Beijing, China - Seven Star-Stones

This part of the tour was in and around the Temple of Heaven.  We entered through the East Gate in to a large park.

 My first distraction was a young boy with a ribbon. He was quite accomplished and it takes all of these photographs to show his skill.

 We entered the area with the Seven Star-Stones. One reference says that these were placed here for Taoist balance by Jiajing.  There are eight stones now, one placed by Qing forces.  Ok, so what is "Taoist balance"?  I googled the term and saw things like Yin and Yang.  Another reference said that they represent the seven peaks of Taishan Mountain, a place of Heaven worship in classical China.  I didn't want to just put pictures of big rocks with no explanation.  If you want a better answer, please research and put your results in the comments.  I am giving you enough photos so that you can get the general idea of this area.

 Interesting tree.

 Interesting lamp post.

 And at this point we make our way to the long covered boardwalk and the entrance to the Temple of Heaven.

Beijing, China - Architecture from Countryside to City

From the bus

A view of the wide variety of architecture in Beijing and the surrounding area.  I also included a few interesting sights.