Beijing, 2nd Site. The Forbidden City

It's not hard to think that the world radiates out from the Forbidden City. The Middle Kingdom was the center of civilization and with the establishment of Beijing as China's capital, the Imperial City became the center, of the center of civilization. Today the Emperor’s home is still the center of the city. Everything still seems to radiate out of it and orbit around it.

The scale of the complex is mind-boggling.  It covers nearly 8,000,000 ft.² and includes nearly 1,000 buildings. There are massive gates that open onto an immense courtyard leading only to another massive gate protecting another immense courtyard. It makes the other places you have seen and thought impressive (Versailles) seem puny by comparison. It is difficult to find words to do justice to its scale.

But why? What possessed them (the Ming Dynasty) to want to build on the scale they did? It makes me wonder if there are any limits to ancient ruler’s megalomania. If they could enslave 1 million more to build something else for them, I guess they would. It makes you glad to be living now. We get to see all this stuff without making much of a contribution to its existence.

The Forbidden City is indeed a sight to behold. Our visit to Beijing did come at 

the end of almost a month in China. So, by the time we got to it we had seen great halls and walls and gates and temples. But none quite like what you see here. Bigger, grander, more numerous and concentrated if not so much in space (there's a lot of walking between them) then concentrated in time. In a few hours you encounter an immense collection of Imperial treasures. It is pretty overwhelming. And maybe that was the point. Still, you can go over the top - even when trying to overwhelm.

And even when overwhelming you can underwhelm. Someday, probably soon, they will renew the Forbidden City exhibits. In the back are the residential quarters, the buildings where the Imperial family hung out. They let you wander around those buildings and peer in through the glass at relics of their lives. I suppose they have some cool stuff in those rooms but the poor lighting and opaque windows make it hard to appreciate any of it. As architecture, it was great as a museum, pretty poor.

Beijing, 1st site: Tian’an Men Square.

Tian’an Men Square, just the name of the place conjures up images and memories of the darkest moments in recent Chinese history. Being on the Square, you can still sense the legacy of that time.  As much as the Chinese government would like everyone to forget it ever happened, for me, the experience of Tiananmen Square was a series of reminders both of the results of that day, but also of the government’s failings and insecurities both then and now.

Tian’an Men Square is described as the largest public square in the world and its scale does not fail to impress - once you get there. But getting there is not as simple as just moseying on over. Unlike any other square I have encountered, access to Tian’an Men is tightly controlled. Though the square is ringed by large boulevards and served by three subway stops - creating the potential for many paths to and from - the government apparently does not want it to be that easy. Instead, the squares long perimeter is mostly enclosed by a low fence. Entry and exit happens only at designated points watched over by both local police and the army and happens only after you pass through airport style security screening. What are they afraid you will bring in to the Square? No idea. And is there a reason to worry more than the Russians worry about Red Square or the Germans about Brandenburger Tor? Or are they just being paranoid?

Once you get to the Square, the overriding sense I got was of emptiness. The Square is massive and in it you find just a flagpole and a rather nondescript memorial monument. That and a bunch of people milling about. Oh and soldiers - lots of soldiers. At the south end and technically still ‘in the square’ is Mao's Mausoleum.  Perhaps the square’s big draw. Every day thousands line up to pass quickly (double file) past the Great Helmsman's crystal coffin and earthly remains (or wax likeness?)

In the afternoon, after the MAO-so-leum closes, the square thins out and then at sunset, it closes. The soldiers start in the north and step shoulder to shoulder towards the south exits, guiding stragglers out of the space. Don't want anyone thinking they can camp out.  That's how all the trouble started last time.

WiT? Clue:  Was this American out of place, memorialized in China?  It was at a school of politics and law, among a pantheon of giants.  I think the point they were trying to make was the importance of the rule of law to a civilized society.  If so, then yes - he would make that point. 

Ankara, 2nd site: Atatürk’s mausoleum

We had just arrived at the airport in Ankara and Murat picked us up and asked if we wanted to go to the hotel, or to go see something. What the heck, let's go see something. So where are we going? Someplace special was the reply. When we arrived and parked the car, it was not at all apparent where we were, or why anyone would go where we were headed. But we followed Murat through the security, that seemed tight at the time, but which we would learn was nothing unusual by Turkish standards. We headed up the hill and slowly it revealed itself.

