After three weeks of complaining to my friend, we finally went to see the Forbidden City. As many people know, many of the temples, palaces and structures there have been erected between 1400 to 1500s. These buildings are an amalgamation of different styles, periods and architectural designs. At first glance, they appear to be the same. They are very uniform as is the layout of the city itself.

Closer examination of each building I encountered however, revealed differences in painted and carved decorations. Stylistic motifs decorating the rooftops varied in number and design as I moved through the Forbidden city complex. I noticed very few people if any looking at the rooflines, but the creatures and heads made of tile and terracotta are unique. In a way the roof ridge cap creatures remind me of the viking gripping beast or the Egyptian house spirit. Theses creatures face each other from either end of the the main roofline ridge with their teeth appearing to gnaw at the roof cap tiles.

Coming off these long central roof ridges are a dragon and other creatures accompanied by human figures riding them towards the edge of the roof. They remind me of a cavaran riding of into the desert towards the sunset, and indeed with the sun dances of the surface of these decorations, there true artistry is revealed.

The roofs are not the only interesting feature of this enormous ancient city, but it is interesting to see how many people overlook these features on a daily basis. I watch as crowds hover over the large copper and iron caldrons, there gold overlay faded and in many cases, worn off. These objects seem to be a focal point between the courtyards as people pass from one gateway into a new ever expanding courtyard of stone and palaces, temples and residences of the former emperor's of China.

Personally, I am infatuated with the fountain heads that decorate each recessing level as I move toward the palaces where crowds of people flock to have a glimpse of the inner chamber. These fountain heads project out from the stairways and balconies. Eachone is carved with dragon heads and other creatures as one continues to move along the stairwells towards the third and final plataeu where the buildings stand overlooking the plaza. The royal road itself it layed out with marble stones, raised in the centre so as to keep the emperor's feet dry and elevated above the commoners who would have served him within these city walls. It is empressive how massive each block of stone used to create this amazing place.

Yellow and green tiles, likely coloured in ancient times with crushed jade and other elements such as copper, decorate the courtyards and gateways to private residences for the empress and other women who would have served as the emperor's concubines. Many of these portray scenes of cranes and other birds in their natural habitat in the form of a quattrofoil. other courtyards bear statues of cranes and deer, or cranes and turtles.

Every part of the city, from the imperial gardens to the temples residences and servants quarters are laid out on a symmetrical axis. Balance and harmony is maintained throughout the city complex and its individual parts. brightly coloured timbers decorate the inner sanctum of individual buildings, gatehouses and temple fronts. Each of these timbers are brightly painted with scenes of dragons, sacred symbols and other architectural elements which stand out individually and collectively as part of the overall structure of each building.

The overall size and shape of this complex and its incredibly thick, high standing walls is overwhelming. Watching all the people around me, moving through the individual streets and alleys as well as the large open plazas, makes it easy to image how much more lively this place once was. I can imagine street venders pulling their handcarts behind them, filled with pots, pans, textiles and other goods such as fruits and vegatables piled high. People standing beside their carts and preparing food to sell to others as they go about their daily business. It is easy to visuallize these activities taking place then just as they do outside the Forbidden City walls today.

I highly recommend visiting the city again to anyone who has been there and to those who haven't they should definitely see this place. I recommend do all the tourist parts, but I would advice people to look at the walls and see the decorated ceramic panels in the walls around the gates, look at the roof lines and the decorations which represent heavenly bodies and spiritual ideas tied to the cosmos. Look at the beams and their paintings, the hand painted art decorating the walls, now cracked and under glass after years of being exposed to the elements. And try to imagine the effort and work that went into creating such a beautiful place, the lives of those responsible for creating such a wonder and the efforts to conserve this place for future generations.