Intro After 2 weeks of exams where the students had to answer the question "Tell me about your family and friends" convinced me that guidance counselors are God's gift to middle schoolers and China needs some, I escaped into Beijing to do some leaf peeping. (Truly the prevalence of middle school girls saying "I was a bad friend and my friend says she doesn't want to be friends anymore" with tears glistening or boys saying "I have no friends" with the most heartbreaking look means 7th grade sucking is a universal experience.)
Beijing for Leaf peeping Shocking my Nashville raised, New England trained heart, leaf peeping within the city is supposed to be a glorious experience? And honestly it was. Beijing is known for its Golden Gingko trees, and using a combination of social media platforms, I found the best spots within the city to go see the true splendor of the golden gingkos. (My favorite spot was Diaoyutai). Fall here seems to be less orange and brown than I experienced in the US, and instead the leaves are all a more yellow-green color or a vibrant red. The golden gingko didn't end up captivating me the most though. I absolutely love the maple trees both in Shijiazhuang and in Beijing. The vibrant red and yellow colors on some trees were just absolutely stunning, and the size of some of these maple leaves would truly blow your mind. Most of this post will simply be pictures, because I really did just love the look of the trees.
High speed rail One note before the photos though; China's high speed railway is so lovely. It takes 15 min to get to the station from my apartment and then an hour ride and I'm in the heart of Beijing. Because of this I only spent Saturday and Sunday in Beijing, the main goals being: eat Indian and Italian food and find beautiful leaves.
Gingko Details
Golden Gingkos
Maple Dichotomy
RED RED RED
Weeping willow in fall
Details
gingko in shadow
Saturday exercises