In France, Louis the 14th had just become a boy king (age 5) in 1643.  He would go on to build Versailles and be called "The Sun King".

Back in China, the Qing Dynasty was to rule until 1911-1912.  The end of the Qing Dynasty marks the beginning of the Republic of China.

Fred got this Chinese outfit while sight-seeing

 I think they are brave to take their small children to all these places.  However, I think Fred really enjoys seeing and doing things like this, despite being only 2 years-old.

Okay, he'll be three in August, but you catch my drift.

An ancient stone marker

This ancient stone marker was inscribed in two different languages: Manchu on the left, and Chinese on the right.

The Qing rulers came from an area of northeastern China known as Archaic Manchuria.  They were part of a clan known as Manchu Aisin Gioro.  The time period when they established their rule was also the period that Christianity came to China.

Holly and the little tourist

Daniel posing in the courtyard

The ornamentation above the courtyard is pretty spectacular!

The grounds of this site look beautiful

Holly, Fred, Livia and her Ayi

These stairs seem to go on forever!

... and ever!

All those stairs look pretty intimidating to little legs.  Heck, they look intimidating to me, too!

Getting a history lesson and some culture can be exhausting!

I love these mini-vacations!  I hope you do, too!