Beijing or Bust

Beijing was obviously on our list of places to visit while in China, so when Mark mentioned that he was taking his family while they were in town visiting, we figured it was the perfect time to go! We arranged group tours of the Forbidden City, Tienanmen Square, and the Great Wall for Sunday and Monday, but Aaron and I went a day early to have some extra time to explore. We took the high-speed train straight from Shanghai to Beijing. It took about 5 hours and we maxed out around 312 kilometers/hour. From the train station, we took a taxi to our hotel. This was  moment when we were rudely reminded of how utterly spoiled we are to have our amazing driver in Shanghai (Shout out to Wei!). Our cab driver couldn't understand the Chinese characters for our hotel, us pointing to the location of the hotel on the map, OR the directions the hotel employee gave him over the phone! After three phone calls and an hour, we finally arrived at the hotel. (That wast the first of many bad taxi experiences of the weekend!) On a happier note, we were warned Beijing has more pollution and even smoggier skies than Shanghai, but were pleased to be blessed with sunny, clear skies upon arrival! 

Once we got checked in our hotel, we suddenly felt under-planned. While we had countless recommendations of places to go and things to see from friends, we hadn't quite narrowed it down and actually made a game plan for our first day. With a dodgy internet connection, we couldn't rely on Google maps and our trusty travel apps, so we headed out to see where the day took us! We soon found ourselves on Wangfujing Street. And what a street it is! Hundreds of merchants selling everything from Jade Buddhas to Terracotta Warriors, collapse-able paper hats to Golden waving Meneki Cats, to BUGS. After browsing and shopping and eating (candied grapes, dumplings, lobster and crab balls, and corn on the cob), the creepy, crawling, crunchy bug stands loomed at every corner. We convinced ourselves it couldn't possibly be as bad as all of the dramatic Fear Factor contestants make it seem, and that when in Beijing, we should do as the Beijing-ese! (Although I didn't see many partaking!) We knew y'all wouldn't believe we actually swallowed, so we took a video to prove it! 

Besides getting a wing stuck between my teeth, it was actually painless. Fried, crunchy, and full of protein! ;) While walking around that afternoon we caught several locals snapping secretive pics of my "jinfa" - golden hair (sounds much fancier than blonde doesn't it?), but a few actually approached and asked to take pictures with me! I felt it was only polite to return the admiration and ask to take a picture with our camera too. ;) 

On our walk back to the hotel, we stopped to watch a few street performers break-dancing. An overly-friendly local approached us through the crowd and acted very interested in our story. Where we were from, what we do, how long we are visiting, and so on. He even got out a little notebook where he had drawn a map of the U.S. and asked us to mark Kentucky and Tennessee on it. After about 10 minutes of trying to politely escape, he practically begged us to come with him to visit his art gallery. Seriously? Who would say yes? I refuse to see the movie Hostel, but a horrifying seen from it flashed in my head. We walked away while he was still talking. Come to find out after sharing the story with others, it is common for scammers to do this is Beijing - they lure tourists to galleries and coffee shops, greatly overcharge them for their coffee (like $1,000) which they were told was free, and leave them with the bill and threaten to call the police if they don't pay it! Glad I wasn't feeling extra friendly that day!

That night we took a friend's recommendation and went to Da Dong, a well-known Peking Duck restaurant. I have had bits and pieces of duck in dishes before and really liked it, but I was a little hesitant to watch Daffy getting carved on a platter. But seriously, am I ever one to turn down delicious food? While the carver meticulously sliced the duck and artfully piled it up, the waitress brought a dish of condiments, very thin crepe-like wraps, and hollow biscuits. She first taught us to dip the crispy skin in the sugar. It was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. Tasted like candy. Then wearing a glove and using chopsticks,she showed us how to "paint" the crepe with the sauce, fill it with duck, garlic, and sliced veggies, and wrap it perfectly. That was the start to one of the best meals I've ever had - Citrus seafood soup in a hollowed orange, sweet ribs with a powered sugar blizzard, coconut glazed shrimp, and the list goes on! With full bellies (and a broken sandal from tripping on the sidewalk!) we called it an early night and rested up for the next 2 days of sightseeing! 

Some locals playing cards in a cozy little hutong.

Sunday we got up early, found a yummy breakfast spot, and strolled through some of the quaint hutongs. Chinese culture is definitely more evident in Beijing. With not much time to spare until the Stewart family arrived to start our sightseeing tour, we realized we were near the Drum Tower and decided to check it out. About 60 steep stairs up, we got a nice view of the city. The top of the tower is literally full of huge drums, but unfortunately our timing was off to catch one of the drum performances. 

Once the Stewarts arrived and we had a quick lunch, we set off with David, our tour guide, in our van to see the sights! We started with Forbidden City. I had no idea how huge it is - layer after layer of walls, buildings, and gates! David was an excellent tour guide, full of interesting facts! Most shocking to us was the fact that past emperors made all of their male servants and workers eunuchs, to prevent any of them from impregnating their empresses. (I didn't know the word either - look it up!) 

Bird's eye view of Forbidden City (from Google - not me!)

When we finally made our way through the maze we were exhausted, but went to Tienanmen Square for another quick history lesson and photo op! Having loved our dinner at Da Dong the night before, Aaron and I were pleased to go back for another delish meal so the Stewarts could experience it too! 

Monday we left the hotel at 6:30 am to head to the Mutinayu part of the Great Wall. It was about a 2 hour long van ride and we were one of the first groups there! With uncharacteristically clear skies and no crowd, even our tour guide, who is there every weekend, was taking pictures! We took a gondola from the base to the 14th tower, climbed down to the 6th tower, and took the toboggan slide the rest of the way down! While parts were steep, it wan't too strenuous overall. We took our time - and LOTS of pictures! We were so lucky to get such great weather!!

Before our train departed, we found a super local chinese restaurant for lunch near the train station. We were the only westerners in the place and by the looks we were getting, the only westerners ever! David helped us order a few noodle dishes, rice dishes, and Qingdaos. Everything was delish and the 6 of us ate and drank for about 100rmb, or $15! 

It was the perfect end to a thrilling trip! We look forward to taking our visitors to Beijing and now knowing a few more ins and outs of the city!