Painting the town red

On 2 October people spilled out onto the streets. Security was still tight but Tiananmen and the surrounding area opened to the public. The national flag hung from every conceivable building and apartment, turning streets into ribbons of red.

In the subways way below the city all bags were checked and commuters passed through metal detectors. It caused some serious congestion and frayed tempers.

Outside the police's newest Swat unit was doing sidewalk duty. Dressed in black, carrying machine guns and in their dark glasses, these cool cops have become a big hit. But not in any security sense. In true Chinese fashion, where everyone tries to photograph themselves next to anything new/different/fashionable, the Swat members were much in demand as photo props.

To their credit they took it in their stride, but were less accommodating when it came to me. I was told to hit the road after trying to get off a few shots.

A magical flower garden

The city had become a flower garden. The Chinese have the ability to instantly create gardens anywhere, using flower pots in any colour, in any design. It's as if thousands of elves magically come out at night and change the most drab parts of the city into petal heaven.

Getting onto the sacred concrete of Tiananmen was a mission in itself. Each side of the square had one entrance manned by three security guards. People don't like to queue in China. The net result was every living creature for themselves. I pushed and shoved my way along while security screamed at people to stop pushing. That clearly was not going to happen.

I found out later that there was a 700 percent increase in visitors to the square during the National Day holidays.

Running the tourist gauntlet

Running the gauntlet was worth it. Despite the tainted history of Tiananmen, it has an aura about it. The floats from the previous day's parade were parked along the perimeter and had quickly become backdrops for countless photo ops. Police vans cruised about and the countless megaphones of tour groups barked incessantly. Everyone carried small red flags and people kept bursting into spontaneous renditions of the popular song 'I love you China'.

But why all this for 60 years I asked my colleagues. It turns out that the 60th birthday is traditionally regarded as an important milestone in life. I was told that you can forget celebrating any other birthday but not this one. In Chinese culture, 60 years completes a life cycle and 61 is seen as the beginning of a new life cycle. It's the one age a person is proud to reach and the whole family, including children and grandkids are expected to be part of the big occasion. Cue the great extravaganza.

One holiday has flowed into another as the Mid Autumn Harvest Festival arrives, and with it Moon Cakes. But that's all another story...