Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai

Did I happen to mention that every single night we’ve been here so far there has been a torrential down pour? Thunder and lightening. So much for finding that perfect martini, which I had sworn off last year, and there is only so much bottled water and local beer one can drink. Maybe I'll just stick with tea. Tonight in Xian, where temperatures are in the upper 90s and the air, usually very dry (a nice break from the humidity) we decided to walk to the center of town where yes the skies open on us once again. We just got to see a little of the town center with bell and drum towers. I think this is going to be a bad hair month.

It is now 11 PM and we are sitting in the hotel lobby bar, in front of the England vs. Portugal match on a big screen TV. I, with my laptop and Raf glued to the game. I think the staff was getting ready to close just as we walked in but were gracious and didn’t say no. Not sure how long before we are asked to leave, if they can communicate that to us. Most people in the hotels don't speak Eglish very well, but service in exrtemely important and everyone tries hard to please.

Earlier today we visited the site of the Terracotta Warriors, with our new guide, Ruby. Although we had seen pictures and read about this place, we were awestruck. Only one warrior was found in tact and all the others had to be reconstructed from fragments. When they were found they had color that disappeared quickly from exposure to the elements. Many will not be uncovered until the technology to preserve them becomes available.
Next day, the sun is out and we stop to visit the preserved city wall that takes about 1 hour on bicycle to ride around. Unfortunately, we did not get to visit the Moslem quarter, but I guess you have to leave something out to make you want to come back. Everyone stares at Raf, but in the Xian Historical Museum, a group of American students were really checking him out. Out of nowhere we hear…Mr. Trinidad!! An ex student of his, Julie, from Miami Beach was on tour with a student ambassador program. What a small world.

Hey lady, watches, shoes, handbags, good price!!! Welcome to Shanghai. Nanjing Road is a shoppers paradise, just a few blocks from our hotel, with lots of lights at night and tons of tourists walking around. Most of the clothes are size 0 and very lacy. There are tall department stores advertising every major cosmetic on the planet. Even Maybeline and Loreal are sold in the department stores. This is the largest hotel room we’ve had so far but the carpets are really dirty. (not like the Xian airport where the floors are polished every 5 minutes. We got a good workout lifting our legs while waiting for our delayed flight) The view of the city and the financial district from our window on the 15th floor is breathtaking. Our original guide, who picked us up from the airport, was very different from the ones we had in Xian and Beijing. He was a little flamboyant and claimed to be a shopaholic who enjoyed the nightlife. Unfortunately, he didn’t make it back in the morning but his replacement, who usually caters to the business crowd, was very nice. So far we really like Shanghai and are excited to be able to spend 3 nights here before we leave. Did I mention that its hot? Our guide said it is hotter than what the weather report says because the government does not want the people to panic. The hottest that is reported is 37C, but it really is much hotter. The Jade Buddha temple and gardens were beautiful, but it was hard not to think of going somewhere cooler. We walked on the Bund, which would have been much better if it wasn’t so hazy. Here you find all the designer shops and financial institutions. Although businesses can buy or rent buildings, and many have returned, the government still owns all the land. We made arrangements to be picked up at our hotel at 5 pm by the people from Suzhou so with some time on our hands decided to walk back to the hotel. One last visit to our old friends…hey lady, watches, handbags, shoes, good price!

Beijing

Soon there will be no girls left in Beijing. It seems there are tour busses filled with foreigners adopting babies every where we turn
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Today we walked the sacred rd. guarded on both sides by stone statues. Ancient emperors walked this rd. on the way to hold memorial ceremonies for their ancestors.
Stopped at the Ming Tomb then headed to the Great Wall. It was completely packed with tourists, mostly Chinese, and although the climb is not easy elderly people were doing it. Guess that tai chi in the park really works.
Along the climb there were many people selling post cards, statues, and loads of other crap. There were pit stops with camels and horses where many children were putting on Mongolian costumes and sitting on the camel for a photo op. We got to a plaque with a picture of Mao. Vendors were taking pictures of tourists here and selling certificates of achievement. When Raf asked Mona about it she said that according to Mao if you can make it to this point you are a true soldier. She also told us that this one was a fake and the real one was 3 towers up. The funny part is that President Bush didn’t even make it this far when he visited Beijing!
Note: next time hit the section that may be more difficult climb but does not have so many tourists


