Trip 3

Seem like I was just here, but I'm back now for round 3.


I flew from Chicago to Beijing this time, leaving around 8PM Central. The entertainment system was on fritz so I it was 13.5 hours of silence. Good thing I had a book.


Not sure if it was the lack of diversions or timing but this time I actually slept on the plane and arrived in Beijing at 11PM Saturday. The family sitting behind me showed up at the same hotel three minutes after I arrived --- weird in a city this big (stalkers).


The in room snack involved the multi-colored cookie cakes with cream filling. Think I've seen these before.



It's been raining so the skies are clear and its pretty cool. Hey! this place is surrounded by mountains!


I am headed back to the airport this afternoon to meet up with my colleagues and travel to the Anhui province. We're not 100% sure where we are going as our Chinese business partners have made all the arrangements. Just hoping for some tasty weird things to eat!


More later.

Trip 2 Wrap

Sunday we wandered out in the late afternoon. The first stop was a shopping area just off Tiananmen Square that looked a lot like Main Street Disney.

One block away and the scene changed considerabley. No souvenirs for the kids here!

How about a yogurt that has been sitting in the sun though? (quite popular)

We decided to move on to the Wangfujing area which is a bit more upscale.

We rested for a while at an outdoor cafe and drank beer. Then it was on to Snack Street which started off tame enough (glazed fruit)

Then we moved on to all of the unrefrigerated meat --- starfish, snake, centipede sticks and beetles (gurgle):


I'm headed home soon, so putting a bow on Trip 2. Thanks for checking in!

Off to the Wall

On Saturday we headed out to see a section of the Great Wall at Mutianyu. We were led by tour guide Catherine and driver Mr Li.

Mutianyu is about 90 minutes from Beijing. We stopped midway at the Jade Factory which was a bit like an upscale Stuckey's minus the gas pumps. It was packed with tourists from India and the Middle East. They did have some nice pieces...

S0ldiers along the way...

Mr Li was a great driver and clearly committed to maximizing our time at the wall -- lots of weaving and horn honking on the drive up the mountain. I captured some of the excitement on video but couldn't get it to upload. Here's where we almost have the head-on with the tour bus (in a rush to the Jade Factory no doubt).

At the ticket office for the wall, we faced a decision: take the Gondola or Chairlift or walk up the pathway. Somehow we settled on option 3. It was foggy (smoggy?) and you couldn't really see the wall from the entry and it didn't look too bad...

I knew we were in trouble when Catherine stopped dead in her wedgies and said she better meet us there. Didn't want to hold us up and all.

About an hour later, we reached the actual wall (starting point was village in background):

Our European collegue suggested we head up a bit higher to see one of the towers about a 1/4 mile up. It looked to me exactly like two of the towers downhill to the right, so I opted to hang out with the elderly chinese beer vendor (who hauls his goods up the hills each day).

The wall itself is truly incredible.

And the trip back down was much easier:

If you find yourself here in the future, I strongly suggest options 1 or 2:

Dumpling Class

On Friday evening, the hotel held a Dumpling Class in the guest lounge.


We each took our turns making pork filled dumplings. I decided that I was not cut out for this work.

Afterwards, we had the finished product for dinner. Then the hotel let us tour the Presidential Suite (sorry no pictures as my batteries ran out).

Later, we hit the foot massage place.

On the TV: the very Chinese "Journey to the West"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nrzTxGZrV0Q

Enjoy!

Duck Outing

Thursday night we headed out to the Silk Market to let the newbies try out their haggling skills. Traffic was a nightmare and it took us over 90 minutes to go about 6 or 7 miles (cab fare - $7.50).

After the Silk Market, we headed to a restaurant that specilized in Peking Duck (Dadong).

The duck and accompanying dishes were all excellent.

Downstairs - another empty, high-end shopping mall and the Rolls, Lambroghini and Aston Martin dealerships.

Back at the hotel, a package was waiting. I was happy to find my underwear, back from the laundry.

Wednesday Walkabout

Wednesday I took a walk around the hotel and adjacent shopping mall.

Still no shoppers, but a lot of families enjoying the green space.

You see this dog everywhere in China --- usually with no leash but with an ederly Grandma hovering nearby.

Later it was time to watch the Soccer match. They are crazy about the Football in China...

Day of Toil

No time for outings on Tuesday.

Accordingly the focus turned to snacks. On the Chinese table we had the sweet buns, pistachios, cookies, chocolate wafer bars, sour balls, meat flavored chews and of course the tofu strips...

In the American cupboard, more traditional offerings supplied by the Home Office (somebody has a girl scout at home)..

Back at the hotel, it was time to sample the other door prize from the Monkeyface Dinner.

No need to fit the Great Wall winery on your itinerary.

By the way, the pull tab lives on..