China and Beyond

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Greetings...I have been somewhat negligent in starting this early in my trip but am only three weeks into a ten week journey that will eventually take me through six countries. I started in Vancouver, Canada and after a brief stop in Hong Kong, flew via DragonAir ( the name did not instill a desire to leave the ground ) to Beijing. The first delay at landing was a nice couple from Melbourne had higher temperatures than desired. ( We were all checked by medical staff before disembarking ). That kept us in the airplane for about one hour. For some reason, we were all then released and rushing through the airport, I set off alarms from overheating. I was pulled aside and I dreaded three days in solitary and tried to explain that I was fine on the airplane and couldn't possibly get sick in two hundred metres or so. The woman said quite calmly " sit..don't worry ". My temperature came out at 36.9C and I was released into Beijing. I was met by my friend, Ling who took me by taxi to her neighbourhood and we dropped my bags and I showered and we headed out to eat. After cashing money, we sat at a sidewalk restaurant ( one of about a thousand ) and I was quite surprised at the amount of bitingly hot spice and garlic on the food. I thought " I can't get sick from this..no microbe could possibly live in this ". Problem was, my stomach and intestines would not accept nor tolerate these levels of spiciness and later, my intestines demanded attention but my colon would not cooperate...plus my body was just beginning the process of time-zone change so it took a couple of uncomfortable days to get things to even start to move...so to speak. My host was understanding but we still did the sites...as uncomfortable as some moments were, we went to the Forbidden City or the Gugong, as the locals call it. The sight should be taken in very slowly in the heat and carry plenty of water. There is a small restaurant on-sight but seems to be well hidden from the main areas. Cold water, juices and beer, as well as an ample menu are available at a fairly reasonable price considering your are inside a tourist site.

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Photos

Forbidden City - Main Square
Visiting Dignitaries would be met by the Emperor's representatives in preparation for meeting the man himself.

Forbidden City - Hair Raising
Heat and travel can do wonders for your few remaining hairs and add to a sense of ' what am doing here '