The wake up call was right on time, 0630. It took me a minute or two to realize that I was actually in China rather than home in Japan. It was a bit disorientating. Aaron and I headed down to breakfast and man it was a treat.
There was just about every breakfast food imaginable down in the restaurant. It was a buffet. For those of you who don't know me, I throw down at buffets. It's like I go into a "I'm never going to be able to eat again" mode. I had bacon, sausages, steamed buns, stir fried vegetables and tons more. Finally it was getting time for us to head out for the day.
Aaron and I both decided to pack lightly. We took with us our backpacks and just enough clothes to get us by for five days. So we basically took our entire luggage with us wherever we went.
The first stop of the day was to get some pictures of the Olympic buildings. The stadium itself was only so-so in my opinion, but the cool dragon building across the way was really neat. After our picture break we were taken to a jade store where we could buy jade on the cheap. Needless to say, I didn't buy anything.
45 minutes of wandering around later and we were on the bus heading to the Great Wall of China. This turned out to be my favorite part of the trip. I had seen pictures of it before, but nothing can compare with actually being there and seeing it for yourself. The scope of it is amazing. Standing on something that was built so many centuries ago was very awe inspiring. I wish I could have spent the rest of the day just walking around and looking at the wall from different aspects. We wandered around the wall, trying not to fall (it was cold and some parts were icy). We also avoided the numerous souvenir vendors trying their hardest to sell us silly hats.
We hiked around a couple of the more nearby hills and took our fill of pictures. And then our hour and a half was over. Aaron and I headed for the rope way and actually ended up with the same group of people we went up with.
Shortly after descending, it started to snow. The snow continued for most of the day and gave the area a nice ambiance. The Great Wall would have looked amazing with the snow, but sadly, I was not to see it.
The next stop was lunch. After the huge breakfast I had I was a bit surprised to find myself hungry. But hungry I was and greatly welcomed the Chinese lunchbox which had been prepared for us. There were several items in there and the only thing I didn't eat was the fish. Also during lunch we were treated with some Chinese alcohol. I'm not sure if it was meant for drinking or cleaning engine parts, but it did the trick and after only three shots, I was feeling nice and warm. After lunch we had another, shorter shopping break. I decided I needed to get something for my girlfriend so I hunted for something to get her. The place was obviously geared for Japanese people of means. All of the vendors spoke Japanese and would hurry around trying to get people to buy stuff.
Once back on the bus we headed to the Ming Tombs. That was also a very pleasant area, but I think that it was made more attractive due to the freshly fallen snow. It gave the entire area a nice charm that I am glad I got to see.
The tombs were of course very elegant and I marveled at the detail of the place. However, I was pretty cold at this point so I was having a hard time keeping my mind focused on the scenery. To actually enter the tombs we had to pass a security check where all bags had to be in the left hand. I thought it was a bit excessive for something that isn't very famous or popular. The inner areas of the tombs didn't hold much. There were some thrones and then a "tomb" section which had nothing but large, red, metal boxes. I didn't find this as interesting as the outside.
Mr. Lee hurried us out of the tomb and back to the bus to begin our drive back to Beijing and dinner. Dinner was simply amazing. We had Peking Duck and it was just great. I've had Peking Duck in the States, but there's no comparison. The chefs made a big production of cutting the duck and we all got to take pictures. The duck of course went fast and I ended up a bit disappointed at not getting to eat more of this delicious bird. The side dishes, though, were awesome too. I filled up on the many stir fries and other concoctions that came throughout dinner.
We headed back to the hotel and Aaron and I decided to go on a little adventure of our own. We grabbed our money and went into the night.
That was an experience. It was still part of the Chinese New Year so people were shooting off fireworks and such. That coupled with the falling snow made me feel like I was in a war movie. Every time a firework shot off, I would jump. The steam and mist in the cold air gave an eerie atmosphere to the entire place. After walking for about 10 minutes we decided that we did not want to get lost or stabbed so we headed back. I of course wanted beer. So we popped into the little convenience store down the road and proceeded to buy snacks and liquids. The girl working there was mean. She literally tossed our change at us and just came off as being rude. Outside we ran into some nice Japanese guys who were on our tour and they bought us beer. That made me happy.
Back at the hotel Aaron and I ate our snacks and watched some TV. We finished our stuff and decided to go to bed to prepare for our third day: The Forbidden City.
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