There's no doubt that Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City are the two most iconic locations in Beijing. As someone who's lived here for over ten years, you'd think that I've been a few times.

You'd be right.

It seems that the girlfriend and I have made it somewhat of an annual trek to visit the square for an afternoon. However, given the trouble securing an appointment and then going through all of the security, let alone all the walking, once a year is enough.

Most people will visit the square during the day, but if you stay until sunset you can see them lower the flag. If you're even more ambitious, you can show up an hour before sunrise and get into the square to see them raise the flag.

Since it was the National Day break, the square was full of families from around the country.

To mark the occasion, there was a huge flower pot surrounded by hundreds of fresh flowers while a portrait of Sun Yat-Sen stood near the Monument to the Heros and Mao's Mausoleum.

Given the square's history, I though it was neat that there were so many children running around and playing on the square, or simply sitting and drawing.

This led me to wonder: how often do they replace the tiles in the square? When was the last time they replaced them?

Whatever the case, the gf and I sat down for a rest for a while on those tiles, taking in the surrounding excitement that seemed to permeate the crowd.

Finally, if you do choose to stay for the flag lowering, you may as well stay an extra few minutes to see them turn the lights on. This scene is especially picturesque if it's raining.

Hope you're well,

Steve