It has a name (Anitkabir) but what it is, is the final resting place of MK Atatürk. As you know, Atatürk is revered in Turkey in a way that few leaders anywhere are revered. You cannot walk far in a Turkish city without passing a statue in his honor. So, what is his mausoleum like?

I always thought Napoleon’s tomb was a bit on the excessive side, but then my hero is Thomas Jefferson and I always was impressed by the restraint shown in his marker (not even the biggest in his family's cemetery). Restraint was not shown with Anitkabir. The mausoleum itself is just one part of a sprawling complex set on a hill overlooking Ankara. One gets the feeling that Atatürk's place is there, watching over his country and his capital, even in death.

Anitkabir was not Atatürk's first resting Place. The complex was the product of an elaborate process of design and construction and not completed until 15 years after Atatürk’s death. It was not built just for him. It is also a monument to his achievement, the Turkish republic. It is their ceremonial space, featuring dramatic monumental architecture and massive open spaces to be filled on ceremonial and patriotic locations. And Atatürk is at its center. Makes perfect sense to me.

Havana, Second Site: ‘Old Havana’

Let's be frank, in comparison to the other cities included in this project (Moscow, Berlin, Istanbul) Havana is just not in the same league. Cuba is a small country and Havana has not been at the center of world history. A Top 10 list of things to do in Havana consists mostly of smoking, drinking and cruising. There are not a lot of must see sights. Unless you count an entire neighborhood as a site.

Then, Old Havana makes everyone's list and even if there is no one particular spot, or one particular event that stands out, as a whole that part of town represents the best of Cuba. At least the best of what it was and perhaps the best of what it could be. I am not so sure about the present.

Havana does have a past. Already at beginning of the 17th century Havana was an important part of Spain's American empire. Counting on the strength in numbers as a way to protect their ships from piracy, Spain would bring its ships to Havana from throughout the New World and then from there they would sail together for Spain. A lot of wealth was passing through town and a lot of people hanging out. Havana prospered.

Prosperity left its mark. Old Havana boasts grand old public buildings as well as the homes and haunts of the wealthy. The oldest part of the city (between the cathedral and Plaza San Francisco) has the feel of colonial Spain and presents one architectural gem after another as you stroll along the quiet streets that though not a pedestrian zone, see so little traffic that they might as well be.

Moving inland from the colonial quarter, you see the product of the 19th and 20th centuries.  Still a time of relative prosperity - at least for those at the top of the economic pyramid. They build their baubles to show off and to play in.  The Capitolio and the Gran Teatro are excellent examples of a society and a class confident in its wealth, power and future.

Three Buildings: Decaying, Restored, In Process

Only things did not work out the way they expected. With the revolution, most of Cuba's wealth and wealthy citizens fled the country. The opulent buildings and the activities they housed were no longer needed and fell into disuse. Many have not aged gracefully. Today, as tourists begin to make Havana a regular part of the Caribbean vacation scene, some of these places are recapturing their grandeur. You can wonder if it is a good thing. They are being fixed up - but not for Cubans. That part felt wrong and bothered me. Is the day coming when they can enjoy it, too?

Havana, 1st Site: Plaza de la Revolucion

Red Square in Moscow. Alexanderplatz in the GDR. It should come as no surprise that I would find one in Cuba. Every Soviet style regime had one. They were a vital part of the propaganda playbook. On May 1, international Worker’s Day, there was going to be a big parade to celebrate the revolution and the worker’s regime it had produced. The masses would turn out, not just as spectators but also as participants. The size of the throng was testimony to the support of the people. The ability of the regime to defend itself against both imperialist aggressors abroad and their lackeys at home would be displayed. It was all about messaging. “Don't mess with us. We are powerful.”

Staging that message effectively requires an appropriate space. The Plaza de la Revolucion fills the bill, perfectly. The centerpiece of the Plaza is the memorial to José Marti. Visible for miles, it is easily Havana's tallest structure, which I presume makes it Cuba's tallest. Like the Washington Monument, there is no particular purpose for the height of the structure, except as a metaphor for the stature of the man. Marti towers over Cuba's history and his monument towers over Cuba itself.

At the top of the monument is an observation deck. You can, of course, pay to go up and have a look. I didn't. The base of the monument is already elevated and Havana is pretty flat. It was a pretty cloudy day and I did not think there would be much to see.  So, I just paid to visit the museum and skipped the lookout.

