Happy PRC Day

October 1 is National Day in China and this year marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. To say it's a big deal would be putting is oh-so-mildly. Approximately 1.5 million people attended President Obama's inauguration. Approximately 20 million people LIVE in Beijing. I'm pretty sure that of the 1.5 billion people that live in China....well, a WHOLE BUNCH of them are coming to town.

The area around Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City has been severely restricted for weeks. Weekends have been devoted to smaller practices, while last Friday the whole city area was basically shut down from Friday afternoon through Saturday afternoon for parade practice. We had to release students and teachers early that day who lived in the city so they could get home before the roads closed. People who live in those areas have been asked to leave for the national week holiday.

When we see images from China, we often see military images and there is definitely going to be some amazing weaponry on display. For some reason, our news cuts away, though, before the spectacular floats and performances that I suspect would put the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade to shame. Think Olympic in the magnitude and their sense of presentation and perfection. It will be jaw-dropping.

Not that we'll be there to see it. Two weeks ago, when we were at the Forbidden City, the street in front was shut for parade practice and the crowds were insane. Chinese New Year was insane. This will be...well, the most insanest. I imagine that if I went down Wednesday after school with my sleeping bag and thermos of tea, I might finagle something quasi-close to the street. It will be virtually impossible to get in and out of the area. Security is, to say the least, is very high-priority for an event of this size, and not just around Beijing. Areas outside of Beijing have increased security as well, making the whole sleep-on-the-street thing probably impossible anyway. I will have pictures, though, after the event, and, suffice it say, you'll be ooohing and aaahing at the beauty of the Chinese people and culture. Us? We'll catch all the action on the Chinese TV stations--if the Olympics are any indication, we'll be able to watch it for several months!

Of course, this is a big holiday so everywhere will be more crowded. We are heading to Xi'an to visit the terra-cotta soldiers and then on to Pingyao, a UNESCO World Heritage site which has some of the best-preserved ancient city walls of this size (the city within the walls is restricted to foot and bike traffic only). Cameron visited there last year with his class and highly recommended it. I'm embarrassed to admit it will be our first trip out of Beijing since we moved here!