Tian’anmen Square: Really much bigger than what it looks like on TV. The Forbiden City is right across the street and also so huge it would take weeks to see it all. There are so many great stories and beautiful buildings. Much of it is being renovated to be ready for the 2008 Olympics. The number 9 and multiples of 9 appear everywhere and is a very lucky number in China. There is a long corridor for the concubines which makes for a very beautiful prison. How many rooms do you think are in the Forbidden City. (9,999 of course)

One of the most interesting things so far was a visit to the Hutongs.

The streets are so narrow we had to take a rickshaw through the area. It really showed what life must have been like before all the high-rises took over. Many families share an area of four small building put together with a communal shower and toilet. We stopped to visit a typical family, an older couple living in a small room. For more on hutongs http://www.chinahighlights.com/beijing/hutong/hutong_beijing.htm



The Summer Palace was next and it the most beautiful we’ve been so far.



It is the largest royal garden in China, 800 yrs old. What a summer retreat! Puts the Hamptons to shame.
Dinner consisted of the famous Peking Duck. What a feast. There were so many courses and way too much food. It was quite delicious, but I couldn’t imagine doing this on a regular basis. Even with Raf, it looked like we didn’t make a dent in the mound.
Friday

Our last day in Beijing, before heading to the airport, we visited the Temple of Heaven where ancient emperors prayed for their ancestors. The grounds are kept better than the best golf course and once again filled with older people singing, playing musical instruments, playing Chinese chess, etc. There were many beautiful trees and sacrificial alters. A quick visit to a silk factory then the long drive to the airport. The security line would have moved very quickly had it not been for people carrying water bottles. Each water bottle was opened by security personnel perhaps checking for the local wine which is a clear alcohol made from rice, not really wine and about 54 proof. Talk about a party!

Pros and cons of tours
A word on tours. We don’t usually like them. Restaurants are selected because they have western toilets and forks. There are many stops thrown in to entice visitors to spend money, although some have been interesting mini lessons ex. silk factory, jade factory, etc. However, it has been quite convenient to have a private driver and not have to deal with making arrangements, especially for a first time visit to China. It is also important to know the right questions to ask as I am sure the guides have been trained to only give us specific information.
Where’s Miami???
It seems that everyone asks where we are from and no one know where Miami is. lol Couldn’t figure that one out until I realized that people in China are not able to travel freely and I guess not many people from Miami come here to visit.

Hutongs, Forbidden City, Great Wall

Going to visit the Hutongs

Funny Sign

Forbidden City

Great Wall

Beijing

Hey everyone, on our way to the Temple of Heaven. Here are some pics. Will write some more on the plane to Xi'an this afternoon.



Park near hotel.

First Day In Beijing

Impression of the day: The Chinese seem to be the least self conscious people we have encountered thus far in our travels. (Unlike myself who agonizes over every word put to page. So I urge you to be kind when reading. In order to get this out to you there is little time to edit and since I am working, Confucious say…sleep is prudent.)

After a huge breakfast at 6 A.M we walked over to the park next door. Entrance is free with a room card and we were amazed at how many people were awake and doing their thing in the very large gardens. Most of the people were older. Most were engaged in some sort of exercise program…exercising their bodies, exercising their vocal cords, exercising their creativity, or exercising their minds. We wanted to jump right in. It seemed that every corner, on the hill, under the water falls, in the pagodas, in the BUSHES, on the rocks, was being utilized.
Plan: Return early tomorrow morning and take pics!

This being our only free day in Beijing, without the tour guide, we decided to do a little sightseeing of our own. I knew it was going to be hot, and that we would be walking, and being from Miami, I am quite used to the sun. Yes, most of the time we do get a breeze from the ocean, but we go to NY in the summer too and know how the buildings trap the heat. Nothing however, could have prepared me to hit the center of a frying pan in the oven with the broiler turned on, this afternoon. I should have known when we reached the Yonghe Gong, the largest Tibetan Buddhist Lama Temple in Beijing, after a 35 minute taxi ride($9) on a bumper to bumper expressway, with no air conditioning, completely drenched from head to toe, what was to come.