Ticket in hand, I entered the memorial. The guard took a quick look at my receipt and pointed me towards the elevator. I got in and next thing I knew I was at the top. I asked the guard up there about the museum  - its downstairs. So, back down I go (I did sneak a peek while waiting for the next elevator. I was right. Nothing to see on a cloudy day). Why the mix-up?  Auto pilot. Tourists don't visit the museum.  Actually it seems almost no one does. In the hour I was there, I was alone. Dozens of people rode up to have a look but none stopped to see the Marti exhibits. That's not what tourists come to Havana for.

Fidel's Chair

The Plaza de la Revolucion lays at the foot of the Marti Memorial, the base of which doubles as a speakers rostrum and reviewing stand. It was not hard to imagine May Day. Fidel in his place, presiding over the spectacle. Looking out he would see the visages of his ‘sainted’ revolutionary comrades, the world famous Ché and the lesser-known Camilo Cienfuegos, both martyrs to the revolution and role

John Paul's Visit

models for the Cuban people. A massive and impressive stage. The day I visited, like most days I expect, it was largely empty. I found it somewhat ironic that I only saw two pictures of the plaza in use. One was in the Museum of the Revolution, a May Day a military parade. The other showed the square viewed from the lookout above, filled to capacity. The speaker that day? Pope John Paul II.

WiT? Clue:  Speaking of JP II, he'd have guessed this one straight away.  As a matter of fact, he might have been able to see it from his house.

Ankara, 1st site: CHP headquarters

The CHP Leader's office

Normally when I choose the sites I am to write about, it is because of their historic significance or cultural value. For Ankara, the first site probably would not meet either of those criteria. It probably isn't in anybody's tour guide either - but it was huge for me.
It was a visit to the headquarters of one of Turkey's leading political parties for a chat with an advisor to the party’s deputy leader. Murat and his friend Tugba (who runs a TV channel) pulled some strings and set up the meeting.

In Turkey, political parties are funded in large part by the state. This provides them with the ability to develop an infrastructure to support their ongoing activities (Their political work developing and maintaining a constituency). A Turkish political party’s physical presence does not come and go in the few weeks around election day like American political parties. - Think about it, if you wanted to visit the Democrats or Republicans today could you find them? In Turkey, you could. Months before an election, we saw the offices of many different political parties - open and doing business. Given that this is true even of smaller parties in smaller cities (Izmir, for example) it is not really a surprise that in the capital, a major political party would have its own building.

The Communists, on Istiklal

The CHP (Republican Peoples Party) does, and it is an impressive space. We got the grand tour - even saw the leader’s private office and the parties cabinet room. Very cool - Even so, the highlight was the chat.  In Turkey's history, the CHP (center-left) has been its leading party, often forming the government. The old guard, through complacency and corruption, led it into the electoral wilderness. But losing collections can be therapeutic. It has new blood, fueled by people like the adviser we spoke with. Like many Turkish politicians his background is in academia. Unlike Sarah Palin’s Tea Party, Turks don’t see expertise and an intellectual orientation as a liability in governing.  These young politicians have a vision for leading their party back to power and correcting the drift they see in Turkey towards Islamism.

It was very interesting to hear Murat (who supports a rival political party - more Liberal in the classical sense) and the CHP adviser agree on so many subjects. They are rivals who share a profound fear of the current leadership and its direction for Turkish society. It will be interesting to see what results the coming election will bring. Is a grand secular coalition a possibility? It sounded that way to me and struck me as another echo of Atatürk's legacy.

Berlin: 2nd Site- Potsdam

For most of its history Potsdam was not part of Berlin. In fact, Potsdam's raison d’etre is that it was not Berlin. It was a place where the Prussian ruling family could go to escape the capital. It was here that they would build their castles. Yes, castles plural. That is one of the things that jumps out at you on a visit to Potsdam. These people, the Hohenzollern, sure have a lot of castles. In Potsdam we visited two of them and from the garden of one looked up the path at a third. Why would anyone need that many palaces? Obviously part of the answer was that they built them

simply because they could. Still there does seem to be a developing pattern in places I have visited between conspicuous consumption and revolution. Wall Street might want to pay some attention.

Even so Potsdam is an extraordinary place. Before unification it was separated from West Berlin and hard currency tourism on the other side of the famous spy bridge where East and West met to exchange prisoners. Driving through Potsdam one can still make out the occasional East German structure, but they stand out because of their rarity. Potsdam has caught up.

