Ming tombs--oh wait, maybe just some other stuff

This is a replica of the empress's tomb. People throw money at this empty, red box. I wonder who keeps it...
I love the guardian lions that decorate most of the doors. So did this little kid.
Only during thunderstorms.
Please--no megaphones in the tombs. Thank you.
This is Justin, myself, Lini and Jane, our adviser, just outside of the Ming Tombs. We were lucky it was such a clear day--if you get a chance to look at some of my photos of the Forbidden City, you'll notice that often there is a very dusty, gray haze over Beijing. It seems to be clearing up. :)
A view of another Ming tomb.
Lantern at a restaurant.
This vase was something I saw on a "how vases are made" tour provided by BOCOG. This particular vase was made in The Friendship Store, one of the first foreigner-friendly stores in Beijing. Ridiculously highly priced things...beautiful, but unaffordable.
This girl was ADORABLE. She was a little nervous to have her picture taken, but after I asked if I could take her photo, her parents became so proud and were having her pose with her hands on her hips and stuff.

These were taken at/around the Ming tombs. The Ming Tombs are a very fascinating place because it is the burial grounds of the last 13 Ming Emperors; only one of the tombs, that of the 4th Ming Emperor, is open to the public because it has been excavated. Unfortunately, within 6 hours after modern oxygen crept into the tomb, everything that had been mummified dissipated. So, the ancient bodies are no longer there, but you could walk through the empty tomb. I didn't take many photos; it just looked like a large concrete structure under ground. Sorry, Folks.

The vase is from a factory-tour we went through, the lantern was a decoration outside of a restaurant.