Quite the sight to behold

Not even the damp and cold of an unseasonably drizzly October morning in Beijing could diminish the stirring sight of the Great Hall of the People.

This imposing building, constructed more than 58 years ago, has been the venue for the Communist Party of China's National Congress for decades. It's also a popular tourist attraction when not hosting official State functions, though I had never been there before.

Until Wednesday, that is, when I approached the striking edifice from across the Tian'anmen Square, joined along the way by a host of other slightly sodden journalists who had been disgorged from their vehicles on the far side.