Marco...Polo...Marco...Polo...Marco...

 

Inside Wanping Old Town

In my last post I was wondering if we would take advantage of the Labor Day holiday weekend and get out of Beijing 北京. The answer turned out to be "no", mainly because our daughter has entered her final year of high school, and therefore (for some reason) she can't miss a single day of classes (she attends an international school and so doesn't get to observe U.S. federal government holidays, unlike her old man). We could've still ventured out of the city for at least a night on a Saturday, but this most recent 星期六 found my wife feeling the effects of a cold. Amber was also a bit under the weather, so the day was for naught.

But not the entire weekend. Both girls were feeling better on Sunday, and so we hopped in the car in the late morning and ventured around 45 minutes across town to the see the historic Lugou Bridge 卢沟桥. If that name doesn't sound familiar, let me rephrase the previous sentence to read that we drove to see the Marco Polo Bridge. And to students of modern history that latter should ring some bells, as the span was the site of the infamous "Marco Polo Bridge Incident" (中: 卢沟桥事变; 日: 盧溝橋事件), a clash between Chinese and Japanese soldiers on July 7, 1937, which ignited the long and bloody Second Sino-Japanese War (中: 中国抗日战争; 日: 日中戦争), the effects of which continue to reverberate to the present day. 

The bridge is located opposite the historic fortress of Wanping 宛平城, a double-gated walled town constructed during the reign of the last Ming dynasty 明朝 emperor, Chongzheng 崇祯帝. Not many original buildings remain save for the two kilometer-long, six meter-high walls dating from 1640. We entered via the West Gate, across from the bridge: 

Wanping these days is basically one long street with some old buildings lining both sides of the road. Although there were visitors walking around, there were surprisingly few restaurants and shops, at least compared to other historic districts in Beijing:

The East Gate at the opposite end of the road from where we entered:

We had lunch at a fairly nondescript restaurant. The one dish we ordered which stood out was the Jingdong meat pies 京东馅饼:

My daughter feeling a bit like Gulliver in a Beijing version of Lilliput:

We opted not to visit the Museum of the War of Chinese People's Resistance Against Japanese Aggression 中国人民抗日战纪念馆 mainly because we hadn't reserved tickets via WeChat, though the fact it's most likely not a family-friendly sunny Sunday afternoon destination also played a role in our decision to keep walking. I would like to visit at some point during our tour in Beijing. Apparently, there may have been more visitors than usual on Sunday, judging by this article. Perhaps that's why I felt some people in the area were looking at me with a feeling other than that of friendly curiosity:

Across from the museum stands one of those open plazas devoid of shade that city planners around the globe, but especially those in socialist societies, love to construct. Neither my daughter nor I could quite figure out what the lion-like sculpture was supposed to represent:

The temperature reached a high of 35°C (95°F), though the humidity wasn't as thick as it had been earlier in the summer (certainly not as uncomfortable as what Amber and I had experienced in Japan!):

Leaving the fortress and standing on the Lugou Bridge itself. I had planned on wearing my Hanshin Tigers 阪神タイガーズ jersey, but taking into account both the historical significance of the bridge, and of the current political situation*, I opted instead for an non-controversial Poland national soccer team jersey (in a helpful shade of socialist red!). The Los Angeles Dodgers cap was an added safeguard, as it seems to have become a popular fashion accessory with many Beijingers recently: 

The bridge is 266 meters (873 feet) in length, spanning the largely dry Yongding River 永定河. It dates from 1189, though much of it was reconstructed after flood damage in 1698. There are hundreds of stone lions lining the bridge, with each one supposedly unique in appearance:

The outer walls of the Wanping Fortress still sport crater shells from the fighting 86 years ago:

To be honest, I was a little disappointed with how the Marco Polo Bridge is presented these days. For one thing, the lack of water in the river beneath tends to subtract from whatever sense of grandeur the structure possesses. It's also difficult for visitors to see the bridge from below, making it difficult to appreciate the arches, and other aspects of its construction. The surrounding parkland is also somewhat tatty in appearance. On the other hand, each lion statue had a spotlight placed below it, so perhaps the Luguo Bridge looks more attractive after dark? In any event, we left for home around 1630 hours so I can't know for certain at this time:

https://www.chinatoursnet.com/beijing-travel-guide/attraction/marco-polo-bridge.html

As for Monday, I stayed in for the most part, feeling lightheaded enough at times that I came to the conclusion it would not have been a good idea to go for a planned bike ride. So my three-day weekend ended up a resembling a sandwich - a Sunday filling of history, between two Wonder Bread slices (Saturday and Monday) of boredom. Still, as the three of us are almost settled back into our pre-summer vacation routines, I anticipate we'll be getting back out more often. At the very least, the siren call of the autumn season should be luring Shu-E out of hibernation once summer comes to a merciful end.

An idea for a craft beer that probably sounded better on paper than in practice. Unless, of course, you relish the idea of legume-themed 啤酒

Timi

*See this video as well