On the afternoon of New Year s Day we visited Tianamen Square and the Forbidden City , which was just a short fifteen-minute drive from our hotel. Tianamen Square is the largest of its kind in the world and is the focal point of the modern China since the era of Chairman Mao. It is so vast that it can accommodate one million people. The atmosphere in the square is remarkable. There is a unique serenity pervading the place and one immediately becomes conscious of its importance in the modern Chinese culture.
Military music comes from loudspeakers strategically placed along the square.
On one side is the Tianamen Gate, which is the viewing area for the military march-pasts, and on the opposite side is the Mausoleum of Mao Tse Tung. The embalmed body of the Chinese leader is on view and the experience of visiting it was unforgettable. The queue formed a double line and walked slowly and in formation along the pavement to the steps leading up to the Mausoleum. After receiving the signal to proceed up the steps, we were led into the first of the two chambers, which had a massive marble statue of Chairman Mao . You then proceeded into the main hall where his embalmed body lay in state in a glass casket.