Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Backtrack to Beijing.

I wanted to take a minute to backtrack a little before I forget the events of Sunday in Beijing.  I may have mentioned in an earlier post that we happen to be in Beijing during a major national holiday (something equivalent to our Labor Day).  This turned out to be a terrible time to try and do a group tour b/c of the massive crowds of people.  Take an already overly populated country and throw in a holiday where many travel to the capital city and it is just chaotic. 

Sunday morning we attended worship at a Christian church in Beijing.  We had to show our passports to attend, as it is only "opened" to foreigners and not nationals.  It was in English and was very similar to our church service in the States.  There were many nationalities represented there and that made it interesting. 

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After church we made a stop at a Jade Factory and of course I was 'obligated' to make a purchase for Miss Molly for the future.  It was very similar to the Pearl factory where we saw a demonstration and then were anxiously helped by the workers there.

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After that we had lunch and then made our way to the Great Wall...a trip that should have lasted less than an hour left us in the bus for about 4 hours!!!!  There were so many people trying to get to the Great Wall and the traffic was simply unforgettable!  We finally made it just before 'closing' and had one hour to "climb".  This was a bit disappointing as this was one thing Eddie especially was looking forward to on this trip.  I mean, it is one of the 7 wonders of the world and all!!  So to be limited on the tour was frustrating.  The part we did get to see was amazing.  To think of the vast expanse of the size of the wall and the land it covers is surreal.  I climbed just a few levels and gave Eddie the camera to take as far as he could go b/c I knew I couldn't keep up with him.  We wore our Tennessee orange shirts to get a picture there at the wall, but were so rushed we didn't even get a picture together.

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That evening we were supposed to eat a traditional Peking Duck dinner, but that was canceled due to the time on the bus and we settled for McDonalds hamburgers which honestly tasted like heaven for just a second!!  (We are so sick of Chinese food and Chinese smells...)

I'm so glad we were fortunate enough to have the time in Beijing to see all of the famous landmarks and to familiarize myself with some Chinese customs and ways.  It was good to have some time amongst the Chinese people before I got Molly.  I couldn't help myself from looking at them and studying their faces.  On the flip side, they looked at me plenty!!!!!!!!!!!!  I was just eating it up, honestly.  The cutest people of all ages would come up to me and ask for a picture and once I agreed to do it for one, a whole "flock" of people would surround me.  At the Great Wall two boys about 10 years old approached me to practice their conversational English skills.  It was really cute!

1 comment:

Dan and Karen said...

I'm loving the updates! The Great Wall still takes my breath away. We loved the international fellowship service too...it's kind of unreal to show your passport to enter church and really makes one thankful for where we live.

I'm so glad you are enjoying each day!

Karen

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