China: Beijing

It's been almost two weeks since getting back from China, and I'm only just getting around to reflecting on what I've seen. It seemed like such a whirlwind of events, and since I didn't have a computer or access to blogger, I just snapped hundreds and hundreds of pictures without even thinking. It feels like I was in Beijing ages ago, when really it was less than a month ago.

(Don't worry, I won't completely inundate you with photos, but I hope you look anyway!)

Living on the west coast + time change of +15 hr from PST meant we left Monday morning bright and early and got into Beijing Terminal 3. First impressions: Ugh, it's so hot and muggy; whoaaa this airport is humongous, and I am so exhausted. My one gripe about international travel is the cramped plane rides that must be endured. Fortunately we got to stay at a beautiful hotel - Beijing's Sheraton Doncheng Hotel - which had an amazing buffet every morning. We indulged in lots of food, sights and of course shopping, but here are the highlights of our three days in Beijing:

Temple of Heaven

Tiananmen Square

Peking Duck (in an appropriate dish) 

Jade Factory 

Sacred Way

Dress: forever21, Bag: lesportsac 

We went to a quieter section of the Great Wall called Mutianyu. It was nice because there weren't so many people around, and we had the opportunity to walk around and take photos without getting in other people's way. Plus it was nice and cool (okay, like 80 degrees F but there was a breeze!) that made our two hours quite enjoyable.

Summer Palace

Our last stop in Beijing was the Summer Palace, where the only empress of China spent all the money that was going to be used for a navy on her vacation hangout. That's cool I guess. There were some old men using giant paintbrushes and water to paint calligraphy on the ground, which I thought was pretty cool.

Check back in a couple days for some photos of Xi'an!

-Isabelle