beijing temples

Yesterday I headed off to the Lama Temple, a Buddhist temple in Beijing. Apparently it's the most similar experience to going to a Tibetan temple without having to endure the border checks and general oppression. It was an interesting building. I once again got an audio guide, so I learned a lot about it. It used to be an imperial building, built for some cousin of the emperor, but then got turned into a temple.

For a fee, you can ring this huge bell. I gave my camera to a guy standing around, and he didn't quite get it, but you get the gist.

Lamaism is a type of Buddhism, and originates from Tibet. There were Tibetan prayer wheel around, and I burned some incense for Buddha. There was incense offering everywhere, so it was actually a very smoky environment. I wasn't allowed to take any photos inside the buildings, but there were a lot of statues of Buddha, including one about eight metres tall.
I lunched at a vegetarian restaurant I found - that's rare for Beijing. I was looking for a little bar in a hutong that Lonely Planet said was great, and I found it! I was so happy, but it had shut down. Afterwards, I went to the Confucian Temple, which was just across the road.

Here's a photo of me and Confucius, or Con as his mates call him.

And here's a photo of Confucius's student kneeling before him...
It was an interesting place, but I was pretty tired afterwards. It was interesting to learn more about Buddhism and Confucius. 
That night I went to a bar to watch the Opening Ceremony. Unfortunately we got there pretty late and missed most of it! I saw a few fireworks, but we weren't really near where the main ones were. But we sure could hear them.