4-27-05
- The Temple of Heaven
by Brian Clark
Being
an admirer of architecture, today's visit to the Temple
of Heaven was amazing. Reading about the Temple of Heaven
during the research I did on the Forbidden City, before
we came to China, was stimulating, but to stand at Echo
Wall and hear Mr. Perrin and Jenna whispering my name
was exceptional! The Hall of Good Harvest is the main
building on the grounds and also the grandest. It is a
magnificent building surrounded by terraced walkways,
standing high and seeming to reach for the sky.
Walking
up to the Hall of Good Harvest and the minor buildings,
was awesome since we could walk on the marble path that
in the past only the Emperor was allowed to step on when
going to the temple for a Good Harvest celebration. I
was even allowed to "step into their shoes"
for a couple of minutes as I sat on the throne with Jenna.
Another
part of the Temple that was interesting was the sacrificial
ovens. Cows would be burned there as a sacrifice to the
gods for a good crop.
Mr.
Perrin, ever the science teacher, had us demonstrate the
sub-level orbital rotation of carbon on the steps up to
the Hall of Good Harvest. All in all this was an awesome
day.