Sans Soucis

Today, it is an upscale tourist haunt, home of Frederick the Great’s version of Versailles and another palace, the last Crown Prince’s Cecelian Hof, home of the famous Potsdam conference, that last meeting of victorious allies at which

Plenty O' Soucis

they contemplated the fate of postwar Germany. There is a great contrast between the two structures. Frederick’s San Souci is rococo. Cecelian Hof is much more sedate as befits a structure built while Germany is fighting World War I.  Still, one wonders who builds a palace in the middle of a war, especially when there are two others just a stone's throw away?  Uh, people about to be deposed?

Berlin, 1st Site: Brandenburger Tor

Brandenburger Tor, New Year's Eve.

Einen guten Rutsch ins neue Jahr!

30 years ago when MC and I lived here, Berlin was in a way an island in the Eastern European sea. Visiting Berlin was not easy to do, and I'm not even sure that there was all that much reason to do so. For me that makes what happens here at New Year's Eve all the more amazing.

On Sylvester (Dec. 31), the world comes to Berlin. New Year's Eve at the Brandenburger Gate is said to be Europe’s biggest party. If you can believe reports, over 1 million people cram into the boulevard that stretches between the Victory Column (Siegesäule) and the Brandenburger Gate to ring in the New Year.

I believe the reports.  MC and I were two of those million people. Given our experience, I don't think the crowd estimate was inflated. It was jam packed. We were jammed and packed. In retrospect we may not have chosen the best way in. We came in from the side near the stage but at that place people were compressed, literally front to back and side to side. We decided to look for a place with more space.

For 20 min. we edged our way through the crowd. Edged. We kind of went sideways because there was no way to go straight through. You had to knife and squeeze your way forward. I have never been in such a crowd. Remarkably, everyone was good-natured. I say remarkably, because I suspect some of my ‘neighbors’ were pretty drunk. I suspect it because of the scene we witnessed on the way to the gate. When we got on the U-Bahn, at least half the people in the train had an open bottle of beer which they were enjoying. Christopher gave me a hard time because I had hassled him about bringing a bottle on the train. We knew it was allowed because we had actually seen a sign on a train asking patrons not to toss their empties out of the windows (duh) and the ‘house rules’ only forbid ‘excessive’ enjoyment of alcohol. Still, the only people I have ever seen drinking on a train were drunks - until I got on this train. All kinds had their ‘roadies’ that night – young, old, men, women - everyone but Christopher.

The Day After

Eventually, we broke through the wall to wall people, about a quarter mile from the stage and could walk up and down the street past the vendors  and discos and Ferris wheel, killing time until the big moment. We had about two hours to go. We had gotten there early (about 9 PM) because our Berlin friends told us that some years they have to shut down the entrance once too many people get inside. We did not want to miss our only chance but now we had some time to kill.

Our options were not all that spectacular. Walking was difficult even where there was no crowd because the street was either covered with piles of snow or 2 inches of slush. I'm still puzzled why Berlin makes no effort to clear the streets or sidewalks of snow. Even in a place where they know 1 million will be gathering – no clean up. So it just sits there and because it was 1°C it was slush puddles and people standing in the dry spots. By 10 pm my feet were soaked.  By 11 we decided to take our spot. It was near a big TV screen but there was so much noise that you could not hear the audio.

You could hear the people around you but you cannot understand them. I couldn't anyway. It was like being at the United Nations. There were Asians (Japan, China, Korea) Latin Americans, (the Columbians especially boisterous), there were Russians, Europeans of all stripes, with Spain and Italy exceptionally well represented. There was a lot of English to be heard and occasionally the odd phrase in German. It is truly amazing how Brandenburger Gate, what was once the ultimate symbol of European and even global division, is now the magnet for a unifying celebration. For years this was an explicit goal of West German foreign policy. New Year's Eve at Brandenburg gate seems to be a physical manifestation of the success of their vision.

And as physical manifestations go, it is pretty impressive in its own right. At midnight they let loose about 15 min. of official fireworks (accompanied by David Hasselhoff himself singing something that the poor audio spared me from hearing). It does not end after those 15 min.  For the next two hours and more private merry makers will light up the skies (and your ear drums) with explosions that make the Fourth of July seen tame.  All told it is a great party. They really know how blast their way into the New Year.

For those of you who made it to the end of a rather long post, and still playing Who is That #7, a clue.  This girl could peek out her windows (but only at night) and see a passing boat.

Moscow, 1st Site: The Metro

The Moscow Metro may not be a site, per se, but it is collectively an extraordinary element of Moscow life and Soviet history rolled into one.

