China Trip

First we went to Beijing. BTW, on the plane ride there, they showed a movie about the lochness monster. However, I put my glasses on the magazine pouch because I was sleeping, and then I stepped on them and smashed the frame.

The hotel was really really nice. When we got there we met up with some of my relatives. Then we went out to eat with them. We ate this really good spicy turtle. I think it was food from southern China, but I forgot from where.

The next day we went to see some sites and stuff and went out to dinner with relatives again. We had Beijing style hot pot, where you use a sesame paste (and I think sacha paste?) based sauce. Then the next day we went to some more sites and also had Peking duck. The best site was probably Tian Tan or "Temple of Heaven" because of the old people doing exercises and playing cards in the park in the morning. A lot of people were dancing.


Flower sculpture at Tiananmen Square


Turtle in the Forbidden City (Gu Gong)


The Great Wall

In general, though, Beijing food sucks. Actually, food in all the places sucked except Shanghai.

Also, Beijing and Xi'an air quality was really bad.

Traveling with a tour group also sucked and is not recommended, at least, not in a large tour group.