Friday, July 15, 2005
Jet lag, what jet lag? We bounced out of bed at 7 this morning, jumped into clothes and made our way to the Marco Polo cafe in the hotel. Breakfast is great there - they have an enormous buffet including eggs, bacon, sausage and ham, and Asian foods like fried rice, Dim Sum, fried noodles and a few other things I don't know the name of, but taste delicious! There are also breads, waffles, French toast, cereals and fresh fruits. We've been warned to stay away from the fresh fruits, though, since it could cause some stomach trouble. Here, I'm enjoying my 2nd helping of breakfast.
Daisy met us on time at 8:30 AM and we headed off to see the Great Wall. First stop on the way was a Jade carving factory. They do some amazing and beautiful things with this rock. We were shown how to tell high quality from low, or fake, and had a demonstration on carving. Then of course, it was off to the show room to shop! It is all so beautiful! After finding a few items, we were on our way again to the Great Wall.
The weather was perfect today for this event. In Beijing, it was overcast, but at the Wall, about an hour away, it was sunny, warm and breezy. Daisy's connections got us on the closest parking lot so we basically got out of the car and walked up to the Wall. We passed many people walking up the hill to the parking lot, so once again, we felt most privileged. Just above the parking lot, there's a little shopping area with a coffee shop. Dilla and Daisy made camp there while Justin took off for a climb on the Wall.
There's a line in a Little Feat song that goes, "you know that you're over the hill when your mind makes a promise that your body can't fill." I got a little taste of that today! I went zipping up the inclines and stairs, so exited to be here. It reminded me alot like climbing Ayer's Rock in Australia, like I did 20 years ago! After about a hundred yards, I was starting to slow down. After another hundred yards, I was thinking I shouldn't have had that 2nd helping of breakfast. By the 3rd hundred yards, I was toast. I was hunched over the side of the wall gasping for air thinking, "okay, you're not as young as you used to be!"
After about 10 minutes, I regained my composure, and enjoyed a much slower pace, covering about a mile of the Wall. It was absolutely breathtaking! Once in awhile, I'd just look at one of the stones and think about what it must have taken to set just that one into place. And there are millions of them over 4,000 miles of mountains! After about an hour and a half, I figured I'd better get back to Dilla and Daisy. It only took me just over 15 minutes to get back down. That was a lot easier.
Back in the air-conditioned comfort of the car, we left for lunch. It was already 2 PM. We stopped at another factory where they were making all kinds of beautiful, ornamental things from copper, ceramics and enamel. All were hand-made and hand-painted. We actually, weren't there to shop - Daisy suggested the restaurant there, which was, in fact, very good. After that, we went back to the hotel for a rest before dinner. It seems like all we've been doing since we left St. Louis is eating, while taking breaks to see some things!
At this point, we must pay tribute to our driver. He has been doing a great job getting us around town. He has a comfortable, roomy stretch sedan and knows all the ins and outs. And let me tell you something, he is fearless! Navigating the streets of Beijing would surely intimidate Chicago and New York drivers (though, I'm sure they'd catch on quickly). The rest of us would just be happy to be chauffeured around by someone like our Mr. Young. What's amazing is that among the countless near misses we've had with cars, busses and bicycles - one by mere inches - hardly anyone honks or seems to mind. And we haven't seen one accident!
Dinner was a great experience. Daisy brought a friend, Belinda along and the 4 of us went to a nearby local restaurant. Dilla and I were the only non-Chinese in the place. There was no English on the menus, as had been in other restaurants, and about the only English we heard anyone speak was "Thank You" when we left. The house specialty is dumplings, and they had all kinds. Coincidentally, tonight is a special event in China - the Friday night after the Summer Solstice. The week after the Summer and Winter solstice, it is traditional for families and friends to get together and eat a dumpling meal. Friday night is the big night, since it's the start of the weekend, and this place was packed! We had to wait a few minutes for a table, and while we did, we watched a flurry of activity.
Behind a huge window, sat a bunch of people hand-making the dumplings. There were a bunch of fish tanks with different kinds of live fish that you could order for dinner, including shrimp. And the employees were buzzing around noisily while the hostesses literally screamed for people to come up and be seated. It was fantastic!
We sat at a large, round table with another couple - family style. Daisy ordered - we had chicken soup with wild mushroom and fresh ginger. There were pork dumplings, chicken dumplings and shrimp dumplings - 10 to a plate! There was a bowl of cooked peanuts in vinegar and a large plate of "fried shrimp". (We were surprised to find that the shrimp came whole, and fried meant stir-fried, not battered and deep-fried!) There was also a delicious tea, flavored with chrysanthemums, floating in the teapot. The tea was served with raw sugar crystals. Justin also enjoyed a couple of Chinese beers.
There was a party atmosphere and the whole experience felt similar to being on the French Quarter in New Orleans. We ate like there was no tomorrow and there was still food left over. The bill for the 4 of us came to 198 Yuan, or about $25 USD. That included the beer and there is no tipping!
We waddled out of the restaurant and back around the corner to the hotel. We bid our friends good evening and thanked Daisy for another wonderful day. Daisy was supposed to be our guide until we leave for Chongqing on Sunday, but has been re-assigned to another group. Her friend Belinda, who joined us for dinner, will take care of us tomorrow and Sunday. With that, we retired to our room to relax for the rest of the evening and get ready for another day. It's been a lot of fun so far, but the best is yet to come.
Within 48 hours, we'll have Lily!!!