The Location of the Palance now; Mushrooms!

 The Palace, alongside a Farmer's Market

 

The “Da Nei” (the “big inside,” or Palace interior over 700 years ago), was in fact right on the same street where a farmer’s market is now. You can check it. On the map it is "2." Check it here.

 

A Tunnel of... Mushrooms?

 

We head down Songcheng Road. It’s downhill all the way! There is a rise on the left, and a roadmark telling us it's about mile to the next location. The roadmark is a tunnel in the cliff. What kind of tunnel? (It is located at "10" on the map.)

The area is forested. As we come upon the tunnel, the forest clears to reveal a road in the distance. The first time I photographed this chamber it was silent and empty. The next time, about a year later, the tunnel was full of mushrooms with at least one attendant! It was marked “wholesale,” and the attendant was as amazed to see me as his customer, as I was to find him!   But today, the tunnel is once again silent and empty.  Maybe the wholesale business hasn’t held up, or he has found a better location than a tunnel at the edge of a forest. Any number of other possible reasons come to mind! 

Check here for the mushroom video of 2004.

 

We've reached the upper part of Songcheng Road. Here the road meets the trail and it’s where Beijing has done their archaeological survey of the old Palace's city walls.