In the temple there were Buddhas everywhere and they grew in size the further back in the complex we got until the last which was several stories high. Incense burning everywhere and many people praying. We saw a large tour of Spanish people, with Chinese babies, praying as well.
Taking off on foot, without realizing how far everything really is, we headed to Wangfujing Street. I heard someone mention shopping and a big mall which sounded like an oasis in this insufferable heat and smog. Soccer ads everywhere and an Olympic sculpture exhibit on the street, produced by the fine art students from Beijing University. People were following us on the streets, to practice their English and to try to lure us down various alleys to see their artwork. Although their speaking skills are not too bad, we often found that many people really didn’t understand what we were saying. After a brief respite at Starbucks (cold drinks of course but now I think I prefer the cold bottled tea on the streets) we decided to venture out on the streets once again. Thinking we could walk to Xidan street (looked close on the map) the heat really started to affect us. This walk was to take us through Tiananmen Square, a huge hot city street where we later found out that cabs could not stop. Finally on some corner somewhere before we fell we jumped in a taxi (air conditioned of course) and took that cold shower and a nap

Mona recommended a local restaurant "JIU TOU NIAO", AND THIS MEANS "NINE HEADED BIRD" near the hotel that specializes in Hubei flavors, a spicy cuisine. We asked the concierge to point us in the right direction, and didn’t realize we were in the wrong place until we were seated and no one could communicate. We were informed that the restaurant would have English menus. Headed next door, the right place which specialized in pigs hoofs but even Raf couldn’t do it…yet. We settled on a spicy eggplant dish(truly amazing), some kind of roll with duck(pretty good), a chicken dish, which contained bones and the tips of the wings(not for me but Raf loved it, very spicy), and 2 very large Tsingao beers.

People in China get their foot massages late and most places are open till 3 in the morning, some later. We opted for the hotel spa for our first experience. A little more expensive ($15/person including tip lol) but it seemed clean and was well worth it with a private room and big screen TV (we didn’t turn it on) for the two of us.

Back at the room and Raf is watching Brazil vs. Ghana. 2 – 0 at half time and he decides to get a few hours of sleep before the France vs Spain game at 3 AM. WooHoo France wins 3 to 1!!!!!!

We're Late

We’re late, we’re late, and of course, that is the only time the police stop you on Miami Beach. Luckily I was able to fish out our plane tickets and Officer Friendly let us go. At the airport, at 6:30 AM we find line endless lines. Because the first leg of the trip was local we didn’t think to be there 2 hours in advance as we would for the international departures. And on this morning, as we were soon to find out, all those people whose flights were canceled due to inclement weather the day before, were on our line. After the lecture from the airline commando about the importance of getting to the airport early, she moved us to the front of the first of many lines, then on to the bag scanning line, where bags for flights departing at 8 a.m. were being accepted. The fact that our flight was scheduled to leave at 7:50 and we pointed that out, got us and others leaving at the same time, yelled at again. “I said!!!! 8:00, don’ you people hear me???!!!”

7:00 and on to the security check line with boarding 20 minutes away. We made it on the plane as the last passengers were boarding and surprisingly the doors closed on time. All ready for take off and those engines power down and that dreaded voice comes over the speaker “Due to mechanical problems…we expect to leave In about 45 minutes. All those with connecting flights in Dallas should not be impacted.” Arrived in Dallas just in time for the England match (Raf’s World Cup obsession continues)

The airport in Japan housed all the necessary travel impulse buying items such as Hermes, and Tiffany’s…even had the latest Shiseido face creams for Y100,000 about $1000.
Finally arrived at Beijing airport, only to have to submit our bags once again to the x-ray machine. It’s stricter to get into the country than on the plane. Lol

We were met by our tour guide, Mona, who informed us that there were no other people in our group. Our own private tour guide and driver Mr. Wong, as well, to accompany us for our 4-day stay in the city.
With sleep on our minds, we made it to the Grand View Garden Hotel. It’s listed as a 4 star, our friends told us to expect motel quality, but after visiting Japan and staying in a cubicle, this room is huge. Not 4 stars by US standards, but very nice. Good night….zzzzzzz!!!!

Goodbye Miami