Beijing, China

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Beijing is, in some ways, the center of the universe right now. Many believe the 21st century to belong to China and Beijing is like the control room. It is very different than the parts of China I have experienced so far, especially following the adjustments made for the 2008 Olympics held less than a year ago.


I gave myself the challenge of getting from the airport (far outside of town) to a hostel without using a taxi. So it involved a shuttle bus, a couple different subway lines and a fair amount of walking, but I had no problems. I stayed at the Happy Dragon Hostel near Tiannamen Square and The Forbidden City.


Michael Jackson died right before I got to Beijing and the hostel had an MJ DVD on a loop almost the entire time I was there. I will forever associate Michael Jackson with Beijing.

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