Stephanie Kendall, a senior public relations major from Singapore, is taking part in the Baylor in China program this summer. In the fifth in a series of blog posts, Stephanie describes her visit to the Forbidden City, a former Chinese imperial palace that is located in the center of Beijing.

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As we walked out the subway station, we marveled upon Tiananmen Square and the gates to the Forbidden City. At the Forbidden City entrance there hangs a large painted portrait of Mao Zedong in the center of the building. On the opposite side lies Tiananmen Square, a vast tiled area surrounded by the National Museum of China and the Great Hall of People.

It is said that the Forbidden City received its name over time since it was perceived that the emperors and empresses were forbidden to leave the palace walls.

We quickly purchased our tickets and headed to the first part of the Forbidden City. As we walked through the first doors to the grounds we gathered as a group and took some time to listen to the history of this place.

The Forbidden City was used as the imperial palace in the Ming Dynasty and at the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is where the last Chinese emperor, Puyi, lived at the age of 13 before he was compelled to abdicate his throne.

The Palace consists of 980 buildings and is said to supposedly have 9,999 rooms. The number nine is the highest single digit number that can be used in Chinese culture — all numbers larger than nine are reserved for the gods.

The three main halls we came across while in the Forbidden City were the Hall of Supreme Harmony, the Hall of Central Harmony and the Hall of Preserving Harmony. The Hall of Supreme Harmony was used for ceremonial practices and court affairs, while the Hall of Central Harmony was used for the Emperor to rest and prepare before another ceremony or court hearing.

The final hall, the Hall of Preserving Harmony, was used for ceremonial practices and was the last stage of the Imperial examination.

Throughout the grounds of the Forbidden City we could see elaborate carvings in the ceilings, on pillars and along the inner wall. Vibrant colors accented the shapes of turtles, cranes and dragons.

At the end of the tour we took an enchanting walk through the Forbidden City gardens. They were filled with lush plants and gorgeous gazebos.