First full Day in Beijing

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We decided to take a trip to the Temple of Heaven in the morning, since Brian had not seen it yet with his school group. It is one of my favorite sites because it is made of my favorite colors blue and green...see photos. We took the audio tour which was in my opinion a waste of money...I only half listened to the tape.

After the Temple of Heaven we took a cab to the Silk Market...also known as knock off central. There were fake Gucci, Prada, Coach, Luis Vuitton, Omega, Rolex...you name it they got it. It becomes exhausting haggling with all the sales people. They grab your arm "Come see my bags, what kind you like? I got Luis Vuitton". You find something you like and they latch on like leeches! They start the prices at ridiculous prices and we come back at 20% of what they quote and then let the games begin. I got a faux Coach for myself...just one can you believe that! It cost me about $18 USD. I also got a couple co-workers Coach bags and some faux Prada/Dior sunglasses and that was about it. Brian got a faux Rolex and Omega watch. It was an exhausting experience, we were glad to leave. Dad - you would have LOVED this place. You probably would have walked out with one of everying because you would have been able to get a good deal on everything!!!

From the Silk Market we headed off to lunch at some hole in the wall restautant that Brian had been to with his classmates. In the week since he'd been there they erected a whole metal awning/balcony, they were still welding it when we were there. We ate some wierd fried tofu stuff, pickled cucumber, and sweet and sour beef.

After lunch we needed a siesta/shower break. Did I already mention that it's hotter than hell here? I take 3 showers a day just to try and stay somewhat fresh.

Next was one of my favorite spots called the Hou Hai aka the Lotus Late Bar Street. There were a lot of cute little stores where I bought some Christmas gifts and a very cute eyelet skirt. We also sat at a rooftop bar and had cocktails overlooking the river. There were a lot of rick shaws trying to get hired. We ate dinner at a very S.F. like hip Vietnamese Restaurant. The food was good...and they had AC!

After dinner we headed back to the hotel to relax before bed.

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