French in Old Peking 
Walls, walls, Walls everywhere. Chaudlerot can鈥檛 understand why the Chinese, from emperors to civilians, are willing to be confined by walls. Learning from Chinese painting, he always leaves some blank areas on his paintings, as spaces allowing for the imagination to wander. For the painter who has seen everything in the residential alleys and emperor鈥檚 palace, something about the old city of Beijing still remains a mystery.
This is a map of Beijing. And you can see the Forbidden City here. Around it are the third ring road, fourth ring road, even the fifth ring road. But the French woman Victorie Surio鈥檚 map dates back to Qing Dynasty, the entire Beijing City is within the second ring road.
