Beijing, day 2: Great Wall

Another day full of adventuring and touring in Beijing. This time the highlight of our day of touring was the Great Wall of China. However, we also visited a jade factory, the Ming tombs, and a Beijing Duck restaurant. Again, here are some pictures.



Here is my mom at the jade factory trying on a jade bracelet. I sniffed "tourist trap" when I was told I was going there (I originally thought I'd been there before, but I hadn't), but I found the jade making process and the different jade objects that were made to be very interesting.



We ended up arriving at the Great Wall at about 1. The traffic was absolutely horrendous. We ended up getting out 2 km away from the beginning of the Great Wall (Badaling, for those of you who've been there before) and walking, and we made it there 30 minutes before the bus did. It was rather crowded at the wall. In this picture the two women and the man at the bottom (from left to right: Oren, Tova, and Mr. Rodriguez) were all in our tour group (except for myself, my mom and Mr. Rodriguez's wife Iliya, that's the entire group).







This large sign is a new addition to the area and can be seen from afar while driving up to the Badaling site or while walking up the wall. After my mom and I found ourselves off of the wall, I saw a sign that offered a more convenient way off the wall. While it didn't have the wide spanning views that were afforded on the wall, I got a close up picture at this sign for the Olympics. A fair trade, if you ask me, especially considering the deluge of people on the wall.



Next, the Ming tombs. I like the Ming tombs, but last time I went we got to go to a really interesting underground chamber with all sorts of cultural artifacts, which we didn't get to go to this time. Still, I had a good time. The young Chinese fellow in the yellow shirt and the backpack at the bottom is our tour guide, Sam.



Me, my mom, and Emperor Yongle. We make quite the group.



We finished off the day at a Peking Duck restaurant. I've been craving this dish since I left China the first time. The Duck at the place we went, despite the sauce being a little thicker than I'd normally prefer, was excellent. The other meals were magnificent as well, including "duck rolls" (think duck chimichangas), Kung Pao chicken, Pineapple Chicken, Koumo Jipianr (I hope you're reading this, Hooker), Eggplant, and French Fries (they brought out some special dishes for the vegetarians).

We have tomorrow morning at our leisure before leaving at 2. I'm thinking about going to Beihai Park, since they apparently have T'ai Chi demonstrators in the morning. I don't know if I'll be able to get up that early (6 AM), but it's a good target to have.

By the way, I don't know what my Internet availability will be over the next few days (I will be on a river cruise). I will try my best to make small posts when I have the chance.

See you later!