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Published: August 6th 2007
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24th September 2006
When the alarm went off we leapt out of bed and collected our bags for the day ahead. We had agreed to go to the hotel breakfast, and we knocked on my parents door, discovered they had overslept! We went to breakfast and they were to follow. We encountered a slight problem in that before we could sit down they wanted paying. Kitty was with mum so we had to wait until they arrived. As enthusiastic as we were to immerse ourselves in Chinese culture, only Dad managed dumpling soup for breakfast. We stuck to coffee and sweet toast and jam. For the money we couldn’t complain about breakfast - the equivalent of £0.70p. Our minibus arrived and we joined the other 6 tourists on the bus. Our guide Salina spoke good English and explained that the day’s itinery would include the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, Temple of Heaven and a pearl factory. We first went to the Summer Palace. The buildings had outside a number of very spectacular statues, vases and sculptures depicting birds and dragons. We completed a tour of the main complex buildings, sometimes competing with other tours of Chinese visitors who were all
Summer Palace
Gardens and Lake wearing the same colour baseball cap. We then followed the lake along and some of the tour party chose to have their photo taken in traditional Chinese costume. We were able to take photos of the bridge and the guide explained the significance of the 17 arch bridge.
We then went to the Temple of Heaven and got quite a bit of free time to explore and take pictures. The green ceiling of the main temple was fantastic. Russ and Dad bought wooden construction kits to make replica models of the Temple. The deal was the first bargain of the holiday, and certainly wouldn’t be the last. We were taken for lunch here and it was an opportunity to talk to the other people on the tour. Lunch was soup as a starter and a variety of main courses brought out, fish, meat, and vegetarian all served with rice. This was included in the tour and we got a beer or soft drink included. Dad served as the chief taster of dishes and on his say so I tried some of the dishes but couldn’t face the fish dish as it resembled crab claws in batter. He assured me
it was just white fish but I wasn’t taking the chance.
We then went to a Pearl factory and I was picked to choose an oyster and got to keep the pearl that was inside it. We didn’t buy anything inside the factory but mum made a purchase of a silk bag outside. Already she was thinking of presents for the people at home.
The next stop was the Forbidden City and what was quite a long walk through the grounds and different buildings within. Some of the party did struggle to keep up with the pace. Our guide went through the significance of each of the temples and their names, but by the end I was slightly mixed up and didn’t know which was to be the next one we visited. We had by then walked though the entire complex and the guide took us to a park on the other side where we saw Chinese people enjoying themselves in a variety of ways. There was Chinese opera, sport, choir singing, ballroom dancing and mime. The guide commented that this was often the way local people spent their Sunday afternoons. We went to a tea house and
were given the opportunity to sample some different Chinese teas.
The rest of the party returned to the bus and then to their hotels but actually our hotel was only round the corner so we chose to make our own way and actually went back to the Forbidden City and saw Army recruits on parade practising marching. I think they needed to practise a lot more before they were let out on parade. We also went to Tiananmen Square for a look round. There were a number of floral displays depicting the Three Gorges Dam and the Palace of Lahasa in Nepal, together with a straw depiction of the Olympic stadium. There were also inflatables of the Olympic mascots taking part in different sports.
We walked back to our hotel, and agreed on a quick turnaround reconvening in the hotel bar to explore the city centre. We walked into the main shopping street of Beijing and were able to glimpse the food night market. Unfortunately, mum was not feeling very well, and we put it down to a change in diet and water and perhaps the fish dish at lunchtime. Dad also felt under the weather, and so
they returned to the hotel to recuperate. We continued and did go and visit the food markets. The sight of anything on a sick and then deep fried is one that will stand out for some time. It is true, that the Chinese will eat anything. It was like a scene from “I’m a Celebrity”. It wasn’t so much the sight of the different foods, but the smell that I found unbearable. It was the smell of rancid oil. Not to be put off, we went to a restaurant just along from the market for something to eat, and it was tasty served with traditional jasmine tea and tanks at the rear of the restaurant with fish for you to choose from.
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