Confucius & Earth Temple.

I've been a few days without updating the blog, so I'll make up for it now with some tourism talk. We had only been to markets and such, so yesterday we decided to visit the Confucius Temple and Academy, and the Earth Temple in Ditan Park. It was raining quite a bit, but that didn't stop us from enjoying the view of the huge temple and building.

The street is a rather big one if you take into account that youre in a hutong, and streets there are always more narrow than wide. As you get closer to the temple, a lot of little shops start to appear, selling inciense and figurines of whatever pseudo-deity you might be looking for. Finally, you get to the gate of the temple. It's absolutely huge and beautiful, full of colors and with an astonishing gold glow. As you enter, you're greeted by some minor buildings on the sides hidden between trees that stand there protecting everything from the tourists.

We kept walking and passed by a statue of Confucius himself, crossing the Gate of Great Fortune and pausing to take some pictures and chek the exhibition halls that told us the story of Confucius, his teachings, his doctrine and his disciples. I already knew most of it, since I have studied Asian religions, but it was intereting to learn it from their point of view.

We then had lunch and visited the Temple of Earth, situated in the middle of Ditan Park. The park was so beautifully kept that I wished I had some hours to get lost in it. But it was raining and we had to go back eventually, so I didn't get to explore it as I would have liked. The garden was a beauty in itself, I wish I had taken some pictures of it, but it had started to rain and I didn't want to take out my camera with such a weather.