Moscow, the city, is massive and as a result requires a massive system of public transport.  This was particularly true during the Soviet era when private ownership of

Air vent cover

automobiles was rare. Today owning a car is not all that rare. Some families like Zhanna's even have two. That may not sound like a big deal to Californians, but for city folk and especially city folk in a cold climate, owning the car is sometimes more trouble than it is worth. Especially if public transit is good. Downtown traffic and parking pushes people to the metro.

And in Moscow, the Metro responds. Between the nine different metro lines there did not seem there was any where we wanted to go that was far from the metro station. Once at the station the trains came in rapid succession, never more than a minute or two between trains. When the cars arrived it was often packed with passengers. The system is efficient and well used if perhaps, a bit well worn. On one of the lines we encountered the new cars (though never the newest cars pictured on the metro map).  The new cars are a major upgrade over the 90% of the fleet that I suspect dates back to Soviet times. The older cars are functional, but seem to have given little thought to passenger safety or comfort. There's no ventilation and when crowded you're likely to be stuck in the middle with no place to hang on. Muscovites seem to manage. It must be years of practice - they can even do it on 5 inch heels!

A shrine to Lenin

For the Soviets,, the metro was much more than a transit system however, and many of the stations reflect a ceremonial purpose. Those stations are literally works of art. It has been said that because the Soviets had no churches, the Metro filled the need for a place to publicly celebrate society’s deeds.

Moscow’s metro stations rival churches with their mosaic ceilings and marble clad porticos. Though Soviet statuary is not absent from Moscow above ground, below ground the Metro's halls are full of statues of Lenin, larger than life bronze of the victorious proletariat and murals depicting the budding Utopia. If you're not put off by the tragic history of Russian communism, the stations might be Moscow’s most beautiful space.

Moscow, 2nd Site: Red square and the Kremlin.

The first time we saw Red Square we were not allowed to enter it. We had to look on it from afar. The government was using it. No visitors allowed. Red Square has always been used by the government of the day. My dominant image of the Square is the way it was used by the Soviets. They would use it to stage their parades and funerals. Party officials together on Lenin’s tomb with Sovietologists trying to figure out who's up and who's down based on where they stood on the podium.

The Square doesn't see events like that anymore. On this date it was being used as the starting place for the Moscow marathon being run across the city. It is not the solemn place once was.  Today it is jammed with tourists, jostling for angles for their pictures of themselves in front of the squares many iconic façades. If that is not enough for you, you can add a ‘Boyar’, or Lenin, Brezhnev, Sponge Bob, Shreck - your choice, to any snapshot for just a few hundred rubles.

The centerpiece of the square is Lenin’s mausoleum. When Lenin died in 1924 he was displayed in Red Square for what was supposed to be a limited time. Stalin recognize the value of Lenin as a symbol, however, as a result he could never bear to remove him from the people’s sight.
So there he is, surviving even the fall of the Soviet union.

Visiting his crypt is an involved process. There is the first line, which acts as the meter for the security check which rivals any thing I ever experienced at an airport. It seems geared to be sure that no one has a camera. They really don't want you taking pictures, so all phones get checked as well. Once you pass security you file past the luminaries of the Soviet era marked with statues and buried behind Lenin. All of the leaders (except Khrushchev) are there, in their glory, as if nothing had changed. All of the graves are decorated with red plastic carnations. On this day only three of the graves had fresh flowers; Dzerzhinski, founder of the Cheka, killer of thousands; Sverdlov, an old Bolshevik; Stalin, ‘nough said. It is kind of a surprise any of them have flowers but I would have never guessed those three. I have read Stalin does have a following, folks who missed the stability and order. It was like a walk back in time.

After you pass the Soviet leaders you enter the mausoleum itself. Along to walk you are monitored by special Kremlin security police, a different uniform than the Moscow city police. Now their presence becomes more intense. At the entrance you are greeted by an officer with his finger to his mouth, shhh! The hall is polished black marble, not particularly well lit, you descend. At every turn there is another guard. Finally you turn and enter the crypt itself. Lenin is there in a crystal case, bathed in white light, a setting more fitting for sleeping beauty it seems.

But there he was, perfectly preserved looking as good as the day he died - a miracle of Soviet science. You walk 270° around his coffin and his guards and then back into the daylight of Red Square. If you're like me, you wonder why.  Why he's still there and why anybody, including me, still cares. But there, I have done it. I have seen one of the world's great curiosities - now where's that bearded lady?