In the first room, the workers meticulously shape and glue thick copper bands onto the vases forming the design to be painted
The colored paint is filled into the copper wire openings with eye droppers
The Sacred Way was lined first with animals...
...then with ancient government officials leading to the 13 ming tombs
Katie with an elephant along the Sacred Way, one of the best places to be in all of China
We went to the jade factory where this year's Olympic medals are being made
We had an early lunch at the jade gallery
Wow, hard to believe we were really at the Great Wall of China - there was a definite sense of awe and wonder being on this great wonder that can be seen from space
Split down the middle at the Great Wall
Small walls jetted out on either side of the never-ending main wall
Hi-yah!
If you look closely, you can see the great wall continuing up the ridge line of the mountains in the center of this picture
Find Katie in this picture! The wall was rather hilly, going up and down between towers
I was loving the tobaggaon ride down from the great wall - faster, faster!
We stopped by a farmer's fruit stand on our way from the Great Wall back to the hotel
We were baffled in the grocery store and wondered what the contents were in each foreign package
The oldest railway station in Beijing just down the street from our hotel, a good landmark for us
We were there! Here we are in front of the Bird's Nest in which the 2008 Olympic opening ceremony took place
A snap of the Bird's nest and adjacent Water Cube
The Water Cube flashed different colors: pink, green, blue
This torch shaped SEVEN star hotel is adjacent to the Olympic stadium
me, Katie in front of the National Grand Theater - Beijing was filled with structurally interesting and unique buildings
The sun setting over the massive lake surrounding the National Grand Theater with the entrance located beneath where I was sitting
Our first glimpse of Hou Hai Bar Street, the happening spot at night
Another shot of Hou Hai
People were dancing and flying kites (colored lights) at the Ancient Wall - it reminded us of the movie in the park scene from The Wedding Planner
Thanks to travel agent Katie, we had a series of tours booked for our visit to Beijing. This city is rather overwhelming with fewer English speakers than I expected. Our first tour was a smashing success and we had a scorcher of a day for it - perfectly sunny and HOT unlike the past few rainy weeks here. "Bonus" was the word of the day as the tours were flanked with unexpected surprise "bonus" visits to lots of tourist traps. Our first bonus stop of the day was surprisingly interesting. We were guided through the process of wiring, painting, firing, and sanding cloisonne ware (hand-crafted copper vases, plates, etc).
Our next known stop was at Sacred Way, part of the Ming Tombs complex. It's a long, straight path lined with statues of animals and ancient government officials leading to the 13 tombs of famous emperors. Beijing is huge on feng shui, and the Sacred Way is considered the best place you could possibly be in all of China. The Ming Tombs are on the northern end of the central axis (dragon way?) that brings blessing and good fortune. As with lots of Chinese women, our guide Alicia used an umbrella to shelter her from the sun as she walked. As we toured around the city, we saw lots of umbrellas and even more bicycles. They were everywhere we looked, many hauling loads bigger than a huge pick up could carry.
Our next stop was the second bonus opportunity at Beijing Dragon Land Superior Jade Gallery. We learned about the authenticity and carving of jade followed by pressure sales at what seemed like the same 10 counters scattered redundantly through a massive sales shop. This gallery is making jade inlaid medals for the 29th Olympic games this year in Beijing.
The long awaited afternoon activity was our second world wonder, the Great Wall. We went to the Mutianyu section of the wall in the Huai Rou County about 75km northeast of Beijing. This section of the wall used to serve as the northern barrier defending the capital and the imperial tombs. We avoided the most touristy section of the Great Wall by heading a little further out, but we still enjoyed the luxury and thrill of a cable car ride up to the wall and a tobaggon ride down. We had about two hours to walk along the wall, which consisted of millions of tiny steps only 1-2" deep but normal width. We surged up and down the wall between towers which we joked were air conditioned because the shade and protection from the scorching sun and breeze through the 'windows' was such a welcome relief. It was surreal to be standing on the Great Wall, a place I never imagined I'd be. I followed Katie down the hill screaming "faster, faster!" from my bolting tobbagon. I nearly crashed into her as I was disregarding the signs to slow down around the curves.
We made a quick run for water and snacks and were rather amused and entertained trying to guess the contents of packages covered in chinese symbols. We were never quite sure what we were buying or what exciting treasure may surprise us. We downed a quick snack and headed off on our next tour, a tour of the city at night. We had to laugh because the company we booked through specializes in small group sizes. We had a very personal tour - a private car for just the two of us and our guide April. It was supposed to be a driving tour only but we were able to stop and walk around at various points. Now that's service. We saw the Olympic Stadium (Bird Nest) and neighboring National Aquatics Center (Water Cube), the CBD and SOHO Business Street, the National Grand Theatre (a sleek bubble surrounded by a massive man-made lake with entrance under the lake), Ancient City Wall (with people dancing and flying kites stringed with colored lights), and Hou Hai Lake Bar Street (reminiscent of a hyped up Riverwalk with around 50 or so bars surrounding a large lake with a river finger on one end). We encountered unexpected adventure crossing the street and being driven in a car among the lunatic traffic of Beijing. It's terrifying!
