Flight 10 of 17
Sunday, April 8 – Thursday, April 12
Happy Easter from the People’s Republic of China! We woke up early in Hong Kong, took a train to the airport, and hung out at two of the lounges (Air China no so great, Singapore lounge oh-so-great). We didn’t have Easter baskets, but Ryan celebrated by enjoying some eggs for breakfast! Kristen was unsuccessful in her quest to find either Cadbury cream eggs or Kinder chocolate eggs in the Duty Free stores.
Ryan & Kristen at the Great Wall of China
We arrived in Beijing and immediately booked our Great Wall tour for the next day. We took a cab to the hotel, had some drinks at the bar, then took a nap in our room. After getting re-energized we walked to 11th Street (Wongfujung Street), a modern street filled with lots of shops, restaurants, and locals. After perusing through a store that sold $100 chopsticks (no souvenirs here!), we stumbled upon a church with people dancing out front in what seemed to be a flash mob rehearsal! We searched endlessly for something to eat, but in the end, we were drawn to the Golden Arches of McDonald’s and enjoyed some familiar food. Back at the hotel, in an effort to plan the next few days, we discovered a problem with the Internet…something known as the
Great “Firewall” of China. Almost every site we tried to visit (including blogspot.com, Facebook, and most tourism sites) was blocked by the Chinese government. With no Internet available, we hit the sack so we could get some sleep before our exciting adventure the next day!
Wangfujing Street
On Monday, we met our tour guide (Johnny – a girl) at 7:30 am. We boarded the tour bus, and set out for a one hour drive to the Ming Tombs. Similar to the pharaohs of Egypt, the Ming Dynasty emperors built elaborate tombs to house them in the afterlife. The Ming Tombs were known for their architecture and are actually 27 meters underground with secret entrances. Each emperor was buried with items for the afterlife, as well as his concubines. We even saw the chute we they would drop the concubines’ bodies into the tomb. As we entered one of the buildings near the tomb, we passed a threshold where we learned that men should step over thresholds with their left foot first and women with their right, otherwise they come back in the next life as the opposite gender…think about that next time you cross a threshold! We also learned how to tell “old” Great Wall from restored Great Wall by looking at the mortar. “Old” wall had mortar made of egg whites, sticky rice, and limestone, whereas restored wall has concrete looking mortar. Also, each brick of the “old” wall was stamped by its maker, so that they would be accountable if the brick was faulty.
In front of the Ming Tombs
Our next stop on the tour was a jade factory, where we saw people carving jade and found a jade ox pendant for Kristen. (We were both born in the Year of the Ox.) We ate a family-style Chinese lunch with a bunch of strangers from our tour, where food traveled around the table on a lazy susan, and no one spoke to each other. Needless to say, it was a little awkward, and not what you’d expect for a family-style meal.
The Great Wall of China!
Enjoying a wonderful day at the Great Wall
Next stop…the Great Wall of China! We visited the Badaling part of the Great Wall, where we took a gondola to a high point. We had about two hours to explore on our own, where we walked up and down a few different sections. First of all, we were amazed at its sheer size and length. There are over 6,000 kilometers of the wall throughout China, and even though we saw only a sliver, we could instantly see why it is such a marvel. Before we visited, we never realized where the wall was built – it’s the spine of the tallest mountains as they roll across the landscape. We visited one of the steepest sections, and it’s hard to imagine a construction project (even in the present day) across a mountain ridge. The wall was originally constructed to deter the Mongols from invading China, but if they dared to cross it, the wall doubled as a communication tool. Guards would signal the attack by lighting a fire in the guardhouse, which would trickle across the length of the wall as guards would light each successive flame.
Some friends we made at the wall...they asked to pose with us!
After our two hours were up, we rejoined our group and we could see other parts of the wall from our bus. The last stop on the tour was a silk factory, where we saw silk worms and watched women spin and stretch silk into blankets. After the tour ended in Beijing, we walked to Tian'anmen Square to watch the nightly ritual of lowering the national flag at sundown. (This sounded better than a 5:45am wakeup call to watch the flag rising!) We stood at the location where Mao Zedong declared the country the Peoples’ Republic of China, right outside the Forbidden City.
At Tian'anmen Square waiting for the flag lowering ceremony
We walked to Wangfujing Street (same as the previous night), and we visited a recommended “hot pot” restaurant, which is a mix between Korean barbeque and fondue. It was fun, as we cooked our thinly-sliced meats and vegetables (lamb, beef, tofu, noodles, & mushrooms aka “black fungi”) in boiling water. We walked around to the nearby shops, grabbed some dessert, and headed back to the hotel with aching feet from a day filled with walking. This was our first time to watch a movie, and we enjoyed “How to Lose Friends and Alienate People.” (We recommend it.)
Ryan at the Hot Pot restaurant
On Tuesday, we slept in and traveled to the Temple of Heaven. It was a gigantic park and a great place to walk around. We took the subway back and somehow got stuck for about 20 minutes while the driver kept us up to date with announcements in Chinese.
Having fun at the Temple of Heaven!
We went back to Tian'anmen Square, where we entered the Forbidden City grounds. We walked around the moat of the entire complex (it was HUGE!), and after some rain and aching feet, we continued walking until we finally found a cab. We tried asking the driver to take us to a Peking Duck restaurant, but after a few strange locations and many obvious miscommunications, we decided to try a standard Chinese restaurant instead. We decided against the “chicken and turtle” soup (which included the full chicken head and entire turtle, cozied up together), and we settled on the spicy pork, beef, Chinese pancakes, rice, and salad. (We have come to truly appreciate picture menus!) After dinner, the waiter took us upstairs and wrote our name in Chinese calligraphy and showed us some of his artwork. After a bit of negotiation, we left with paintings of cherry blossoms for the “elegant lady” and growing bamboo for the “successful man.” After walking home, we watched another movie, “Inside Man,” which we highly recommend!
Exploring the Forbidden City grounds
The next day (Wednesday), we slept in again and visited Tian'anmen Square again, but this time we went inside the Palace Museum. This is the actual Forbidden City, filled with countless buildings which have all been converted into museums. We saw throne rooms and many artifacts from Chinese history. When our feet needed a break, we took a train to The Summer Palace, where the emperors would vacation. It reminded us of a giant version of Pasadena’s Huntington Library & Gardens, filled with beautiful landscapes and flowers. (If you haven’t visited
Hungtington, come see us in Pasadena and we’ll take you!)
Inside the Palace Museum
As the day drew to a close, we were hungry and stumbled upon the nicest Pizza Hut in the world. For those who have never visited a Pizza Hut outside the US, they are way nicer and upscale. It’s a sit-down restaurant with a large menu (not just pizza). However, the portions are a bit different (or we were really hungry), since we ate two pizzas advertised to feed 2-3 people each!
Taking in the sights of the Summer Palace...where the emperors used to vacation
Beijing was host of the 2008 Summer Olympics, so we made our way to Olympic Park to see many iconic buildings. We saw the Bird’s Nest Stadium (opening & closing ceremonies), Olympic Torch (changed colors – really cool!), and the Water Cube (where we reminisced about Michael Phelps winning eight gold medals).
Kristen & Ryan at Olympic Park where Beijing hosted the 2008 Summer Olympic Games
We also came across another flash mob rehearsal and a local chorus rehearsing in a subway station.
Joining a flash mob rehearsal
During our time in Beijing, we saw many wonderful sights, experienced all sorts of interesting foods, and had an amazing time exploring the city by foot (although at some points, it felt like we walked the length of the Great Wall). China is a country rich in history, and we were glad to experience as much as we did.
Taking it all in!
