A forbidding city where people are just cogs

The dimensions of Beijing and its minimalist architecture are alienating, and murals of China’s founding father, Mao Zedong, at odds with Prada stores, says Margaret Hickey.           

Before arriving in Tiananmen Square, the Beijing underground station prepares you for its immense size.

There are two stops for Tiananmen: Tiananmen East and Tiananmen West. It is intimidating in its vast, featureless, urban emptiness.