Photos: Barbecue in a snow storm, Forbidden City in a sand storm, Tianamen Square in sand and pollution, Masks to protect from the foul weather
Everyone reacted differently to the snow storm in Beijing on March 14. My family decided to proceed with our barbecue, willing – unsuccessfully – warm weather to come sooner rather than later.
One week later, spring arrived in the form of a sand storm and pollution. I left the house early last Saturday and gazed at the eerie yellow sky. It briefly crossed my mind that perhaps some catastrophic event had occurred to cause the unique dawn hues, but I put these thoughts out of my mind. When I returned home an hour later, my daughter immediately asked if I had noticed the “banana sky,” and my husband confirmed there was a sand storm on the way.
With my father and his wife in town, we did not cancel our plans and braved frigid temperatures, horrific pollution and swirling sand to visit the Summer Palace. We were chilled to the bone – not to mention covered with dust – when we returned the car and our driver suggested that the Summer Palace was best seen in the summer. Touché.