When we were in Beijing I went to the Forbidden Palace on my own to take photos of this once mysterious place and its treasures. My partner had already seen it on another trip and we just knew that there were going to be too many people and steps for poppet. We made the right decision: the queue was enormous and once inside people were everywhere.
It dawned on me that there was no way I was going to be able to take many photos without tourists in them. I took a few close-ups, but trying to capture the grandeur of the site was impossible. However, the people themselves turned out to be very interesting. I love seeing people pose for photographs. Often they run up to camera afterwards to check to if they like the shot and then run back and adjust their pose. This ritual doesn’t seem to have any age, gender or national boundaries. I love it and so here are a few of my favourites of photo taking/posing tourists as well as some of the crowds.
BTW I just noticed this article in the SMH— Full-size Forbidden City gates replica planned for NSW theme park. Crazy!
My Tiny Italian Garden 