China- Part I: Beijing

Hey friends and family, I hope everyone is doing well! I just got back from a 9-day trip in China with a group of 28 people from the Federal Way Chamber of Commerce, with which I was connected through Owen. He went on the trip too, which ended up being even more of a life-saver than I thought because we were on the same page while the rest of the group had a different agenda. The price was (really, really) right for this trip, so I decided to go even though it was in a tour group which is not really my style. Since the entire package was inclusive (5 star hotels, all meals, flights & transportation), it turned out to be a little too good to be true. We found ourselves touring China via factories (ie. pearl, silk, embroidery, cloisanne) and eating at the restaurants adjoined to each factory after a demonstration of how each of these things was made. After the demonstration there was a lot of pressure from the billions of employees in each gift shop to buy one of the wares, followed by a meal no Chinese person could stomach. Well, perhaps I'm being overdramatic, but I've never had Chinese food this bad, which seems to say a lot seeing as I was in China. But, the trip wasn't bad and definitely had some great highlights. So, without further ado, let me give you a little run-down of what we did.







We are not excited about this flight














Flying over Siberia!!!


















I played this game for like 5 hours, ugh






The first two days were somehow spent traveling, as we crossed the international dateline and mysteriously lost day 2 of our trip into the abyss. When we arrived in Beijing in the evening our tour guide, Julia took us to a dumpling restaurant, which was very tasty. We watched the kitchen staff assemble the dumplings through a window. Then we went to our very nice hotel and Owen and I picked up some unbelievably cheap beer (3 yuan, which is like 50 cents) and relaxed in our room.







Dumpling dinner





















The next morning we ate a buffet breakfast that impressed us in our hotel (so far so good...), and then went to the Summer Palace. It was here that we discovered we were horribly underdressed (and underpacked) for the temperature, which was around freezing with very strong winds. With the wind chill, Beijing remained around 25 degrees or so the entire time we were there... wah wah. :) It was beautiful anyway and I wondered if it had all been rumors about the smog in Beijing because it was gorgeous with blue skies the whole time we were there.







View from our hotel window












Driving through Beijing


































Gate to Summer Palace












Once inside the gate




























What a beautiful day!













































Owen



























At least our group didn't have orange hats













Teapot window















A secret door we found...
















...and getting kicked out of the secret door
































Being a tourist







After lunch we went to a pearl factory, where Owen and I had our grand realization of why the trip was so cheap. After listening to a talk about pearls, we spent an obscenely long time walking around the store area, where everyone else on the tour proceeded to buy as much pearl jewelry as they could carry. I am not a fan of pearls, so there wasn't much in it for me. The lunch was almost inedible.







This girl's English was great! And look how cute!



















The inside of an oyster







Next we went somewhere, but I can't remember what temple it was. Along the way we saw some key Beijing buildings. Then we were off to the Forbidden City, which was awesome. Owen and I immediately got lost from the group and were found about 30 minutes later (somehow... I have no idea how because this place is HUGE). I felt guilty that one of the guides had to come looking for us, but we were genuinely lost in the maze.


























Where the Olympics were held











Where the pool is, I think
















Temple gate












I accidentally took a picture of this










































































This restaurant is called "Easy Time" and that sign says "characteristics cuisine"



























Such vivid colors












































This is the sign we had to follow around for 9 days

















Handstand in the Forbidden City










The Forbidden City was followed by Tianenmen Square, which was pretty awe-inspiring. It is intense seeing the big picture of Chairman Mao in person! I was disappointed to see the square relatively empty, which I think was a result of the sun being on its way down. I ended up getting another chance to see it later, so that was fine.






First view of the square
































































After leaving the square and being followed/stalked by vendors all the way to the bus, we were on our way back to the hotel. We had a forgettable (I have no idea where we went) dinner, and then relaxed for the evening. Owen and I ventured out to a little tiny restaurant/bar near our hotel that night, and ate what skewers of what may or may not have been intestines and liver of something. We also drank some mystery liquor. When in Rome, right? :)

Because this is very time consuming (and I have over 500 photos...), I think I'll post separately for different segments of the trip. I will continue next posting with the Great Wall of China, which was definitely the highlight of the trip!! Thanks for reading and I hope this finds you well! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Shan