Beijing

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Somewhat accustomed to Chinese culture, we were finally ready to leave Shanghai for new sights and sounds. We took a 12 hour, overnight train to Beijing. We had it made--our own room with 2 soft and comfortable beds. It was the best first train experience for the both of us!
As soon as we found our hostel and checked in, we dropped our things and walked to the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was bulit between the years of 1406 and 1420. For almost 5 centuries it was the home to the Emperor and all his family and staff. In 1987 it was declared a World Heritage Site and is open to the public. Enough history...here are some pictures! It was beautiful!
Yesterday we took a 3 hour bus ride to The Great Wall in Northern China. It was magnificent! Blue skies and a breeze! We hiked about 6.5 miles on the wall that felt mostly uphill and took a zip line over a river back to the bottom of the mountain.

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