Beijing day 2 -Tian'anmen Square & Hutong Tour

This post was written the day we visited the forbidden city. We tried to visit Tian'anmen square but it was closed due to government meetings. We didn't find out till later that night there had been a terrorist attack until I read all the frantic texts from my mom. We had been right where the terrorist attack happened an hour or two before. I believe we were in the forbidden city when it actually happened because they kept making announcements that there were closing early. 

Today we visited the forbidden city. We also planned to visit Tian'anmen square but it was closed for a government meeting. The forbidden city was very cool, it is where the emperors lived. It was very large and there are many rooms and court yards. Only a small section is open to the public.

 If you rub the gold balls on the big red doors it is suppose to bring you luck all year

 Our next stop was the Hutong tour. Hutong is the original part of Beijing. Many of the houses there are very old. We visited a private house and a public house.

 We ate lunch at a local Hutong house. The food was good. Lots of different kinds of food. I was happy white rice was served. Throughout the Hutong tour we rode in rickshaws. Fun way to ride through that part of the city. 

The Hutong tour was very beautiful and interesting. After that we went to visit CCCWA (china center for children's welfare and adoption) it is where all the children are matched to their families. We saw the employees at work with many many files of children waiting to be matched to their families. All the children in our group then took a culture class where they learned to do calligraphy and more about their heritage. Our next stop was the tea house. A very cool experience. We were all seated at a long table and they showed us the proper way to hold our tea cups. They were more like tasting cups, very small. 

We tried 5 different kinds of tea. They taught us about all the techniques to make tea. My favorite was the tea made out of dried fruit. I also liked the jasmine tea. One of the teas we tried tasted just like roses smell. After we got our fill of tea we drove to a restaurant that served the famous Peking duck. The duck was sliced in front of us and then put into these little wraps ( I think they were rice wraps). Then we added some sauce and a few vegetables. It was a long day! Almost 12 hours of activities! Tomorrow we fly to Nanning.

Great Wall of China

Pictures from our day at the Great Wall! 

Such an awesome experience! 

China Iphone Pictures

Day 1 Exploring Beijing

Today was our first day exploring china. We were all up by 5am and not by choice, I think we can blame jet lag... We had breakfast at the hotel buffet. They had the traditional breakfast food, but also some strange options like baked beans and a salad bar. I tried to fill up on breakfast because I had no idea what would be served at lunch. We started our tour soon after. Our first stop was a jade museum/factory. We learned about the different colors and types of jade. We also made a few special purchases. Next stop, the Great Wall of China! It was so amazing to see in person. Little sister and I almost made it to the top section. Some parts were so steep. All the stairs were different heights. Many of the steps were worn down from all the people visiting. The section we visited was called JuYong. By the time I got down my legs were so shaky and tired. I am going to be sore tomorrow! After the Great Wall climb we went to a group lunch. There was quite a few dishes to choose from and I tried most of them. I also used chop sticks to eat, not an easy tasks. In the bottom part of the restaurant was a cloisonné factory. It was so interesting to see how they make everything. On our way back to the hotel we drive by the Olympic park and saw the many cool buildings built for the Olympics. 

We made it!

After over 24 hours of traveling we finally made it to our hotel in Beijing. Our flights went very smoothly but we are exhausted. We explored the hotel looking for some dinner options but decided to go the safe route and order room service. Spring rolls, beef dumplings, and fried rice with soy sauce really hit to spot. Although by this point anything is better than airplane food. Met a few families in our travel group tonight and tomorrow we will meet the rest at orientation. Going to bed in a little bit... It's only a little after 6pm here. We will definitely be well rested for the Great Wall of China tomorrow.

Wordless "All Packed for China" Wednesday

Fixing the boat

Before we went on the house boat trip we had a lot of work to do on the boat. Well mostly Trevor did. The motor was leaking oil and water and needed new gaskets. Well one thing led to another and we ended up gutting the whole boat and putting new carpet in. 

I helped a little... unbolting all the seats and feeding all the workers. 

Trevor worked on the boat every night for about two weeks in order to get it finished for the houseboat weekend. Thankfully he had lots of friends who helped too. 

Trying out the boat after the new carpet is in. Now it just needs more seats and a motor! 

 Trevor finished everything 10 pm the night before the trip. Lots of hard work but we had a lot of fun with it out on the lake. It floated and everything ran pretty good! Trying to get in a few more trips before summer ends.