Time Change / Food Change

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Friday July 9, 2010

So the day started out pretty quiet, Rich had to meet folks in the lobby at 10:00 am. I slept in until around 11:00 am. I had decided that I would spend the day getting used to the time change, unpacking and getting acclimated to the hotel. The hotel is absolutely beautiful inside one can only imagine the cost of construction. Once outside it is a totally different experience. As I stated previously we are in the area called the BDA. The Government decided that large Fortune 500 business would locate here and build the equivalent of our Technology Corridor. Large Businesses have been here for some time but their were no hotels. The Pullman is the only five star hotel in this area, at times Rich and I feel like we are also the only guests. There are five restaurants but only three are open, there is a wine and cigar bar without cigars! Rich was thrilled to hear that. You can only buy wine by the bottle. When you head to a restaurant at least five people swarm you to have a seat, when you look at the menu it appears nothing on the menu even resembles cooked food.

The view outside our window is thick with pollution with a few cranes that look as though they have not been moved for some time. We are a 20 minute ride by taxi to downtown Beijing grabbing a cab outside the hotel is not an issue, getting back is a whole other story. More about that later.

After I unpacked and showered I ordered room service and went with a grilled ham and cheese sandwich figuring it was safe and cooked. When it arrived it looked palatable but after my first bite it tasted more like card board. I ate the French fries and drank the Coke Zero which has become my crutch. I never drink coke in the states but here it is the only thing that taste familiar. Rich had emailed me to say that we would be going into downtown Beijing that night with some folks from work to a real traditional Chinese restaurant. I looked forward to tasting something that had some flavor.

We are on the Executive Level floor at the hotel which is touted as having afternoon tea, cocktails and the like. So I ventured to the lounge for tea and found no one in sight, no tea, no people, just me. Well hopefully I had given the cleaning staff enough time to clean my room. Everything is automatized here so I truly believe when I pushed the button for maid service the woman was waiting in the room next to me for the one guest to leave her room so she could clean. Once back in my room I began to get ready for the evening since Rich said we would leave around 4:20pm because of all the traffic.

The driver arrived with Rich, along with Nancy and Frank who work at the local facility. They were very cordial, I had met Nancy before in Singapore We got into the car and proceeded to drive towards downtown Beijing. The roads look similar to any main arteries in the states, the only differences are that there are tall apartment buildings everywhere, you will see five and six almost on top of each other. Nancy and Frank explain to us that apartments are very expensive as you get closer to the city. Some of these buildings look as though a stiff wind would knock them to the ground. Some are new and modern, we asked if people move to newer and better they said not often. It does appear that they own their apartments and that typically the husband's family buys the first apartment for the newlyweds sometimes spending their life savings. Once the newlyweds have the allotted one child the husband's parents move in to help. Mind you we were told the total space of these units is 70 to 100 square meters. I cannot imagine this life style. It is also interesting to see all the German cars on the roads, Audi, Mercedes, BMW. It seems that the Chinese like their cars although not many have them. I can only imagine the traffic if more of them begin to purchase vehicles. Frank said the government frowns upon using private transportation.

Well we finally arrived at the restaurant, I cannot began to tell you how crowded Beijing is. The best way I can think to explain it is to imagine it always looks like a concert just let out. There are people everywhere, horns beeping constantly, people on bikes, on motor-scooters some with masks for the smog some without. If you are crossing the street they will just beep and keep going. This makes New York City look like a piece of cake.

Once in the restaurant we were told the history of the building, it was actually a home hundreds of years old of someone very wealthy. Each home is connected by courtyards to another area of the home where maybe the female children would live, one for the males, one for the grandparents etc. etc. We toured some of the area and it began to pour with in minutes we were in puddles up to our ankles. After seeing how dirty the streets were I was not feeling to good about where my feet were. They came with umbrellas to get us to bring us back to our room for our dinner. Nancy proceeded to go through the large menu pointing at pictures with the waitress, it sounded like she had ordered enough food for twenty people. Of course Rich and I had our fingers crossed that we could eat some of it.

The food arrived all at once, Nancy did not seem very happy and let he wait staff know this. It is funny they always appear to be yelling at each other. I can honestly say the food looked ok, but I had no interest in putting any of it in my mouth. The cut up an entire chicken bones and all and put it in their mouths and spit out bones. Rich and I have figured out you cannot watch them eat or you will be sick. Nancy proceeded to put some food on my plate and I proceeded to make little piles of food trying to hide food so it looked as though I was eating. I won't disgust you with details but lets just say even though this was a very nice restaurant I do not think their cooking habits are up to Western Standards. Rich some how managed to eat enough to at least not go to sleep with a growling stomach. I ate peanuts and drank tea. I guess this is one way to lose weight. We left the restaurant and the driver took us back to our prospective homes. Tomorrow is a big day Frank is taking us to the Great Wall.

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Photos

Hotel Lobby
Opulence Inside

Hotel View
View from our Hotel Window......

Peking Duck
Peking Duck

Food
Hungry Anyone

Restaurant
Streets of Beijing

Comments

[Jackie]

The new weight loss program
Just think how skinny you will be when you get back!! I want to go just to lose weight. It sounds interesting but how in the world do they all live so close together? No wonder that when they come here they are amazed at our lifestyle.

[Tom]

Food
I'm now hungry. I think I'll have some bacon and eggs, with wheat toast and jam. Or maybe a bisquit with gravy. Hum, maybe I should not suggest this stuff while you are away so I'll stop. I smell the coffee brewing....

[Cheryl Hynds]

Andrea, I love hearing about your adventure, it makes me laugh and think about Bill and Carla's stories from there. They don't really differ to much. I am forwarding them on to Carla as I think she will get a kick out of your take on China. Have fun, and look forward to reading more.