Day 2

The first night of sleep went very well, and I think I can say that I'm acclimated to the time difference.  Marshall and I got breakfast at the McDonalds just down from the Hotel.  I ordered a Sausage Burger, which was a sausage patty, egg and cheese with ketchup on top, and surrounded by hamburger buns.  It was pretty good; I wish we had them in the States.

We spent a bitterly cold day sightseeing in Beijing.  Everywhere we go is by subway, which is really quite fun.  We first went to Tiananmen Square and then to the Forbidden City.  They were both covered in snow, which is rather unusual.  They get snow, "but not like Michigan snow" which is what Amanda, who is from Beijing, said.  The Forbidden City was one of the most amazing places I have ever seen.  We were only given an hour to explore it because it was so cold, but what we did see really proved that Chinese rulers were very, very wealthy and powerful.  No expense was spared in constructing it, and it's huge.  I think during our free time, I'm going to go back and poke around more; there were parts that we weren't even able to see.  After seeing the Forbidden City, we went to a restaurant for some lunch, which provided another example of how miserable I am at using chopsticks (but I'm not giving up).  Following lunch we visited the Temple of Heaven, which is another wonderful place to go.  It would be better in any season other than winter however, because of the expansive gardens that surround it.  The greenery was still rather impressive because it was primarily coniferous.  The Temple of Heaven concluded our historical sites tour, so we went to the Pearl Market for a bit before dinner.

The Pearl Market provides a shopping experience radically different than anything I've ever seen.  There are booths upon booths upon booths, all piled in next to each other, brimming with wares.  And the vendors stand in front of them, hawking very persuasively, in some cases grabbing at you for your attention.  It's a constant, "look over here!", "buy this from me!", "sir you need a (anything)!?!"  These are phrased very much in the manner of a statement and very much all the time.  Bartering is also very big there.  If you pay the full price you have been had, is what it comes down to.  A fair counter offer is something like 10% of the initial offered value, and you'll probably finish at around 20-40%.  This takes some getting used to.

This evening we had a delightful dinner at a very small, very classy restaurant.  Our group had a private room, and they brought food to us, placed on a rotating glass slab in the middle of our table.  Plate after plate kept coming and coming.  We had Peking duck, a delicacy, and a host of other treats of which I can only describe as like nothing I had ever seen.  I'll try to describe them anyway.  There were several of the typical meats you would find in American Chinese food, but much better of course.  I had a piece of the fattest meat I've ever eaten doused in a delicious sauce.  There was a dumpling that had what could be called a casserole inside it and a strange dessert that tasted like mealy applesauce (not a huge fan of that delicacy).  The food was fantastic, and after that we took a long subway ride back to the Hotel, during which I talked with Sarah Jen about her semester in South Africa; it was nice to meet one of Nathan, Tim and Becky's cousins.  Now here I am typing at the computer.

Tomorrow is the Great Wall; we have to get up early, so I'll be hitting the sack soon.  Good morning.