In 2014, I went to school in Beijing. After more than ten years of study, I finally came to this sacred place that I have longed for for a long time. Perhaps for a Chinese, there is a natural yearning for Beijing, especially for Tiananmen. When I was a child, the living room wall of my home was plastered with several portraits of leaders, as well as several pictures of the Tiananmen Tower and the Zhongnanhai Gate, and the yearning for Beijing probably began at this time. Isolated peasants in the countryside, even illiterate and illiterate, would know about Chairman Mao and Tiananmen. From an early age, they used a sentence to encourage children to study well, "Read well, and go to Beijing Tiananmen Square to see Chairman Mao in the future!" Therefore, in the hearts of children, Tiananmen has become the most sacred place in their hearts.
On the eve of the National Day in 2014, we had just finished military training. Because as soon as I reported for duty, I began a tight military training schedule, and I did not go anywhere other than the school for more than a month in Beijing. The yearning for Tiananmen has also reached its peak, and I have long been unable to resist the impulse in my heart to see Tiananmen. Therefore, I met with a few classmates to go to Tiananmen Square to see the flag-raising ceremony on the morning of November. For me at the time, the trip was like a devout pilgrimage.
I thought I would go early in the morning of October 1st, but my roommate in Beijing suggested that it was better to go there and wait in the evening of the 30th. Although I am a little difficult to understand, the flag was raised around six o'clock in the morning on the 1st, why go so early. But because my roommate is from Beijing, I doubt it, but I don't doubt the effect of this sentence. Moreover, at that time, I wanted to see the true appearance of Tiananmen Square, and the fear of staying up all night was washed away by the excitement.
Therefore, our group set off from the school at nine o'clock in the evening, and at eleven o'clock we left the subway and arrived at Chang'an Avenue. After passing through the Zhongnanhai Gate along Chang'an Avenue, after several strict security guards, we finally arrived in front of the Tiananmen Tower. Then, wait on the sidewalk in front of Tiananmen Square for Tiananmen Square to open. There were more and more people, as if all the people in Beijing had gathered here tonight. In the middle of the night, the procession finally began to travel to the underpass. We also followed the team into the underpass. I thought that such a short passage should be able to pass through quickly. Unexpectedly, as soon as I entered the passage, the whole team fell to a standstill. A group of people were blocked in the passage, unable to move forward at all, and the team was so crowded that not a single stick could be inserted. He couldn't move backwards, and there was a long line behind him that didn't see his tail. A bunch of people could only stay in this narrow, stuffy place of the passage. I don't know how long it took for the team to finally start moving forward. We are also wrapped up in the crowd to move forward, and we can't help but move forward, we are completely pushed forward by the crowd. That was the first time I deeply realized what a situation it was like to be "crowded with people." I couldn't understand the so-called stampede before, but after this time I finally understood. In the case of so many people, there is indeed a danger of trampling, because walking or not walking can not help themselves. Fortunately, nothing went wrong.
From the front of the Tiananmen Tower across Chang'an Avenue to Tiananmen Square, just a few hundred meters away, we walked for several hours. It was probably almost four or five o'clock before we finally entered the square. The square was wide, scattered, and the crowding was finally alleviated. We've been standing for four or five hours since we started moving. When you get to the square, you can finally squat down, or find a corner to sit down.
With the passage of time, the people in the square also gathered more and more, and later the wide square began to be crowded. Everyone is trying to find the best viewing angle. But my height is the most detrimental on this occasion, and it is difficult for me to see ahead unless I am in the first row.
When it was almost six o'clock, everyone stood up and consciously formed an irregular queue. I don't know when, the cheers began to appear in the team, and then after a few seconds, they fell into a serious and solemn atmosphere. I jumped up and found that the gate of the Tiananmen Tower had been opened, and the honor guard began to step out of the door hole, imposing. I also couldn't help but be solemn and upright. But without jumping up, I couldn't see the flag-raising ceremony going on at all. After a while, there was some small agitation. Finally, I slowly saw the national flag slowly rising from along the flagpole.
After waiting for seven or eight hours, the flag-raising ceremony lasted only ten or twenty minutes. But that excitement has been lingering in my heart, and I can't calm down for a long time, but I feel a little unfinished!
