Day 3: Beijing/Nanjing

Whew - a whirlwind day! Sightseeing, authentic Chinese cuisine, travel, and too much alcohol!

We began the day once again waking early! Jodi was up at 3:00 am, Bryan at 3:30. We think we have adjusted to the time change, perhaps it is the excitement waking us early! After yet another wonderful breakfast with Nour and Hamid, we packed our belongings and departed the Peace Hotel for a sightseeing trip to the Temple of Heaven. Very Chilly in the morning (about 35 degrees) and windy. Yet we found thousands of people at the temple participating in all kinds of activities - Tai Chi, a Chinese form of hackie-sack, dominos, cards, dancing, singing, instruments, exercising, and more. The Temple of Heaven is a Taoist temple and many people flock there every morning.

Our guide Oscar (see picture) showed us some very interesting aspects of the temple. The whispering wall (you can stand anywhere along the wall and whisper to someone standing elsewhere along the wall, the "pulpit" where the emperor stood to speak where the sound reverberated back to him so he could also listen to himself speaking, and the echo stones where depending which stone you stood on you could here 1, 2, or 3 echos. But watching all the people partake in so many various activities was the highlight! Much more activity than you'd ever find in an American park.

Our next stop was the Silk Factory. We learned all about the silkworms life cycle, and how they get the silk from the cocoons. It takes 7-8 cocoons to form a single thread of silk. Each thread is almost 1000m in length - wow! We then saw how they used what are called "husband-wife" cocoons (because each contain 2 pupae instead of one) to make comforters. Because the two silkworms interweave their silk, the strands cannot be separated into a single thread. We purchased a little present for mimi and papa Paul from the factory... Thanks for watching the kids! This is definitely the place to buy silk if that is the material you love - best prices anywhere!

Oscar took us to a very nice authentic Chinese restaurant in the afternoon. We were a bit nervous, but he helped us order (from a 50 page menu all written in Chinese). It was delicious! Oscar did a wonderful job picking some foods (various dishes of beef, chicken, and vegetables) that we would enjoy. Jodi got through the meal using only chopsticks, but Bryan succumbed and asked for a fork.

We then journeyed to the Summer Palace for our last sightseeing in Beijing. Very gorgeous. This is where Empress CiXi stayed. It is also where she "house-arrested" her nephew for purportedly planning to kill her. Not a bad place to be restricted. We've included a picture of the marble boat that the Empress had built.

Finally, it was time to head to Nanjing - only two more days until we unite with Jailyn. Oscar was very helpful, not only taking us to the airport, but checking us in at the counter and ensuring that we made it through security. He was a terrific guide - if anyone is ever looking for a recommendation, we will gladly pass you Oscar's contact information. The flight to Nanjing was relatively uneventful. Bryan ordered the noodles on the plane - they were rather good! Jodi ordered the rice - not a wise choice - yuck! They also had this great after dinner candy - at first it tasted like a mild hard candy we'd find in the States, but then it started fizzing! Yummy! We need to try and find some for the kids! We arrived, looking for Nancy, but Lily (Nancy's friend) picked us up. Nancy had been delayed by a previous flight arriving late. On our way to the hotel (Mandarin Garden in Nanjing), Lily spoke to the driver for a few minutes. She then turned and asked us how much we'd been drinking. None at all - apparently that was the same question she had asked the driver. He had also not been drinking (thankfully). But Lily smelled alcohol - lots of it (we are not sure why we didn't). When we arrived at our hotel room, however we discovered why. In the airplane, someone's liquor burst and spilled all over our luggage. Jodi spent the rest of our evening washing our clothes to get rid of the foul smell. Ugh! We now have clothes hanging all over the room drying and the suitcase still smells like alcohol! While hanging out in the hallway trying to air out the room, we also met another adopting couple from Chicago. Sue and Jodi had previously corresponded on a yahoo group. They are also very excited to meet their 2 year old son.

We look forward to tomorrow and Monday. Sunday, a little sightseeing with Nancy (our guide in nanjing), Nour, and Hamid. Monday we meet Jailyn for the first time!

Here are a few observations we have made that some may find interesting:
We love the showers - very hot water and no flow restrictors, the water comes gushing out!
1$ = 7.68 RMB (aka yuan).
Don't drink the water - its great for a shower, but not consumable - all the rooms come with a boiling pot. They also all come with two plastic bottles of purified water.
The Peace Hotel in Beijing has a wonderful breakfast buffet - 5 star! The Mandarin Hotel in Nanjing is not quite as good, but not bad - we'd say 4 star.
The Peace Hotel also has wireless (free) internet access in/near the business center. This appears to not be true of the Mandarin Hotel, although the maximum cost for a day of access is 40 yuan (very affordable compared to the US).
Listen to your guide.... they know where all the good bathrooms are. :)

Miss you Brady, Kenzie and Conner J!
Can't wait to get Jailyn home and all of us be together!!!!
Good luck on your soccer game today Brady! Play hard! :)